Renovation work and Leed – The Dickinsonian

The current renovation work for Holland Union Building (HUB) is not certified. The students have concerns about the commitment of the college for sustainability and the lack of clear communication between Dickinson.

The Dickinson College is proud of it Association of promoting sustainability in university formation. While Dickinson publicly advertises his commitment to sustainability, the students asked the students whether Dickinson is really so committed.

The college has done since 2007 A written obligation “To create all new buildings and important renovation work to meet a minimum standard for the Leed silver certification (leadership in energy and environmental design)”, which is repeated on the underpants with the title building and terrain, sustainable operations and guidelines as part of the sustainability department on Dickinson.

According to Neil Leary, the director of the Center for Sustainability Education, there have been several construction projects since then that have not been certified. These buildings include the latest renovations by McKenney Hall, Drayer Hall, the PAZ Center and most recently to the Hub. The college website this does not reflect exactly because it is currently: “Since acceptance [the] Guidelines, all completed projects have received the Leed Gold Certification. “

In the past semester, students of Professor Beevers Environmental Connections (ENST161) discussed how the Hub renovation work is not certified. Many students expressed their collective disappointment, surprise and dissatisfaction with the news. Noah Salsich '25 repeats the students' concerns: “It frustrates me that this is frustrated to me [the college hasn’t] kept her word “and added that” I “think the student body should know it should know [more] around [the issue]. “”

Although the perspectives of the students are valid, Leary warns you not to misinterpret the guidelines of the college, since it specifies an obligation for all construction projects for “minimum standard for LEED”, but is not determined whether the construction must be carried out specifically via LEED. David Walker, the head of the Hub renovation work, pointed to the differentiated wording and assured that the Leed guidelines for our thinking are “central to our thinking” if they approach the construction.

In addition, Walker says that in the 20 years since the LEED certification process was carried out, many of the previously high standards have now been “view[ed] Like normal ”from Carlisle Borough and Dickinson's construction team. He argues that the architects and people who are involved in the project [LEED certification is] A formality more than a necessity. “Therefore, it may not make sense for College to waste money by paying the required LEED fees, since the team already” builds up a prescribed budget “.

As Walker says: He assures the students that College “will never enter our commitment to sustainability”, no matter how they approach the construction of the campus.

Although Walker and college claim that they hold the construction of Leed standards, it is difficult for the students to confirm the correctness of the claim. It should be noted that there is no way to confirm whether this is true, at least not from the perspective of the students. Leary feels out of the loop and tired about the persistence of the college and says he would like to see what these standards are and what we do [to meet them] Because when I asked, I didn't see [that] Information.”

He justifies that “there can be good reasons not to go [through with] Leed certification … [but] I think if we make these decisions, you have to be decisions that are made with more inputs by more people on campus [in order] perform a more open and transparent process. “According to Leary, the Center for Sustainability Education was never consulted or included in any discussions about the sustainability of the Hub renovation work.

Despite the diverse feelings in connection with the construction, the students can mock a certain comfort if they know that the hub renovation work prioritize the future sustainability of the building. Walker says that it replaces a large part of the old devices in the building with updated, more sustainable spare parts and minimize the energy consumption of the hub as a whole. Leary wonders whether these new updates outweigh the environmental costs of the construction. He says that the new hub renovations “either help to solve climate change or … contribute to the problem”.