Five more UF buildings receive LEED certification for high sustainability

March 24, 2010

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Five University of Florida buildings and additions recently received certification from the United States Green Building council for being environmentally friendly.

The buildings include the Steinbrenner Band Hall, the Graham Center for Public Service at Pugh Hall, the NIMET Nanoscale Research Facility, the UF Dental Clinic in Naples and the IFAS Biological & Agricultural Research Facility in Fort Pierce. The certification is called LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design.

UF adopted the LEED criteria for design and construction in 2001 for all major new construction and renovations projects with the hope of delivering high-performance and sustainable buildings.

The Steinbrenner Band Hall received gold certification for optimizing energy performance and reducing energy-level greenhouse gas emissions. The new music hall increases space without increasing the footprint of addition.

The Graham Center for Public Service at Pugh Hall received silver certification. Bahar Armaghani, assistant director for the UF LEED program, said “sustainability was in mind from roofing to hardscape and landscaping, low VOC material, lighting and thermal control, to ensure acceptable levels of indoor air quality and occupant health.”

The NIMET Nanoscale Research Facility was awarded LEED certification. According to Carol Walker, assistant vice president for the department of planning and construction, certification for a high-tech building such as Nanoscale is a huge accomplishment because research buildings are high-energy users. The new building will create a space where researchers can work in a collaborative, multi-disciplinary fashion to explore the research and educational opportunities related to engineering, physics, chemistry, biology and medicine.

In addition to the renovations on campus, several off-campus buildings went under construction to meet LEED standards.

The UF Dental Clinic in Naples received gold certification. As a LEED gold facility, the building will further enhance the educational experience for patients and students of energy efficiency and sustainable design, Walker said.

LEED certification was granted to the IFAS Biological & Agricultural Research Facility in Fort Pierce. It is the first IFAS building to receive the award. The new research facility will create better interaction for the staff and bring the soils and water laboratories together as needed for research.

UF has 17 certified buildings, five buildings pending certification and 22 buildings registered to become certified. For more information visit the University of Florida Planning and Construction Web site at http://www.facilities.ufl.edu/sustain/.