"Green" Elements at the Cal/EPA Building

Cal/EPA Wins Award

In December 1999, California Construction Link magazine awarded the new Cal/EPA building "Best of 1999 Awards--Outstanding Engineering" for "innovation in air handling, window placement, and recycling, resulting in a 25-story office tower with significant energy savings over California’s stringent energy codes."

Cal/EPA's new home has many environmentally sensitive features. A few are listed below:

• Building design that maximizes daylight penetration through the optimal placement of windows, and by minimizing the number of hard wall offices close to the windows.
• Dual pane "Low E" exterior glass for energy conservation.
• Super high efficiency/low mercury lighting tubes, and perimeter light sensors that automatically dim the lights when the sun shines in brightly.
• Solar energy generation of up to 55,180 KWH by the 736 photovoltaic panels mounted on the low rise roof.
• Low-flow toilets.
• Each floor has at least two mechanical rooms, which also function as "fan rooms" that serve only that floor, and can flush that floor with outside air, on command.
• Use of environmentally sensitive and resource efficient materials throughout.
• Provision of 25 electric vehicle charging stations on the roof of the cty's Lot I parking garage (Cal/EPA is also pursuing solar panels for electrical generation in connection with these stations).
• Siting for the future placement of a 250 KW natural gas powered fuel cell.
• Use of zero-VOC (volatile organic compound) paints throughout the interior.
• Use of 52 percent recycled-content carpet tiles, with a "sticky-back" feature that does not require wet glue, and therefore significantly reduces the introduction of VOCs into the work place.
• Special design of the dock area recycling center and recycling collection points on each floor to maximize recycling activities.

Integrated Waste Management Board, Sustainable Building Case Studies

Cal/EPA Headquarters Building

Cal/EPA Headquarters Energy Awareness Video

Prerecorded Broadcasts

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