CT Green Scene

Fairfield Jesuits Go Green

by Eileen Weber

On Tuesday, Fairfield University’s Jesuits proudly displayed their new pad. It is a space that is simultaneously a residence, a community center, and a tribute to the environment.

Designed by New Haven architecture firm Gray Organschi, the building is constructed from metal, wood, glass and concrete. Much of the material is either recycled or sustainable. The design team, married couple Elizabeth Gray and Alan Organschi, worked for several months with the school’s Jesuit staff to create a place that met their needs and reflected modern ideals.

The two-story, 22,000 square foot residence boasts a closed loop geothermal heating and cooling system 400 feet underground, a roof garden that can absorb up to 95% of rainfall, and sustainable bamboo flooring.

But that’s not the coolest part. None of the surrounding trees were disturbed in construction, save one diseased and dying beech tree. Instead of scrapping it, the tree was locally milled and a good portion of it is hanging in the Great Room.

“For something that was considered waste,” said Organschi, “we were able to make it into something useful. The limbs were milled and joined to make a screen and an altar that will be put in place in a couple of weeks.”

Counting Carbon

by Eileen Weber


Thinking of building a new house or renovating your old one? Got a new office building that’s going up soon? Wondering how all this will affect the environment? Colorado’s Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) has developed an online carbon calculator called Green Footstep to help homeowners and businesses determine their carbon footprint.

It’s certainly nothing new. There are a number of online carbon calculators. Even Microsoft got into the act earlier this year by launching their Environmental Sustainability Dashboard, an enterprise resource planning (ERP) software package. Its goal is to help companies track their energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, something that most ERP systems don’t do.

"ERP systems are really good at giving you the financial numbers, but where they fall short is with the environment or social issues," said Jennifer Pollard, a senior Microsoft product manager, as quoted in a February 9th article in The Seattle Times.

But what makes RMI’s system special is that it not only calculates the construction footprint of the project but the operational footprint of the building’s lifetime once that project is finished.

FIRST BRANFORD LED LUMINATA DRAWS LARGE CROWD TO GREEN

(Branford, CT)  During a brisk autumn night crowds of families gathered on the Branford Green, blankets across their laps.  Most weren't exactly sure what they were going to see, but were intrigued by the massive lighting and music rehearsals taking place on the green all week.  The crew, led by Jamie Burnett, worked from dusk until dawn for several days in preparation for this historical presentation, to present the Branford Town Hall and Green in a "new light". 

Projects2k, a non-profit group of artists, scientists, & environmentalists,  The Town of Branford and the Branford Historical Society collaborated on this unique event to present an educational and beautiful depiction of Branford History in typical Projects2k fashion.  They are widely known for the Terra Series in the Stony Creek Quarry, often times straying outside of the lines, exposing people to science in a theatrical style.

Branford Luminata's program depicted an historical narrative through beautiful lighting effects (mostly low energy LED lighting), old images and photos projected onto the facade of the town hall and even a group of Branford High School students with full-sized clear models of themselves, named The Light Brigade.

If you missed last nights, you have one last opportunity to see it. Sunday nights program begins at 7:30 on The Branford Town Green!

Kroon Hall makes environmentalists swoon

By John Burgeson
Staff writer, Connecticut Post
Updated: 09/20/2009 12:18:22 AM EDT

NEW HAVEN ---- Looking a little like a 19th century Vermont barn, the newest building on the Yale University campus is attracting international attention because it's one of the most environmentally friendly buildings of its type in the world.

Kroon Hall, around the corner from the Peabody Museum, is the new home of the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies.

It gets electricity from the sun. Geothermal energy provides heat and air conditioning. Rainwater from the roof and grounds is used to run the commodes. Solar panels heat the water. In the winter, heat exchangers pull heat energy from warm exhaust air to aid the heating system.

Experts say that it uses about half the electricity than what would be expected for a building its size, and the photovoltaic array on the roof supply one-fourth of the remaining electrical load.

The structure is heated and cooled entirely with geothermal energy ---- there's no backup furnace or air conditioning system ---- or even a water heater for that matter.

Kroon is designed so it won't require much heating and cooling in the first place. Its east-west orientation maximizes solar heating in the winter, and the 23-degree tilt of the exterior slats deflect the sun's rays when it's high in the sky in the summer months. The massive concrete superstructure--there's no steel skeleton--acts as a huge heat sink. This "thermal mass" absorbs heart during the summer months, which slowly radiates

Click here to read more.

Photo courtesy of Yale University/Robert Benson

A Green FROG In Connecticut

by Eileen Weber

The Watkinson School in Hartford, the city’s only independent school founded in 1881, had a ground-breaking for their net-zero science facility on May 27th. San Francisco-based Project FROG designed the school’s Center for Science and Global Citizenship. This school building will be the first of its kind in New England. The construction date is scheduled for next week.

“The building [will be] as smart as the students and teachers in it,” said John Bracker, Watkinson’s Head of School. Some of the key elements in the design are a geothermal heating and cooling system as well as solar panels. Large glass windows will be incorporated into the design to trap in heat in the winter and block it out in the summer. The windows will also provide lots of natural light to cut down on electricity costs.

Bracker said that the school looked into updating its science building about five years ago. But conventional methods were too expensive. When the concept of going green for less money came up, the Board of Trustees gave the go-ahead.

