Dallas ISD 'Going Green' In Construction Of New Facilities

25 Feb 2011

Effort highlights reducing energy consumption, effects on environment

DALLAS–As part of Dallas ISD's 2008 Bond Program, the district is committed to building the program's 14 new schools and major additions to existing schools with features that will reduce their impact on the environment.

In 2009, the Board of Trustees adopted a policy requiring all new schools to be designed and built according to a code of environmental standards developed by the Texas Collaborative for High Performance Schools and to incorporate as many sustainable features as practical when renovating or adding on to existing schools. The standards require the incorporation of energy efficiency, conservation and design features that foster responsible use of resources. Evidence suggests that high-performance, sustainable schools increase student performance, foster a sense of community, improve student and staff health, reduce environmental impact and lower operating expenses.

Among the many features that define a high-performance building, the new schools may include:

• Buildings placed on site to minimize required earth work, while maximizing benefits of natural light.
• 
  
• Placing windows to provide daylight in classrooms while minimizing additional heat from direct sun exposure.
• 
  
• Using highly reflective roofing to reduce heat transfer from sunlight.
• 
  
• Improved noise control between classrooms.
• 
  
• Environmental education and display panels in the common areas that educate the staff, students and visitors about the building's sustainable features.
• 
  
• Recycled materials such as concrete with 25 percent fly ash recovered from gases created by coal-fired electric power plants. This material's use in concrete results in a stronger compound and saves it from being dumped in landfills.
• 
  
• Regional materials including masonry, structural steel and concrete.
• 
  
• Low Volatile Organic Compound materials such as Vinyl Composition Tile flooring.
• 
  
• Water conservation through the use of plumbing fixtures that reduce water use.
• 
  
• Native plants in landscaping to reduce irrigation needs.
• 
  
• Metering of water quantities used for irrigation versus other uses to allow close monitoring of water consumption.

As for energy efficient design, all new schools and some major renovation and addition projects include geothermal heating and cooling systems that reduce energy consumption by as much as 30 percent compared to similarly-priced conventional systems. The geothermal process takes advantage of the earth's +/- 60 degree constant temperature that exists at about 300 feet below the surface of the ground. By circulating water through a series of wells drilled to that depth, the constant temperature of the water facilitates both the cooling and warming cycles of the modern heat pumps serving each individual classroom.

This system was first introduced in the 2002 Dallas ISD Bond Program and has served Francisco "Pancho" Medrano Middle School for almost four years without major maintenance issues. Over the course of a year, it consumed 31 percent less electricity, gas, and water compared to an identical school built with a conventional heating and air-conditioning system.

Currently at Zan Wesley Holmes Jr. Middle School, the contractor is in the process of drilling more than 700 wells for the campus's geothermal system. Other campuses being constructed under the high-performance criteria include: W.H. Adamson High School (Replacement), Kennedy-Curry Middle School, Balch Springs Middle School, Jose "Joe" May Elementary School, George Herbert Walker Bush Elementary School, Ann Richards Middle School, Adelfa Botello Callejo Elementary School, Thelma
Page Richardson Elementary School, Billy Earl Dade Middle School (Replacement), Oran M. Roberts Elementary School (Replacement), Kathlyn Joy Gilliam Collegiate Academy, Seagoville North Elementary School, Ebby Halliday Elementary School, and Wilmer-Hutchins Elementary School.

For information on the features to be incorporated at specific campuses, visit the 2008 Bond Web site at www.dallasisd2008bond.org.