Saint Michael's College
OP-3: Building Design and Construction

The campus infrastructure at Saint Michael's has a large impact on the environment. According to the US Green Building Council, buildings account for:
• 70% of electricity consumption
• 39% of energy use
• 39% of all carbon dioxide emissions
• 40% of raw materials use
• 30% of waste output (136 million tons annually)
• 12% of potable water consumption
It's our goal to minimize these impacts, and we do this in several ways when constructing and/or renovating buildings on our campus. First of all, the college must adhere to the state of Vermont’s Act 250 which is the Land Use and Development Act. This law is designed to mitigate the effects of development through an application process that addresses the environmental and community impacts of projects. The law considers a development’s effect on such things as: energy and water conservation, air and water quality, necessary wildlife habitat, streams and shorelines, soil erosion, utilities, waste disposal, water supplies and much more.

Saint Michael’s College has always proceeded with care when planning new construction and renovations. Issues such as waste reduction, recycling, environmentally-preferable purchasing and energy conservation are discussed and considered from day one of planning. In recent construction, the college has focused on water efficiency, energy conservation and utilization of renewable energy (geothermal). Our one LEED certified building (silver), Pomerleau Alumni Center, was completed in 2010 is a testament to our commitment to green buildings. Although we have no other LEED certified buildings, we have established criteria in our new buildings that exceed LEED certification levels.

Members of the facilities department meet with Efficiency Vermont to determine the best practices for energy conservation when planning new construction projects and for renovating existing spaces on campus. Two of these projects earned statewide “Best of the Best” awards for the deep energy retrofit of an existing HVAC system in the McCarthy Arts Center and the new construction of Dion Family Student Center and Quad Commons Residential Hall, a complex that consumes 77% less energy than a basic code-compliant building through its integrated design and innovative technologies.

New Construction and Renovation Projects:
Cronogue Hall (residence): New; 64000 SF; 100% geothermal heating and water heating
Dion Student Center: New; 40000 SF; 100%geothermal heating and cooling; energy efficient design and materials
Aubin Residence Hall: 43000 SF; 100%geothermal heating and cooling; energy efficient design and materials
Cronogue Residence Hall: 64000 SF; geothermal heating and cooling; energy efficient design and materials
Joyce First Floor (administrative offices): Reno; 9200 SF
Klein First Floor (administrative offices): Reno; 6800 SF
Alumni Basement (student life program): Reno; 2200 SF

After the college's first LEED certified building was completed in 2010, it was decided that rather than continue to pursue the expensive LEED certification, our limited funding would instead be allocated toward additional sustainable building features that would still lead to considerable sustainability consequences, but would not require expensive certification process. For many small and modestly-resourced institutions, this is a more rational choice.

It should be noted that Vermont Act 250 Land and Development Act requires all construction to take into consideration sustainability issues - water and energy conservation, air and water quality, necessary wildlife habitat, streams and shorelines, soil erosion, utilities, waste disposal, water supplies and much more.