“This will not only augment the way we teach but change the way we teach. The building will be as much a part of the curriculum as any other teaching tools,” said Bracker. In other words, in order for the school to teach about sustainability they have to be sustainable.

Local School Wins Award

by Eileen Weber

The Lyme-Old Lyme Middle School (LOLMS) was recently acknowledged for their green initiatives in the School of Future Design Competition. On May 1st, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and the Council of Education Facility Planners International Foundation (CEFPI) sponsored the event as well as the U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the American Institute of Architects along with over 30 associations and private companies. They announced the winners of the competition, which kicks off at the beginning of the school year, in Washington, D.C.

Students from across the country participated in the competition. Given the task to redesign their school in an environmentally friendly way, they were judged on sustainability, technology and community involvement in their projects. The event was part of School Building Week from April 27th through May 1st.

"Successful schools build successful communities." said Sue Robertson, CEFPI president in the company’s press release dated the last day of the competition. "Today's students, tomorrow's green builders, are committed to creating healthy, high performing schools and communities. Let's supply them with all the tools they need to improve the places where children learn. And then, let's really listen to them—because they have some really good ideas!"

Hospitals: Setting a Green Standard

by Eileen Weber

A trip to the hospital is not exactly on everyone’s To Do list. With harsh chemicals and bad air quality, hospitals are sometimes the unhealthiest places to be. From limiting their toxic waste to reducing their energy and water usage, the surgical scrubs aren’t the only things that are green, however.

Hospitals are recycling light bulbs and batteries. They are using green cleaning products. Even choosing to switch from cotton mop heads to microfiber saves thousands of gallons of water every year. They are even incorporating nature as part of the healing process with rooftop gardens and balconies open for fresh air. Studies have shown that patients who have some connection to nature have lower stress levels and recover more quickly.

But it doesn’t stop there. Practicing a healthy green business is great. But it’s even better in a green building.

According to an article dated March 27th in The Boston Globe, more hospitals are seeing the long-term benefit of renovating in an environmentally friendly way. They have included everything from LED lighting to high efficiency glass to low VOC paints and adhesives to roof top solar panels.

Reduce, Reuse, Renovate

by Eileen Weber

Less than a year ago, Fairfield residents Kraig and Suzanne Schulz finished renovating their home. They built it using insulated concrete forms (ICFs). They chose environmentally friendly products and energy-saving appliances. They installed compact fluorescent lightbulbs and energy-efficient windows. But all of that came with a pretty steep price tag and not without a few problems along the way.

According to a New York Times article dated March 5th, Petz Scholtus, a Belgian woman living in Spain, renovated her 18th century apartment to be “environmentally responsible on a shoestring.” However, being green on a budget is sometimes easier said than done.

Scholtus wrote a blog about her adventures trying to be eco-conscious while not squeezing her piggy bank at the same time. She reused plastic jugs as the outer shell for floor lamps. Her living room is decorated with beanbag chairs made from automotive textiles, magazine racks fashioned from antique drawers fitted with castors, and low VOC (volatile organic compound) paint on her walls. She also transported her belongings from the old apartment to the new one by bicycle. (Don’t try this at home, kids.)

Scholtus is not alone. In this country, blogs abound with nightmare renovations as well as stories of happily-ever-after eco-friendliness.

If You Build It Green, They Will Come…

by Eileen Weber

Did you know 18% of overall indoor water use and 37% of just the hot water use comes from household showers? Did you know that while the US is home to only 4.5% of the global population, it is responsible for over 15% of the world’s consumption of wood? Did you know that unhealthy air is found in 30% of new and renovated buildings?

These were just some fun facts from GreenBuilding.com, an organization based in Boulder, CO. They are the kind of statistics that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Green Building Council, and others focused on the benefits of green building want the average homeowner to know.

Building the new and renovating the old has taken a turn in the last several years. Homeowners, architects, and contractors alike are seeing the greater benefit of being more eco-conscious with their homes.

Barry Katz, an architect and builder in Westport, has been extremely vocal about the benefits of green building. He has written articles, given lectures, and even submitted entries to this web site about the endless possibilities of a “clean, green” future with the Obama administration.

But there are some homeowners who may balk at the initial cost of building green. To that, Katz says, “It doesn’t cost more, it costs less.” He said that before you build, you’re paying your mortgage, electricity and water bills. Before construction, those bills are higher. After construction, the initial costs essentially end up paying for themselves. “From the moment you move in to your [newly built] house,” he said, “your overall operating costs will be lower.”

DIY Green House Plans

The House Designers (THD) and ENERGY STAR® have partnered to offer consumers an exclusive collection of Green House Plans, which have all been awarded the "Designed to Earn the ENERGY STAR®" credentials to promote green home building.
 
All ENERGY STAR® house plans include energy-efficient details and specifications for features such as tight construction and duct systems (specific to locality), properly-installed insulation, high performance windows, efficient heating and cooling equipment, and ENERGY STAR® qualified lighting and appliances to reduce energy costs by 20 to 30 percent.
 
THD, based in Monroe, Connecticut is a leading on-line resource of the leading residential architects and designers in the U.S. THD has the best selling, most popular house plans in America all under one roof owned and operated directly by the designers with clients who have built their homes in every state in the U.S. and in 56 countries around the globe. 
 
Source: The House Designers and PACE