Tag Archives | LEED

Images of Sustainability at APUS – Solar Array

By on April 22, 2013 in APUS Sustainability Efforts, Earth Day, Green Building, Renewable Energy, Sustainability in Higher Education

In celebration of Earth Day, this week we will share a series of images representative of tangible sustainability efforts at American Public University System.  Happy Earth Day…everyday!

 

Solar ArrayThe American Public University System (APUS) solar array is the largest solar array in West Virginia.  The array contains 1,660 solar panels and doubles as a covered parking lot for staff.  Situated next to the university’s Finance Center (a 105,000 square-foot structure built to LEED Gold standards and currently in the certification process), the array provides approximately 50% of the total energy needed for that building. … Read the rest

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Solar Power at American Public University System

By on December 14, 2012 in APUS Sustainability Efforts, LEED Building, Renewable Energy, Sustainability in Higher Education

In November 2010, American Public University System (APUS) completed its first green building, a 45,000-square-foot structure which recently received its LEED Gold Certification from the US Green Building Council (USGBC).  Sitting atop that building are 99 solar panels which provide approximately 5 to 7% of the total energy for the structure. Just over a year later, the school completed another solar project, the largest in the state of West Virginia. With 1,660 panels and generating approximately 480,000 kWh of electricity each year, the array will provide approximately 40 to 50% of the energy needed for the school’s latest green building, a 105,000-square-foot structure which is currently in the LEED certification process.… Read the rest

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APUS Opens New Green Finance Center

By on September 18, 2012 in American College and University Presidents' Climate Commitment, APUS Sustainability Efforts, Current Events, Green-Building, LEED Building, Renewable Energy, Sustainability in Higher Education

In the latest addition to its headquarters in Charles Town, West Virginia, American Public University System (a fully online university serving more than 100,000 students) is celebrating the opening of its 105,000 square foot environmentally-friendly Finance Center.  The building sits adjacent to the school’s Academic Center which opened in November 2010.  Both buildings were built to US Green Building Council (USGBC) LEED Gold standards, a level above the Silver standard required of APUS as a charter signatory of the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment (ACUPCC).… Read the rest

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The Progress and Promise of the ACUPCC

By on July 20, 2012 in American College and University Presidents' Climate Commitment, APUS Sustainability Efforts, Current Events, Green-Building, LEED Building, Renewable Energy, Sustainability in Higher Education, Sustainability Resources

by Beth Gray

As mentioned in a recent article on this blog, the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) is celebrating its fifth anniversary this year.  Our previous article explores the background of the ACUPCC and the progress the commitment has made in gaining support and membership.  Beginning with only twelve founding members, the ACUPCC now boasts nearly 700 signatories from across the country.  At the ACUPCC’s 6th Annual Climate Leadership Summit held in Washington, DC last month, participants were treated to a chronicling of the tangible progress made by those nearly 700 schools to date.  The quantitative progress made is significant and worth noting.… Read the rest

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Unusual Recycling on Campus

By on July 9, 2012 in Recycling, Sustainability in Higher Education

by Kelly Wenner

Oberlin College is out to show that nearly everything can be recycled.  Not only do they recycle paper, office supplies, food packaging, clothing, books, and other dorm room items, they also recycle something that is right under their feet- the carpet.  Oberlin purchases and recycles all of their carpet through Legacy Flooring, a company that offers complete carpet recycling and reclamation services. The carpet is removed from the building, all of it recycled, and Oberlin then purchases this “new” product from the same company.… Read the rest

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APUS Adding Second Green Building to Charles Town

By on March 19, 2012 in APUS Sustainability Efforts, LEED Building, parking, Renewable Energy, Sustainability in Higher Education

by Sarah McNair

 

APUS has undertaken many green building projects, such as energy efficiency retrofits and a brand new Academic Center that boasts efficient lighting, HVAC, landscaping, and 99 solar panels.  (The Academic Center is still in the LEED Certification process.)  The newest green building is the university’s Finance Center, which sits just behind the Academic Center in Charles Town, WV.  The Center will be approximately 105,000 square feet and built to LEED Gold standards.  Construction has already begun, transforming the existing abandoned warehouse into a green masterpiece. 

