A rainwater harvesting system, solar panels and even energy-efficient walls and floors at the Enviro-Center have proved to be a big success nearly three years after opening and plans for an expansion are in the works.
Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md, and Howard County Executive Ken Ulman on Friday toured the Environmental Design & Resource Center, an executive green office building in Jessup.
“What you’ve done here is set a living example of what could be duplicated around the country,” Cardin said.
“It’s not only cost-effective but a place that’s efficient to your businesses.”
The center serves as headquarters for companies like the Architectural Support Group, Chesapeake Solar, Water Management Co. and nonprofits like the Green Building Institute.
Sixty-five percent of heating and 25 percent of electricity at the 5,000-square-foot facility is powered from the sun through solar panels, said Stanley Sersen, the center’s founder and chief executive officer.
Similar nongreen buildings could cost upward of $200 to 400 per square foot to construct, but the Enviro-Center’s base cost was only around $175 per square foot, he said.
Such nongreen buildings use about 12 watts to generate power for one square foot, while the Enviro-Center has managed to do the same with only three watts.
The rainwater harvesting system also saves the center costs by drawing upon rainwater falling onto the roof to grow plants and vegetables on the ground, he said.
Sersen briefed Cardin and Ulman on preliminary plans to expand the center by adding thousands of feet of office space, a greenhouse and a kitchen and common space area.
Landscaping around the facility will for organic agriculture, he said.
“You’ve heard of CSA — community-supported agriculture — but what we’re going to have is tenant-supported agriculture,” Sersen said.
The food grown at the center will be provided for the companies and community members who use the building, he said.
Sersen hopes to break ground on the project next spring with a tentative opening date of December 2009.
Green innovation as demonstrated by Sersen will be pivotal to the county’s new Green Business Council, which is serving as a networking opportunity for green businesses, Ulman said.
“It’s about continual education,” he said. “It’s about bringing ideas to my attention and the community’s attention.”
