Green methods touted
McAnally shares energy ideasBy JESSE HELLING Messenger staff writer
Messenger staff writer
The use of green building technologies can lead to massive cost savings in terms of energy, said Bill McAnally, chairman of Iowa Central Community College's industrial technology department.
But, before a homeowner rushes to install the latest environmentally friendly miracle product, it's important to do a little research.
"Some of the products sold as 'green' have absolutely nothing to do with green building techniques other than putting green in their inventors' pockets," he said.
McAnally addressed an audience of 44 Thursday at a Brown Bag Briefing sponsored by the Friends of the Fort Dodge Public Library.
Most of his remarks centered on recent construction at Iowa Central.
Every building constructed on campus since 1996 has used green building techniques, McAnally said.
For example, all Iowa Central residence halls are geothermally heated and cooled. The campus' new centerpiece building - the Biotechnology and Health Sciences Center, currently under construction - is also a centerpiece of green architecture, according to McAnally.
The center conforms with standards set by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Green Building Rating System, which rates structures based on criteria such as the use of environmentally friendly materials in construction, McAnally said.
Geography, as well as composition, plays a part in what defines green material, McAnally said.
"We try to get materials from within a 100-mile radius," he said. This cuts down on transportation, which cuts down on fuel consumption, according to McAnally.
Among environmentally friendly features of the center, which is slated for completion by September 2009, is the heating and cooling system. A 30-foot-deep pond has been dug, the bottom of which contains a piping system filled with an antifreeze solution, said McAnally. Cycling that solution with the use of a geothermal pump will maintain a comfortable climate in the building, McAnally said.
Additionally, the pond will serve as a destination for rain water runoff on campus. Currently, water runs off campus into a ravine, which eventually leads to the Des Moines River, said McAnally. Along the way, the water picks up debris that also ends up in the river.
To help keep the pond clean, a system of bioswales will serve as a natural filtration system.
"A bioswale is basically a ditch with weeds on the bottom," McAnally said.
The weeds are actually tall grasses native to the area, which trap refuse for easy cleanup, McAnally said.
Although green building techniques are often more expensive than conventional methods and materials, the long-term payoff can be huge - and can go even further toward alleviating the nation's energy concerns than new energy sources such as wind and solar power, McAnally said.
"The thing that pays off the quickest is energy efficiency," he said. "But it's not glitzy."
Contact Jesse Helling at (515) 573-2141 or jhelling@messengernews.net
