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Building a Better Bay:
Eco-Friendly Design at CBF's Merrill Center
By Julie Dunlap
Like many Maryland students, my daughter fondly recalls canoe trips and oyster dredging when she thinks of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. But when I announced plans to visit the Foundation's four-year-old headquarters in Bay Ridge, Hannah balked. With a teenager's practiced skepticism, she asked, "What's a building got to do with saving the Bay?"
Plenty, according to Mary Tod Winchester, CBF's Vice President for Administration. Winchester remembers when the Philip Merrill Environmental Center was just a gleam in the eyes of its planning committee. "We set lofty goals," she says, for a building that conserves energy and water, recycles materials, and reduces pollution while energizing the workforce to pursue the Foundation's mission. Critics might argue that a non-profit group should not have taken on the costs and complications of the innovative design, but Winchester says, "We have to practice what we preach." Named for a long-time CBF trustee and donor, the resulting Merrill Center is often called "the greenest office building in the world." The U.S. Green Building Council awarded the structure its platinum rating, the highest possible, for "Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design."
The Chesapeake Bay formed a perfect backdrop the day my family arrived at the Center's 31 acres of woods and wetlands. Having read a bit about the building, I soon noticed solar panels and rainwater cisterns on the roof. But my husband wondered why the grounds looked "weedy," the building "like it's on stilts." A volunteer tour guide, Ron Bromwell, met us inside, ready to answer these and many other questions. Immediately, he led us to a Landsat image of the 64,000 square mile Bay watershed. "Here you are," Bromwell told us. "Everything from here flows into the Bay. We've got to take care of it all."
To help care for both water and air quality, Center designers used high-and low-tech approaches to energy conservation, The solar panels I spotted heat the water supply, and geothermal wells, drilled 300 feet deep, use the earth's constant temperature to heat and cool the building. A wall of southern windows illuminates the open work space even on cloudy days, and many windows can open to admit Bay breezes. "We save an enormous amount of energy by using what's free," says Winchester. Overall, the Center needs two-thirds less energy than a typical office building. Sensors even detect when employees leave their desks, automatically dimming lights and quieting computers. Laura Burrell Baxter , CBF's Education Senior Manager, likes how the high-tech monitors help reinforce basic conservation habits. Baxter says, "Even people with an environmental conscience need reminders."
The Center also saved energy during construction by acquiring most materials from within 300 miles of the site. Our guide led us onto the broad, Bay-side deck to point out examples of materials conservation. Bromwell joked that the galvanized steel siding might have been recycled from our '85 Chevy, and my kids giggled to hear that wood for the sunshades came from old pickle barrels. When new materials were needed, designers opted for renewable products such as cork flooring, harvested from living trees that regenerate more cork within a few years. But Bromwell's enthusiasm for recyling especially sparked my kids' curiosity. Throughout our visit, they wanted to know, "What was this-before?" The children seemed to be getting at least one of the building's messages: imagination is often the key to problem-solving.
A quick grounds tour revealed Center strategies for water conservation. My husband's "weeds" turned out to be native grasses and flowers, hardy enough to thrive with little watering or fertilizing. The "stilts" are piers that support an under-building parking garage, reducing polluted runoff from exposed pavement. Rain that falls on the Center's shed roof is collected and filtered for hand washing, laundry, and the building's sprinkler system. Winchester proudly reports that conservation and rainwater collection let the Center use 90% less water than similar offices. She says, "That's a pretty big achievement."
My nine-year-old, though, was shocked by one of the biggest water savers: flush-free toilets. When Sarah heard toilet waste is composted into garden soil, she objected, "That's disgusting!" They take a little getting used to, admits Baxter, but her CBF students eventually love it. The air flow gives a "whoosh that's very entertaining," she says. Plus, "It sends a great message about not wasting water."
Baxter spends much of her work time outdoors, often holding meetings on the deck or interviewing potential field staff in a canoe. The Center provides canoes and bikes as alternatives to cars for local trips, and Baxter notes that during the legislative session, CBF staff members bike to lobby in Annapolis. She says, "It saves gas and avoids parking problems, too!"
Indoors, workers love the natural daylight, fresh air, and open floor plan. Baxter says, "It's almost like you're still outside." She especially likes the lunch room, where the Center offers catered meals to reduce driving errands and colleagues share organic veggies as well as ideas. "Beyond transportation," says Baxter, "it encourages us to be creative, to talk every day."
But Baxter's favorite parts of the building are its views. From one conference room, you can see the Bay Bridge, Thomas Point Lighthouse, and, often, the ospreys that nest at the Center. "I've been in meetings," says Baxter," when people say, 'Stop talking!' so they can watch birds." Watching clouds roll in or waterfowl glide by reinforces Baxter's commitment to her work. "Whether it's critters in the bay or pollution issues, we have all that outside our front door. We work and eat and breathe the mission every day here."
For staff and visitors, the building has many lessons. "Even after four years," says Baxter, "all the time I'm learning another facet of why we do it this way." Her co-workers have taken many ideas home, such as collecting rainwater for irrigation and gardening with native plants. My kids, already dedicated paper and can recyclers, seem most excited about using more recycled products in our house. Five-year-old Eli thinks we should furnish the whole place with old pickle barrels.
CBF's Mary Tod Winchester hopes that the building offers practical inspiration to everyone. She or Facility Manager Roger Perry leads a technical tour of the Center for architects, contractors, design students and others who might be developing or managing low-impact buildings of their own. Even non-experts may also enjoy reading Greed to Green (Worldbuild Technologies, 2004), David Gottfried's story of his transformation from a developer to a passionate advocate for green development.
Green-leaning home-owners may want to check out Jennifer Roberts' Good Green Homes (Gibbs Smith Publisher, 2003), or one of many other books offering tips and even step-by-step guides to conservation-minded construction and renovation. Web resources include the U.S. Forest Stewardship Council (www.fscus.org), to learn where to find responsibly grown and harvested lumber, and the Rocky Mountain Institute (www.rmi.org), for advice on energy efficient appliances, water conservation strategies, and much more. The public tour my family took offers more than enough to get you started. Some projects, such as installing composting toilets, might intimidate a do-it-yourselfer. But Winchester says, "People call and write all the time, saying, 'I've just bought bamboo flooring.' 'I've just installed compact fluorescent light bulbs.'" She insists,"This building shows you can make a difference and not lose comfort, efficiency, or beauty. A person should be able to visit and notice at least one thing and say, 'I can do that!'"
Green Building Tours
The Philip Merrill Environmental Center is available for one hour tours on Wednesday and Thursday at 4 p.m. Two hour tours are available the third Saturday of each month at 10 a.m. and at 1:30 p.m. Cost per person is $5 for one hour, $10 for two hours, free for children six and under. Reservations are required. Call 888-SAVE-BAY or email aestes@cbf.org.
If you would like other information about the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, including field trips and volunteer opportunities, call 410-268-8816. On the web, look for www.savethebay.cbf.org. For information about green building design and construction, visit the U.S. Green Building Council on the web: www.usgbc.org.