Can a central campus recycling area in an adjacent building contribute to the total recycling area for a project?
I'm actually working on a LEED CI project for a hospital and would like to follow what's acceptable for a healthcare setting. Our project is roughly 20,000 SF and doesn't quite have the 175SF min required within its boundaries. The central recycling room is in the building next door and not sure if that's acceptable to meet the prerequisite.
Any insight is appreciated. Thanks
Susan Walter
HDRLEEDuser Expert
1299 thumbs up
October 17, 2013 - 1:33 pm
Yes, it can but you will have to show that the current central collection facility has the capacity to handle the additional 'burden'. In CI this shouldn't be a real problem since the overall footprint of the facility isn't being enlarged. You will want to document how recycling is collected in the project, how often waste management will pick up from the project and how things work at the central dock area. Hospitals docks are usually pretty limited and it is standard for the facility to arrange additional pick ups from their waste hauling vendors. Show that your hospital can meet the demand and you may want to discuss the different waste streams that are diverted from landfills (batteries, fluorescents, sharps, pharmacy waste, to name a few). Hopefully your owner has gotten the message on reducing their landfill costs and all you have to do is connect with the person who runs this for them.
Kathy Wislocky
Project ManagerWilson Architects
2 thumbs up
October 17, 2013 - 3:42 pm
Thanks Susan. I think I just got a hold of the right people to work with which will make documenting this a little easier.
Susan Walter
HDRLEEDuser Expert
1299 thumbs up
October 17, 2013 - 4:29 pm
You're welcome!
Most hospitals have some sort of sustainability coordinator and they almost always start with waste management. Now if your clients can be like mine, the design and construction folks don't always like to talk to the sustainability coordinator but that is a different story.