Sustainability at Linn-Benton Community College: Green Roof and L.E.E.D. Certified

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia

Most students who take the elevator in White Oak Hall can only stop at two floors. However, if they have the key to unlock the button to the third floor it will open to a sun-soaked observation room with three walls of glass overlooking a 9,000-square-foot rooftop garden.

The colors of spring paint the roof with orange, red, yellow, and green. Four inches of soil transform the expected concrete dead-zone into a living canopy 50 feet above the ground. Among the strawberries and wildflowers the sound of bees buzzing and birds chirping can be heard.

As the population increases so does the consumption of food, energy, waste, resources, and the need for space. The urge for citizens and organizations to be conscious of their impact on Mother Earth grows more important as we spread to previously untouched territory and use previously plentiful resources.

Albany is home to Linn-Benton Community College. The college received a Silver Certification in energy and environmental design from the U.S. Green Building Council in 2010. LBCC is doing its part to set standards of living that are eco-friendly and environmentally sound.

The Green Building Council has a program for best building strategies and practices for sustainability called Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design or LEED certification.

To become LEED certified a building must meet a certain number of sustainability points for the design. A "green roof" is one way to add design points. The second of four rankings is Silver, which equals a total of 50-59 points.

In 2008 the sustainability committee at LBCC started planning the project to build a new science building, Madrone Hall. Madrone Hall was built to become LEED certified. The project also included gutting the existing science building, White Oak Hall, and rebuilding it using LEED certification standards.

"We worked with a LEED advisor that told us what we can achieve with what resources," said Stefan Seiter, horticulture instructor at LBCC.

The buildings were designed with input from about 15 faculty at the college with the goal of implementing features to be used as teaching tools.

Horticulture, Agriculture, Biology, Engineering, and Mechatronics all incorporate sustainability in their curriculum. Horticulture students, for example, study crop and soil science with an emphasis on sustainable production and ecologically sound resource management.

An added feature to the White Oak Hall remodel was the "green roof" maintained by horticulture and agriculture students.

Photo by Allison Lamplugh

Plant communities were placed on the roof to be maintained while other areas were left untouched to observe what natural ecology would take over. The "green roof" also provides green space for winged wildlife.

Other motivation for the project was economics. Kevin Lacey, associate director of facilities, noted that the college wanted to do their part to set an example and create a "supply and demand" ripple effect for local sustainability projects.

"We think it's important for us to do what we can to not only utilize the solar panels but to help drive the market price down."

The most prominent solar panels on campus can be found in the courtyard on top of the gazebo by the water fountain. At first glance the gazebo appears to be an ultra-modern metal marquee with an artistic flare. Those who stand underneath can gaze into the sky through transparent panels as they absorb solar rays.

The school chose to put the gazebo in a highly visible location. It holds 60 solar panels and cost $93,000 to build. However, $13,000 was collected back in tax credits.

The gazebo panels are tilted in order to capture sunlight at all times of the day. The solar energy collected is fed into inverters in White Oak Hall and converted into AC power, which is the same kind of power used in homes.

The converted energy is then fed into the main power grid at the school and divided evenly among power usage on campus. The power that runs into the inverters is subtracted from the college's monthly Pacific Power bill saving resources and money.

Photo by Allison Lamplugh

The smaller set of solar panels on campus can be found on the south-side windows of the Silver Certified Madrone Hall. They camouflage well and appear to be a fine, see-through screen.

"It was a dual purpose. The glass was south facing so it would have been hard to cool the building so it was to maintain a striking facade and use the energy," said Seiter.

The solar panels at Madrone Hall also feed energy to the inverters at White Oak Hall to be distributed throughout campus.

The energy created is measured in kilowatt hours. One kilowatt hour equals 10 cents off the power usage bill. To date, the two inverters funneling the solar power have tracked 34,000 kilowatt hours of energy generated. That's a $3,400 savings thus far.

"We built this knowing it wouldn't pay off for 25 or 30 years," said Greg Mulder, physical science instructor.

Regardless of immediate payoff the school saw the project as a priority.

There were a lot of different pieces that came together to fund the project. Some money was from the 2009 stimulus package, some from government grants, and some was allocated in the budget.

"I think for a community college this science building project was progressive. It was quite a big deal. We were certainly using it to promote the college as well when we want to show off a little bit," said Seiter.

During the construction of the new science buildings all possible old materials were recycled and reused into the new build. The old concrete from White Oak Hall, for example, was crushed and reused in the base of Madrone Hall.

"They recycled everything, there was really very little waste," said Lacey.

As the man-made world expands around us, the bold undertaking of LBCC set a tone for local residents and businesses alike in the importance of every day being Earth Day.


-At a Glance-

What: Sustainability at LBCC
Method: Solar energy and "green roof"
Certified: U.S. Green Building Council 2010
Get Involved: LBCC Hort Club
Contact: Stefan Seiter, (541) 917-4765 or seiters@linnbenton.edu


Interesting Extras!

• The United States is the third largest country with 322 million people and an estimated 0.7 percent increase in the population each year.
• The mid-sized state of Oregon has just under four million residents.
• According to data collected from the U.S. Census Bureau and National Geographic Society's Green Guide whom combined their efforts to rank the top 50 "greenest cities" in America, Oregon holds the first and fifth ranked cities: Portland and Eugene respectively.