Campus Buildings

Did you know that in the United States alone, buildings account for:

  • 70% of electricity consumption
  • 39% of energy use
  • 39% of all carbon dioxide emissions
  • 40% of raw materials use
  • 30% of waste output (136 million tons annually)
  • 12% of potable water consumption
    (US Green Building Council, 2008)

The campus infrastructure at Saint Michael's College has a huge impact on the environment, we hope to make this a positive impact. Whether it's retrofitting existing buildings with energy efficient measures or making sure any new campus buildings are held to high environmental building standards, such as our new Alumni Relations building looking to be LEED certified.

New Alumni Relations Building aims to achieve LEED certification
The new Alumni Relations building, currently at the drawing table, is aiming to achieve LEED certification (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) as an environmentally sound building, both during construction and in post-construction lighting, appliance and water usage, as well as ventilation. Campus Architect, Jim Farrington, is currently working out the blue prints for the new building. We look forward to see the finished product!

   


Did you know?

Insulation is your primary defense against heat escaping from your house, up to 15% of heat is lost through the walls and 30% through the roof.  Insulating your walls and roofs can reduce a household's carbon footprint by 2,000 lbs of carbon dioixide a year!

Green roofs (roofs intentionally covered with vegetation) reduce the carbon footprint of a building by approximately 2,500 lbs of carbon dioxide a year (Varying on size of building).

Hardwood forests act like a vast reserve of carbon, storing billions of metric tons of carbon.  If you have the choice, it's best to avoid hardwood for your flooring or furniture needs as these forests take an extremely long time to grow.  If you do wish to use hardwood, look for Forest Stewardship Council-certified products (reducing your carbon footprint by 40 lbs of carbon per square yard).  The FSC is an international non-profit organization that promotes responsible forest management, to be FSC-certified, logging operations must meet 57 criteria, protect local wildlife, use minimal pesticides, etc.

 

Taken from "The Environmental Equation," by Alex Shimo-Barry, 2008