It's Not All About Air: Water Usage and Sterilization Are Major Sustainability Challenges in Large Animal Containment Facilities

Bradley Andersen and Kevin Breslin, P.E., F.P.E., C.E.M, Merrick & Company

Laboratory facilities are traditionally known as "energy hogs" due to the requirement for single-pass air. In facilities where large animals are housed under biological containment conditions, water usage and the consequent need to sterilize waste water streams create a daunting sustainability challenge, but one with many opportunities as well.

Using the U.S. Department of Agriculture's newly completed Large Animal Facility at the National Centers for Animal Health in Ames, Iowa, as a case study, this presentation will look at the sources of water usage in high-containment animal facilities, options for sterilization of waste streams, strategies for minimizing both water usage and the energy used to decontaminate effluent flows. Water usage sources to be examined will include personnel showers, animal room wash-down, autoclaves, fire sprinklers, carcass disposal systems, and incidental sources.

The presentation will draw upon lessons learned from the design of this facility and others, offering suggestions and recommendations on how to address sustainability with respect to water usage without compromising biosafety, worker safety, wash-down protocols, or animal comfort.

Biographies:

Bradley Andersen is vice president of Merrick & Company, a 350-person architecture and engineering firm headquartered in Denver, Colorado. Merrick has been in operation since 1955 and has provided design services on large scale, mission-critical facilities for government and private sector clients. Mr. Andersen is currently overseeing the design of projects totaling $200 million in construction value. He is a registered architect and has 23 years experience designing and managing large, multi-discipline projects and leads Merrick's Life Sciences design group.

Kevin Breslin, P.E., F.P.E., C.E.M., is the lead facilities mechanical engineer with Merrick and Company, a 350-person multi-disciplinary engineering firm with offices in Denver, Atlanta, Albuquerque, Los Alamos, Colorado Springs, Guadalajara (Mexico), and Ottawa (Canada). He is LEED^®-certified, holds Certified Energy Manager credentials, and has over 25 years experience in designing and commissioning HVAC, plumbing, and fire protection systems for commercial, institutional, and governmental projects. He also established Merrick's Energy Feasibility and Evaluation Protocols and directs their LEED accreditation program.

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