Tahoe Center for Environmental Sciences
Green Building Features of the Tahoe Center for Environmental Sciences
Sierra Nevada College and UC Davis recently announced that the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has awarded a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification for the Tahoe Center for Environmental Sciences building. The building is the first building in Nevada to earn this recognition, one of only five laboratories and one of only 26 facilities in the world that have earned the highest tier of recognition possible for energy and environmental design excellence under the LEED program for New Construction (LEED-NC).
In order to achieve this recognition, the project design needed to achieve over 52 credits in 6 subject areas that include Sustainable Sites, Energy & Atmosphere, Water Efficiency, Materials & Resources, Indoor Environmental Quality and Innovation & Design Process.
Located in Incline Village, Nevada, the Tahoe Center is a 45,000 square foot facility that houses Sierra Nevada College’s science program (teaching laboratories and classrooms); UC Davis research laboratories (Tahoe Environmental Research Center) and public education center; and office space for the Desert Research Institute and University of Nevada, Reno’s Academy for the Environment. All of these functions are focused on understanding and preserving the unique ecology of the Lake Tahoe watershed. Achieving Platinum certification not only shows congruence with that focus but proves that sustainable, energy efficient design is possible even for complex, critical use buildings such as laboratories.