Since my the last TPR paper written on materials it would seem that Newtown Township is still as bogged down by political in-fighting and bureaucracy as it has been for several months now and it has proven difficult to acquire information and project meetings necessary for our group to be a useful participant in the process of making this new construction as sustainable as possible within budget constraints. At this point, pursuit of assisting the township is strictly on a personal level and is not being considered and is not part of the Foxtrots final presentation. Therefore this paper will largely focus on the project in Nigeria but will also examine some of the sustainable aspects of ICEC2 through a USGBC and GBCI looking glass.
Nigeria’s Intercontinental Education Community Center (ICEC2):
Recently our TPA group had its second project meeting in Doylestown concerning ICEC2. The morning of April 3rd saw the four members of the Foxtrots meeting with Mr. and Mrs. Ukazim as well as their Nigerian architect who is tweaking drawings developed pro-bono by WRT in center city Philadelphia. During the two hour meeting Mr. and Mrs. Ukazim updated us on the progress and vision of the ICEC2 project as well as the introduced to the official schematics and asked to comment and critique. We decided that as this will be, among other things, a school and clinic that will be used year round it is important to consider IEQ and ways to make the spaces as sustainable and learning friendly as possible. Along with using materials inside the building envelope that contain few to no VOC’s and off-gas as minimally as possible, the architects took the idea of conservation, the natural environment and a healthy IEQ to heart. The project is located at about 5° latitude and 9° longitude, the planned location of ICEC2 means that there will be over twelve hours of sunlight per day available for sustaining the building. As glass is expensive, hot and cumbersome the windows of each classroom as well as the campus common area to name a few will all be open to the outdoors and will promote natural ventilation and air infiltration.
With the decision to use natural ventilation (the average year round wind speed is around 11 mph, this is useful for natural ventilation and perhaps the use of wind turbines for electricity.) the project is saving money living more within its means, promoting a healthier IEQ and, without a HVAC system, is contributing to acoustical comfort. Common sources of acoustical discomfort, as mentioned in the cSBA student handbook include: “office equipment, HVAC systems, outdoor noise, and voices of others in the office space”[1] As little to no ‘office equipment’ will be used in the buildings except perhaps in the administrative wing, this is not a concern for ICEC2. The HVAC system, as mentioned earlier, is being replaced with a natural ventilation system making this acoustical discomfort a non-issue. Outdoor noise will still have to be taken into consideration not only during the design stage but after the building begins full operations to assess and account for unanticipated noise intrusions so they can be mitigated and eliminated. Under optimal conditions, i.e. all the students in the school are behaving and not being excessively noisy or disruptive we do not foresee either outdoor or indoor noise intrusion affecting the acoustical comfort of ICEC2’s faculty, staff and students.
Nigeria’s Intercontinental Education Community Center (ICEC2):
Recently our TPA group had its second project meeting in Doylestown concerning ICEC2. The morning of April 3rd saw the four members of the Foxtrots meeting with Mr. and Mrs. Ukazim as well as their Nigerian architect who is tweaking drawings developed pro-bono by WRT in center city Philadelphia. During the two hour meeting Mr. and Mrs. Ukazim updated us on the progress and vision of the ICEC2 project as well as the introduced to the official schematics and asked to comment and critique. We decided that as this will be, among other things, a school and clinic that will be used year round it is important to consider IEQ and ways to make the spaces as sustainable and learning friendly as possible. Along with using materials inside the building envelope that contain few to no VOC’s and off-gas as minimally as possible, the architects took the idea of conservation, the natural environment and a healthy IEQ to heart. The project is located at about 5° latitude and 9° longitude, the planned location of ICEC2 means that there will be over twelve hours of sunlight per day available for sustaining the building. As glass is expensive, hot and cumbersome the windows of each classroom as well as the campus common area to name a few will all be open to the outdoors and will promote natural ventilation and air infiltration.
With the decision to use natural ventilation (the average year round wind speed is around 11 mph, this is useful for natural ventilation and perhaps the use of wind turbines for electricity.) the project is saving money living more within its means, promoting a healthier IEQ and, without a HVAC system, is contributing to acoustical comfort. Common sources of acoustical discomfort, as mentioned in the cSBA student handbook include: “office equipment, HVAC systems, outdoor noise, and voices of others in the office space”[1] As little to no ‘office equipment’ will be used in the buildings except perhaps in the administrative wing, this is not a concern for ICEC2. The HVAC system, as mentioned earlier, is being replaced with a natural ventilation system making this acoustical discomfort a non-issue. Outdoor noise will still have to be taken into consideration not only during the design stage but after the building begins full operations to assess and account for unanticipated noise intrusions so they can be mitigated and eliminated. Under optimal conditions, i.e. all the students in the school are behaving and not being excessively noisy or disruptive we do not foresee either outdoor or indoor noise intrusion affecting the acoustical comfort of ICEC2’s faculty, staff and students.
