Green building is undergoing a metamorphosis from the gospel of environmentalists to a regular practice of the business community — including at the UW.

On the UW campus, all new buildings are being built in an environmentally conscious manner and the newest, the Benjamin D. Hall Interdisciplinary Research Building, was recently certified LEED-Gold by the U.S. Green Building Council.

The five basics the council looks for are, "sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality."

These standards can be difficult to meet for many buildings, but with the requirements written in the plans of laboratories like Benjamin D. Hall, buildings are now constructed using creative solutions to uncommon problems.

Because of the exhaust produced by the lab, "all heated air has to have 10 air changes per hour," said Andy Casillas, project manager.

"We used a heat recovery system where the air leaves the building and goes through coils which take back some of the heat used to warm the initial air."

The constant air heating could have resulted in enormous energy expenditure, but with some forethought, it was turned into a positive design feature that enables the building to work.

According to a 2000 Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory study, a building's environment can have an adverse affect on health.

The study found "that building characteristics and indoor environments significantly influence the occurrence of communicable respiratory illness, allergy and asthma symptoms ... and worker performance."

The Benjamin D. Hall building contains non-toxic water-based paints, clean-certified carpets and low-emitting adhesives in the insulation.

So, while there will be no "new building smell" (which is caused by traditional adhesives) there will be fewer respiratory problems for those who regularly work in the laboratory.

"The goal was to design, construct and operate a ... beautiful, long-lasting space where employees and users feel healthy and enjoy working everyday," said Richard Chapman, vice president for Capital Projects at the UW.

The building was constructed using on a new design-build-operate-maintain model, meaning the same group designing the building will be doing upkeep on the building 10 years from now.

"The actual building is a very small percentage of the 10-year cost, [and] the vast majority of the cost is operation and maintenance," Casillas said.

If the designers create an efficient building, they will save money in the future when they become operators, giving them an incentive to go beyond normal green building standards, he said.

Building green is no passing fad: the State of Washington now requires that all major public facilities meet green building standards.

"The UW is committed to being a positive force for the enhancement of the environment," wrote UW President Mark Emmert on his Web site. "Not just in research, but in how we manage our facilities and resources."

Reach contributing writer Sarah Greenleaf at development@thedaily.washington.edu.