Project Spotlight: UMASS College of Natural Sciences Greenhouse and Laboratory (LEED Gold)

The University of Massachusetts College of Natural Sciences (CNS) Greenhouse and Laboratory was awarded LEED Gold Certification in January 2013, after successfully achieving their sustainability goals while still meeting the needs of a high-tech research facility.

The greenhouses contain multiple research compartments, each capable of supporting separate experimental environments. The houses feature automated systems to control natural and artificial lighting, temperature, humidity, irrigation, and fertilization. The laboratory, designed to reflect the look and feel of a New England barn, features two research labs and a core facility for seed germination.

Photo by Warren Jagger

Stormwater management was one of the greatest challenges facing the project team in achieving LEED certification, but they came up with a creative solution. The greenhouse required a 6-in deep gravel bed to isolate the greenhouse from surrounding native plant life. This gravel bed was increased to a depth of 3 feet to act simultaneously as a barrier and water retention basin, eliminating the need for gutters or an underground water storage structure.  

Photo by Warren Jagger

Read more about the Greenhouse’s LEED certification at USGBC.org or at UMASS.edu

LEED EBOM and NC helping ensure that all parts of state can benefit from green practices and policies

USGBC MA's Executive Director, Grey Lee, is a monthly contributor to the New England Real Estate Journal's Green Building Section. Their latest issue can be accessed here. Read Grey's article below!

LEED EBOM and NC helping ensure that all parts of state can benefit from green practices and policies

There is over 500 million s/f of existing commercial & institutional buildings in Mass. and we have certified about 50 million s/f. during the 15 years since LEED’s first version. There are about 2.8 million housing units in the state and we’ve certified only a few thousand...clearly we have work to do! Our mission is to see everyone work, live, play and study in green buildings within this generation. Thousands of building professionals are part of this work.

Using LEED, owners and occupiers can validate the effort they put into a building’s design and operation. The rating system is a useful tool to ensure all parties have made their best contribution to the achievement of a superior facility. Recently, more standing buildings have been certified using the Existing Building Operation & Maintenance (LEED EBOM) system than newly constructed buildings (LEED NC). EBOM ensures that the massive existing building stock has a pathway to improved performance.

The USGBC created the LEED building rating system to create a defined process that results in buildings that are more valuable and environmentally responsible than conventional peers. The system is managed by a democratic process, welcoming all stakeholders into a voting body that periodically reviews the system. The process has resulted in a strong, broadly-adopted and useful mechanism to evaluate buildings and improve the experience of building users.

The Mass. Chapter of the USGBC promotes the achievement of high-performing green buildings throughout the state. We convene the community of practitioners and stakeholders to advocate for market adoption and legislative support of green buildings, we educate the public about the advantages of green buildings and we provide service to our community to ensure all parts of the state can benefit from these practices and policies.

We will be hosting a LEED celebration in September and are actively seeking projects that have been certified in the past year to showcase LEED achievements and honor the work of the teams that have put these projects together. Please contact us if you have facility that can host 150 people in a recently certified LEED building! We also provide a lot of great networking opportunities: join us for our FREE “Summer Social” on July 16th at the Knoll (LEED Platinum) showroom in Boston. Details are on our website. We hope to see you there!