SCAD pursues environmentally friendly initiatives

Photo by Charlie Ribbens
Officer Harold Cody will drive one of the college’s new electric patrol vehicles around SCAD residence halls.

By: Seth F. Michalak

Published: Friday, October 5, 2007



During spring quarter 2007, The Chronicle published the Green Guide, a special section highlighting the many environmentally conscious activities taking place at SCAD. Articles in the guide discussed SCAD’s commitment to adaptive reuse of existing buildings, recyclable and environmentally friendly products utilized in SCAD construction projects, and efforts to recycle industrial supplies.

As the 2007-08 school year has gotten underway, additional projects and efforts have commenced.

SCAD security has invested in GEM electric vehicles for residence hall patrols in Savannah. Security personnel in and around the residence halls have a small area to secure, making these vehicles ideal. Turning gas vehicles on and off, as well as the frequent acceleration and deceleration typical of a residence hall patrol, can result in excessive use of gas. But with the addition of electric vehicles to the security fleet, SCAD’s demand for gasoline will decrease, as will vehicle emissions.

Additionally, several building projects recently completed or still in progress at SCAD-Savannah incorporate numerous green elements. Nearly 8,000 square feet of classroom space was renovated in Adler Hall, the sound design recording studios are undergoing renovation in Hamilton Hall, Club SCAD relocated to Orleans Hall, and the new International Student Center opened at Habersham Hall.

As explained in the Green Guide, SCAD has started to use low volatile organic compound emission products. VOCs have been linked to long- and short-term health effects in humans by the Environmental Protection Agency, so SCAD has used low-VOC paints, sealants and adhesives in all of these renovation projects.

The college also is using sustainable carpet and flooring products.

A new, sustainable carpeting product from Shaw, which is 100 percent recyclable and made with Shaw’s Eco-Solution Qfiber and backing, was used in Hamilton, Adler and Habersham halls. At Club SCAD, the new floor is made from recycled rubber, and its “snap-together” design requires no adhesives.

Other highlights of the projects include high-efficiency fluorescent lighting in Hamilton and Adler halls, low-flow toilets in Club SCAD and Habersham Hall, high-efficiency Puron air-conditioning units at Adler Hall, and replacement windows and frames at Habersham Hall, which will improve the building’s air quality and energy efficiency.

Another major renovation project is underway at the Richard Arnold School this fall, and it is the first project for which SCAD is seeking LEED certification. LEED is a rating and benchmarking system for the design, construction and operation of high-performance green buildings. College Resources Manager Martin Smith said, “The Richard Arnold School is a fantastic candidate for applying LEED principles, and we hope to achieve a gold rating when it opens in Fall 2008.”

When completed, the building will house an auditorium and classroom space.

Finally, demand has increased for a recycling program at SCAD, but the lack of an organized program in the city of Savannah has slowed implementation of this endeavor. The college is continuing to explore avenues that are feasible and cost-effective for recycling the large quantities of materials produced at SCAD. In the meantime, two student groups have established recycling programs, and members of the SCAD community are encouraged to participate.

Project Green, an environmental group started by students in the School of Building Arts, has established recycling at Eichberg Hall, 229 Martin Luther King Jr. According to president Brian Bessenaire, the group has been awarded money by the Interclub Council at SCAD for expanding the program to other facilities.

Additionally, the women’s lacrosse team has established a recycling program on the first Saturday of each month through January 2008. Starting Oct. 6, the team will be on the south side of Savannah’s Forsyth Park from 9 a.m. - noon, and will accept household plastics grades 1 and 2, aluminum cans, newspaper, cardboard, and green, brown and clear glass.


Michalak is assistant director of internal communications.



Mazria to discuss steps necessary to address climate change
By Melissa Wheeler

Internationally recognized architect, author and educator Edward Mazria will present a lecture titled "A Nation Under Siege," Oct. 9, 7:30 p.m., at Trustees Theater, 216 E. Broughton St., Savannah, and is free and open to the public.

Mazria’s lecture will explore the science of global warming, its projected impacts and the role the design and building community must play in addressing this issue. He will outline necessary steps to address climate change and transition the building sector from its reliance on fossil fuels to a carbon-free future.

“We are at the crossroads of the most significant crisis of modern times,” Mazria said. “Two profound, life-changing events are converging to create this crisis – the warming of the earth’s atmosphere by burning fossil fuels, and the rapid depletion of global petroleum and natural gas reserves. As these events intensify over the coming years, they will dramatically change how we live and build, and how we relate to the natural world.”

Mazria also will focus on how these changes will affect Savannah and other coastal cities in the United States. He will discuss the newly released Architecture 2030 study of sea level rise along the U.S. coasts.

“2030's study focuses on one fossil fuel positioned to trigger dangerous climate change and outlines an immediate and achievable strategy for averting this looming catastrophe,” he said.

Mazria’s architecture and planning projects span a 35-year period and employ a cutting-edge environmental approach to design. He lectures internationally about the building sector, architecture, energy and climate change.

His published material includes technical papers, articles for professional magazines and books, including “The Passive Solar Energy Book” (Rodale Press). His most recent undertakings, Architecture 2030 and the 2030 Challenge, are global movements to address the climate crisis. Another initiative, the 2010 Imperative Global Emergency Teach-in, brought together approximately 250,000 people from 49 countries to discuss the impact of global warming and its relationship to the built environment.

Mazria is senior principal at Mazria Inc., an architecture and planning firm in Santa Fe, N.M., and executive director of Architecture 2030. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including the American Institute of Architects Design Award, AIA Design Innovation Award, the Department of Energy Commercial Building Award, the Passive Pioneer Award from the American Solar Energy Society and an Outstanding Planning Award from the American Planning Association. He is a senior fellow of the Design Futures Council.

The event is sponsored by SCAD and the Savannah chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council.


Wheeler is media relations manager.