When people speak of green buildings immediately the questioned is asked, “What is the payback?”
Obviously, the topic of money is important in any real estate venture and costs have to be monitored carefully in order to successfully complete the project. Although sometimes the true measure of success in a green building project can be lost when money controls the process and not the intent of going green.
For Pine Jog Elementary School located in Greenacres, FL it was evident, as I walked through the school with principal Fred Barch, that the “payback” was more than just the return on investment. More than being LEED Gold certified by the USGBC and more than being voted the best designed Florida school in 2009 Judges award – the top award in the Southeast Construction annual Best of the Competition – beating out five others vying for the prize. It is more about the very philosophy of sustainability that sometimes gets lost in the meeting rooms when owners, architects, general contractors, and other project stakeholders come together to discuss the many opportunities that comes with building green. For the school it was about people and in this case – children. It’s about education and passing on the knowledge to the next generation’s leaders, problem solvers, decision makers, and educators. It’s about teaching kids how to conserve water, not just because it would save the school money, but because water is a precious resource and it sustains life. It’s about collectively recycling milk cartons and juice boxes after lunch knowing they will be reused instead of taking years to degrade in our landfills. And when the problem of having the recycling bin getting filled up with leftover milk and juice – it’s about becoming problem solvers and inventors by building the school’s very own filter system (what the kids call a “dump bucket”) allowing the kids to dispense the leftover liquids into a container before discarding the recyclable items.
From the moment you enter the grounds of Pine Jog Elementary to the very bench (made of recycled materials) you sit on in the courtyard there is a strong sense that the school has a learning environment conducive to a positive childhood development. The kids are actively exposed to learning something new about their school, their planet, and their peers when engaging in lessons and extracurricular activities. Having an outdoor learning environment (nature trails, courtyard, and chickee hut) provides the children the opportunity to expand their creative thinking and explore the natural habitat surrounding them. Kids are encouraged to re-nourish the school’s grounds by planting slash pines in areas cleared by the construction of the school and are taught on how to care for a 4,000-plant hydroponic garden. Strawberries, tomatoes, lettuce, peas, and herbs are sold to the parents – at a discount – during the weekend ‘Green Market’, where Mr. Barch, teachers, and volunteers help raise funds for school’s supplies and other necessities. The garden is fertilized by a system made by Dosatron, a water powered dosing technology, spraying a mixture consisting of 'green' fertilizer (by Vertigo) and water pumped from two of the four cisterns on the school grounds. The cisterns store rainwater captured from the buildings rooftops using a gutter system. When the water level in the cisterns exceed maximum capacity it is released through an overflow onto a natural stream table and out to the nature preserve replenishing the natural habitat.
Sixty-nine solar panels line the top of the covered walkway where children wait for parents and buses to pick them up and drop them off. They account for about 5% of the school’s total power usage – according to Mr. Barch – but they also serve a purpose more important than the electricity they generate. They represent a commitment towards the stewardship of sustainability that no other schools in Florida have matched.
There are other reasons that make this school so unique and extremely impressive. Teachers and students use hot water produced by hot water solar collectors. The collectors are comprised of tubes filled with water and heated throughout the day by solar energy. Their cooling system is also sophisticated, using a chiller to convert steam to liquid, then the liquid is cooled, and the chilled water is supplied to the air handling unit’s cooling coil which cools the air supplied to the classrooms.
With water usage, Pine Jog Elementary can boast their four 1,100 gallon cisterns. Aside from watering the hydroponic garden, the water can be pumped to the sprinklers and to garden hoses for irrigation. A natural stream table near the cisterns allows the water to drain out onto the landscaped areas consisting of drought-tolerant Pines and Palmettos. Pines have deep roots and Palmettos naturally store water making them both very resilient towards the harsh summers that we have in South Florida. For a 130,000 square foot school, it has been able to keep their potable water usage well below the norm for a building its’ size. That accomplishment can be attributed to the various innovative technologies like the low-flow and dual flush toilets, waterless urinals, rain water capturing, and also the water conservation lessons taught by their committed staff and faculty.
Speaking of their staff and faculty, there is a sense that all have bought into the practice of sustainability. A top-notched and a healthy work environment can motivate anybody, but after noticing their enthusiasm and dedication towards sustainability and incorporating it into their lessons truly defines their passion for teaching. Every teacher is certified in “ProjectWild”, a program sponsored by State Wildlife Agencies around the country with the sole purpose of training educators in wildlife and environment focused education. Some of the lessons are taught outside like the hands on science investigations, readings under the chickee hut, and LAP (Litter Action Patrol) where students are encouraged to pick up litter around the school’s grounds, measure the items, and analyze the data. After speaking with Karen Noble, the school’s art educator, I’ve noticed a great deal of pride she has in her students when she talked about how the students combined science with art and being recognized for their work winning the Crayola Award and the Elmers Glue Crew. In addition, the hard work of both students and faculty has placed them on the cover of Times Magazine for Kids which sold over 3.5 million copies nationwide.
Sometimes it’s not all about the big things that make a difference, instead it’s the little things that speak volume about the impact the school has made on the basic fundamentals of teaching. Students are continuously reinforced to think intuitively about the importance of conservation. For example, hall passes are made out of old floppy disks back from the late nineties, the playground was made from recycled materials, and environmental prints are placed throughout the school. And one of the coolest features of the school is its’ very own “Green Screen” – a flat-screen placed in one of the hallways – showing real-time data on the school’s water usage, energy usage, and other green systems in operation. click here for Green Screen...
Pine Jog Elementary has gone far beyond the requirements of the USGBC LEED rating system. And it’s just not attaining Gold Certified that has value, because that is a success on its’ own merit. It’s about the pledge the staff and faculty have made on the intrinsic values of sustainability. Values that have to be passed on by dedicated and committed professionals believing that sustainability will better the lives of the children, community, and society as a whole. That is a true “payback” that cannot be substituted by money. ¦PGR¦
Other green features:
Smart light fixtures using fluorescent light bulbs instead of incandescent bulbs.
Day lighting without glare using overhangs (LEED credit).
Polished concrete floors. Concrete ground down until naturally smooth. Very low maintenance required.
Non VOC paints, adhesives, and sealants used for interior (LEED credit).
Reduced exterior light pollution using fixtures that emits light downward (LEED credit).
84% of construction waste diverted from landfills (LEED credit).
Some of the construction materials were manufactured within a 500 mile radius (LEED credit).
Floor mats at entry ways to minimize contaminants brought in by shoes (LEED credit).
Storm water control with open grid paving in the parking lot (LEED credit).
Preferred parking for low-emissions vehicles and carpools (LEED credit).
Maximizing open space with natural landscape (LEED credit).
Pine Jog Elementary