Second on the list of IEQ concerns to address to optimize the environmental quality and learning atmosphere is the presence of indoor air pollution. According to the cSBA student handbook, there are four pollutants of concern, these are: chemicals (gases, VOC’s), Particles (dust), Microbes (molds) and radiation (radon, EMF’s)[2]. While at this point it is still difficult to ascertain what indoor materials such as chairs, tables etc. may be used in the buildings upon completion and the affect on the IEQ they might have in terms of their ability and potential to off-gas, the use of natural ventilation and frequent recirculation of outdoor air makes this less of a concern. Dust is a universal concern, requiring attention. The location of the school in Nigeria means it will be exposed to nearly six months of completely dry conditions where there is virtually no rainfall. The dry season, as it is known, is a concern from an IEQ perspective as the building tries to remove particles in the environment that may contribute to allergies irritations and a less than optimal learning atmosphere. Particles less than 10 microns are inhaled into the lungs and have a large enough surface area to carry other contaminants such as pesticides, PAHs SO2, NO2; they stay suspended for hours to days; they build up in carpet and furniture and are re-suspended by walking, sitting and vacuuming and air filters do not remove them.[3] While ICEC2 does plan, and is currently planting, trees, vegetables and other plants to contribute to its goal of self-sufficiency, there is no plan to utilize pesticides or other harmful chemicals into the campus of ICEC2. Additionally there is no plan for carpeting to be installed in the buildings as it is more expensive and does not positively contribute to IEQ. That being said, ICEC2 will institute a school wide co-op program where various tasks to ensure the sustainability of ICEC2 will be maintained. The proposed co-op plan includes having the school cleaned everyday to remove and reduce particles from dust. Additionally there are discussions into the feasibility of using ‘mandatory recess.’ While not specifically pertaining to IEQ issues, the idea was raised to use playground equipment, perhaps as part of a co-op, to bring ground water to the surface[4]. Perhaps the more pressing IEQ concern is particulate from the construction process. “Dust can include lead, cadmium, gypsum, fiberglass, carpet fibers, soot, dust mite, feces, mold spores, rug dyes, fire retardants, tire fragments, dander, charred wood”[5] among others. Construction particulate and dust is a potential concern for ICEC2. After completion the building should be thoroughly cleaned to ensure as little of construction related particulate remains. This procedure is not to dissimilar to the GBCI’s LEED-NC credits 3.1 and 3.2 which apply to construction IEQ management plans both during construction and before occupancy. As mentioned, six months of the year ICEC2 will be experiencing the dry season, the other six months are called the wet season. During the wet season, it is not uncommon to experience in excess of 100 inches of rain. These concentrations of heavy rain are potentially problematic where microbes, specifically mold, are concerned. With consistent temperatures above 60º F and relative humidity high year round and only higher during the rainy season, ICEC2 will need to make sure that there are no locations that do not have access to the planned natural ventilation for the buildings.
The last concern related to a healthy IEQ is that of radiation. While there are perhaps many possible radiation concerns, the most common is radon. Emitted from rocks this naturally occurring gas is odorless, colorless and contributes to between 7,000 to 30,000 cancer deaths a year in the US. [6] Considering that there is no planned basement or substructure for ICEC2 coupled with the widespread natural ventilation, we do not anticipate a problem with radon. It would be advisable to bring some materials to sample the radon levels to be completely sure.
If, during construction or after occupancy it comes to the attention of the staff or someone at the site of ICEC2 that there is or may be a problem steps toward remediation will be taken. If possible “eliminating or controlling the sources, and eliminating or controlling their ability to move around is the primary means of addressing IAQ.”[7] The hierarchies of steps toward remediation are: avoiding or eliminating the source followed by isolating/sealing the source, and finally ventilation and filtration. Along with remediation, these three simple steps can be used not only after a problem has developed but also to reduce or eliminate a problem from developing. The best way to avoid or eliminate such problems during construction is to choose “low or non-emitting building materials and finishes. Another solution is to avoid conditions conductive to mold growth and other biological contaminants”[8]. After ICEC2 is built and running it is best to keep all the buildings clean – the co-op program- this includes cleaning dust and other particulate. If elimination was not possible the next best thing for a conventional building like the Newtown Township’s new LEED building would be to isolate and ventilate the source and vent it to the outside. ICEC2 will accomplish this through its open windows and natural ventilation planning. If remediation is required at ICEC2 and elimination is not possible making sure that the space which contains the source has adequate access to the cross winds available in the building structures will be paramount and may include keeping doors and temporarily avoiding the location of the source.
The next meeting with the Foxtrots and the owners and builders of ICEC2 will most likely take place this upcoming Wednesday the 15th of April and while the last meeting centered around meeting the architect and going over structural design concepts, the upcoming meeting will include Philip S. Getty, P.G. who recently spoke at our cSBA class and will be talking to us more extensively about water and water use on the proposed ICEC2 site.
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[1] Unit 5 IEQ – Student handbook – Version 1.3 – 4 of 16 - ©2008 NaSBAP. [2] Unit 5 IEQ – Student handbook – Version 1.3 – 5 of 16 - ©2008 NaSBAP. [3] Unit 5 IEQ – Student handbook – Version 1.3 – 6 of 16 - ©2008 NaSBAP. [4] http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/22846013/ [5] Unit 5 IEQ – Student handbook – Version 1.3 – 6 of 16 - ©2008 NaSBAP. [6] Unit 5 IEQ – Student handbook – Version 1.3 – 7 of 16 - ©2008 NaSBAP. [7] Unit 5 IEQ – Student handbook – Version 1.3 – 7 of 16 - ©2008 NaSBAP. [8] Unit 5 IEQ – Student handbook – Version 1.3 – 8 of 16 - ©2008 NaSBAP.
