This week the United States Green Building Council (USGBC)  reported that more than 10,000 companies have now joined as members  of the council. “This achievement is a significant milestone in the  growth and development of the green building movement because it  demonstrates a broad conviction that our built environment can  improve the health of our planet, our economy, and our communities,”  said Rick Fedrizzi, President, CEO and Founding Chair of the  organization.  The USGBC, which has established a rating system for green  buildings termed LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental  Design, recently developed a certification system specifically  tailored for schools. “I'm very pleased that the USGBC is showing  such excellent leadership,” says Steve Stelzer who serves on the  board of the Greater Houston Area Chapter of the USGBC and has  extensive experience in school architecture.

The certification  system awards points depending on how well a school addresses issues  like site development, resource management, indoor air quality, and  energy performance.  Earlier this month, the U.S. Conference of Mayors, representing  over 1,100 mayors, unanimously supported a resolution to fund green  schools and new research to document their economic, environmental  and health benefits.  

One of the largest problems associated with conventional school  architecture is poor indoor air quality. In an effort to reduce  energy costs, schools have increasingly been built to tighter  specifications. Reduced ventilation creates conditions ripe for mold  growth. It also leads to the accumulation of emissions (also known  as offgasing) from varnishes, paints, sealants, carpet adhesives,  cleaning products and other chemicals found in schools. The  developing minds and bodies of children are greatly susceptible to  the toxic effects of these chemicals. The LEED for Schools  certification program consequently awards high marks for schools  with adequate ventilation. Studies have found that children  attending green schools are more productive and less likely to be  absent from class.  

Stelzer says that green schools not only provide healthier indoor  environments but also act as tools for teachers to discuss the  benefits of green building. Texas’ first LEED certified school, St.  Catherine’s Montessori, located here in Houston reports that their  students were involved from the start of the schools construction,  educating the public and their parents about the LEED system and the  benefits of green building.

The school boasts an impressive list of  eco-friendly attributes. To reduce the carbon emissions of its  students and staff and to promote alternative forms of  transportation, the school was built a quarter mile from two bus  stops and provides bicycle storage and shower facilities for 5  percent of its occupants. Seventy-five percent of the waste from the  school’s construction was diverted from going to the landfill, while  more than 10 percent of the materials used to build St. Catherine’s  were recycled materials. To provide a healthy indoor environment the  school made sure to use adhesives, paints and carpets with little to  no harmful emissions. For more on St. Catherine’s environmentally  responsible measures click here.  

Houston will be home to two more new LEED certified schools come  this fall. With green schools averaging $100,000 a year in savings  due to their minimized energy, maintenance and operation costs, the  Houston Independent School District figured they could save some  green by going green. Walnut Bend Elementary and Ruby Thompson  Elementary, like St. Catherine’s Montessori, will have many  environmentally friendly features. An HISD news release reports that  the Thompson campus will have, “alternative transportation and  parking designation for carpool programs, open space with playing  fields and vegetation, a storm-water management plan, native plants  and zero landscaping techniques to reduce irrigation requirements,  low-water-use plumbing fixtures, optimal-energy-performance  mechanical and electrical systems, recycled materials and resources  in the building, and low- and non-contaminating adhesives, paints,  and other construction materials.”