Fact or Fiction: Water Conservation Measures Sweep Across the Southwest
Mara Baum, AIA, LEED AP® BD+C, HOK
Gabriel Cervantes, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, HOK
The Scripps Institute of Oceanography has reported that the lifeline for the Southwest, the Colorado River and Lake Meade water distribution systems, will "soon teeter at the brink of failure." Laboratory facilities' cooling and process loads require a significant amount of water, compared with other building types, putting them at a higher risk in a future of uncertain water supply and increasing water rates. Despite this, anecdotal evidence suggests that recent and currently planned laboratory projects in the Lower Basin incorporate minimal water conservation measures. This presentation will reveal current trends in laboratory water conservation in this extremely dry region based on interviews with laboratory personnel representing public university, private university, corporate, and government facilities. Proven measures are available for laboratory facilities to conserve water use, including Labs21 Best Practices, but only a small number are commonly implemented. The presentation will address the following questions:
- What are the similarities and differences in implementing water conservation measures by facility type (e.g., corporate, public university, private university)? What are the trends by facility type?
- What are the motivations behind whether facilities pursue conservation? For example, which decisions are driven by first cost versus life cycle cost versus maintenance issues, etc.?
- What are the barriers to using water conservation technologies or strategies? Which of these are internal issues that the institution can control (e.g. project budget), and which are external issues (e.g. codes and regulations)?
- What are the most commonly incorporated water conservation technologies and strategies? Are these strategies performing as expected?
- Which organizations or facilities have the most noteworthy water management programs? What actions, if any, enabled an organization's success in water management?
The speakers will share findings from an in-depth study of these questions, bringing perspectives from a range of laboratory stakeholders in Southern California, Nevada, and Arizona.
Biographies:
Mara Baum is HOK's firmwide healthcare sustainable design leader. Ms. Baum oversees sustainability implementation, research, and education across HOK's global healthcare market sector, also providing support to science and technology projects. A thought leader and researcher in the sustainable design field, Ms. Baum speaks regularly at regional, national, and international conferences, including the American Institute of Architects Convention, Greenbuild, the California Higher Education Sustainability Conference, Living Future, and others. She is also on the faculty of Boston Architectural College and recently co-authored the Advanced Energy Design Guide for Large Hospitals: Achieving 50 Percent Energy Savings Toward a Net Zero Energy Building. She holds a Masters of Architecture and a Masters of City and Regional Planning from the University of California, Berkeley. A LEED AP since 2001, her experience with LEED® and Green Guide for Healthcare projects covers tens of millions of square feet.
Gabriel Cervantes is a project manager, laboratory planner, and project architect, as well as a California-registered architect with HOK who offers more than 20 years of professional experience with an emphasis on research facilities. His involvement in projects of high complexity, such as the new William Eckhart Research facility at the University of Chicago, or the Convergence of Molecular Science and Engineering Research Building at the University of Southern California, gives him a depth of technical expertise that he brings to each project. Mr. Cervantes is committed to collaboration and open communication, particularly given the complex requirements of research facilities. Whereas all projects he undertakes are designed for highest levels of sustainability, he is ultimately in pursuit of creating net zero energy buildings. Mr. Cervantes received a Bachelor of Arts in architecture from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Masters of Architecture from the University of California, Los Angeles.