I had the opportunity to volunteer for the Community Environmental Council this past weekend at Earth Day and had a wonderful experience. In honor of the 40th year, and due to the increased showing over the years, the city of Santa Barbara decided to move the event to Alameda Park and hold it over two days. There were so many booths and people there that at some points it was overwhelming. In the end however it proved to be a wonderful experience that truly highlighted how committed people were to change.

From the first teach-in put together by U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson in 1970, Earth Day has been a symbol for the environmental movement. Santa Barbara in particular has been very progressive in the green front since the oil spill in 1969 from Platform Holly. This year's event brought people from all sectors, including local farmers, general contractors, architects, publications, media stations, and non-profit groups just to name a few. All were concerned with the direction the world was headed and wanted to make a difference through their own efforts. One notable standout among many was the Green Homes Pavilion, a replica home built on park grounds that reflected different building techniques and environmental measures. Inside each visitor could learn about subjects such as insulation, lighting control, building envelope, low-flow fixtures, low- to no-VOC paints and much, much more. It was very impressive to see such a structure built as they started on Thursday of this past week! Some of the main contributors to the project were Allen Associates, Ward Building, and the Santa Barbara Contractors Association. What struck me the most however was the reception by people visiting the event. My girlfriend and I could hardly walk through the building without bumping into people, dogs or little children!

Last night I attended the latest meeting of volunteers looking to certify the Built Green Resource Center in town. The Energy & Atmosphere group met early to conduct measurements of the rooms and find more information about the electrical systems in place. Upon inspection we learned a few crucial pieces of information. Mainly, the windows put in during renovation are single-pane with a film placed over them and there is a huge skylight in the gallery. Also, heating and cooling are both run on electricity. I learned last night that this is seen as a negative, especially here in California. Utilities are worried about peak demand and frown upon relying solely on electricity. The PV panels on the roof help, but hopefully the current tenants maintain this educational center for a long time. Otherwise, the next building owner could decide to take them down, increasing the building's demand on the grid.

As many know, single-pane windows will contribute to massive heat loss and will ding us in the certification process. At the moment the Santa Barbara Contractors Association has no plans to replace them, especially considering they were just put in. I don't know the specifics of a step up to double or even triple pane, but I imagine the increase in efficiency to be enormous.

Just a few weeks ago I had the opportunity to join a group volunteering their time to LEED certify a building here in Santa Barbara. The structure in question is the Built Green Resource Center, a community education building staffed by members of the Santa Barbara Contractors Association. Originally an artist studio built in the 1920’s, it received top-notch green and sustainable rehabilitation and is now being used to teach residents and professionals about sustainable building practices.

The volunteer group is headed by a local architect, Paul Poirier, and the goal is to attain the highest rating we can under the LEED v2.2 Operations + Maintenance rating system. The project itself was registered before LEED v3 came out, so we are working with a 92 point system instead of 100 and will not work with regional credits. It’s exciting to be involved with such a project because of my interest in the LEED rating system and goal of becoming certified with the Operations + Maintenance specialty. I get the opportunity to work with local architects, engineers, designers, and students who all want to see this project succeed.