The most impressive aspect of this new building is the amount of solar energy it will utilize.  Over 1,600 solar panels will be installed in the parking lot that will also act as a canopy for parking.  The expected annual output of these panels is a whopping 480,000 kilowatt hours!  Approximately 60 percent of the Center’s energy use will be supplied by the solar panels, offsetting approximately 350 tons of carbon each year.  Based on historic utility rate increases in the area, the solar array is anticipated to save the university some $9,000,000 in energy costs over the course of the system’s lifetime. 

… Read the rest

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APUS Submits Progress Report to ACUPCC

By on March 5, 2012 in APUS Sustainability Efforts, Green-Building, LEED Building, Renewable Energy, Sustainability in Higher Education

In January, the American Public University System (APUS) submitted its Progress Report to the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment (ACUPCC).  The Progress Report is intended to update the ACUPCC on the schools’ progress since submitting its Climate Action Plan (CAP) in 2009.   

There are a few notable highlights from the Progress Report that are worth sharing. 

• Buildings:  Since APUS submitted its CAP report to ACUPCC in 2009, the university system has completed and occupied a new building situated on a brownfields site and built to LEED Gold standards.  (The building is currently in the LEED certification process and not yet certified with a LEED rating.)  The 45,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art Academic Center features solar panels on the roof, significant natural light throughout the building, a highly efficient HVAC system, motion and heat sensor lighting, and native landscaping.  The outer façade of the building is reminiscent of the surrounding historic buildings of downtown Charles Town.  The university system is currently constructing another green building behind the new Academic Center.  Expected to be completed later this year, one of the highlights of that building is a solar array of 1600 solar panels which doubles as a covered parking lot and will provide plugs for electric vehicles for public use. 

… Read the rest

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Encouraging the Use of Renewable Energy

By on January 12, 2012 in APUS Sustainability Efforts, Green-Building, LEED Building, Renewable Energy, Sustainability in Higher Education

by Sarah McNair

Renewable power is quickly becoming an important option to fuel the world’s electricity demands.  Nonrenewable sources, such as coal, natural gas, oil, and nuclear energy, pollute our air and water and destroy natural habitats for plants and animals.  Renewable energy sources have less of a negative impact on the environment and include hydroelectric, solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, and electricity from municipal solid waste.  In the United States, the majority of our electricity is powered by coal, followed by nuclear, natural gas, and oil.  Less than 9% of our electricity is generated from renewable sources.… Read the rest

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Life in the Academic Center, 7 months later.

By on July 27, 2011 in Green Building, Uncategorized

By: Wesley Holmes

APU employees moved into the Academic Center in December of 2010. The new 45,000 sqft high efficiency building offers substantial changes from most employees’ previous accommodations, many of whom were relocated from one of APU’s many historic properties across Charles Town. When APU began operations in Charles Town, these preserved and restored historic properties offered unique and sustainable alternatives to new construction. Initially designed as homes and commercial properties they also offered a distinctly different work environment than modern office facilities.… Read the rest

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Green Buildings are Not Just for Higher Education

By on April 8, 2011 in APUS Sustainability Efforts, Green-Building, LEED Building, Sustainability in Higher Education

by Beth Gray

As colleges and universities have taken up the cause of environmentalism and sustainability on their campuses, many are using green building as a means toward achieving reduced carbon emissions.  In November 2010, American Public University System (APUS) completed construction of a 45,000 square foot state-of-the-art Academic Center which is anticipated to achieve the US Green Building Council’s (USGBC) LEED Gold certification.  (To see a video from the ribbon cutting ceremony for the building, click here.)  While it is too soon to know for sure how much of an impact the newest building on APUS’ campus will have on the school’s carbon emissions, there is great hope (and precedent) that it will have a positive impact.… Read the rest

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