Tuesday, April 9, 2013

World's Greenest Commercial Building Fights Toxic Material Exposure


On April 22, Earth Day, the Bullitt Center will open in Seattle, becoming the world’s greenest commercial building. The six-story building boasts a variety of environmentally beneficial features, including geothermal heating, composting toilets, collection and use of rainwater, and a solar energy system that will generate enough electricity to power the entire facility.

But perhaps some of the most remarkable aspects of the building are its efforts to reduce exposure to toxic materials, both inside and outside the building.
Bullitt Center Under Construction
Photo by John Staments

Most commercial facilities are built using hazardous materials that appear on the Living Building Challenge's Red List. Included on the Red List are toxins such as asbestos, cadmium, halogenated flame retardants, lead and mercury. Following the Living Building Challenge, no Red List material has been used during the construction of the Bullitt Center.



To ensure that the building will remain free of such materials and chemicals once tenants have started to move in, the facility will prohibit tenants from purchasing any new office furniture that contains formaldehyde, volatile organic compounds or any other components considered toxic.

In addition, the Bullitt Center will work to prevent pollution of toxic chemicals in Seattle’s waterways. In cities like Seattle, nonpoint source pollution occurs frequently when runoff flows over hard-packed surfaces such as concrete, picking up oil, grease, chemicals and toxic materials before spilling into area waterways. However, at the Bullitt Center, rainwater will be retained on site and grey water from sinks will be filtered through a green roof to prevent runoff. Additionally, around the building, pervious pavement that allows water to infiltrate into the soil below will be used, stopping the flow of runoff before it collects toxins or finds its way to Puget Sound.



Find out more about the Bullitt Center by visiting its website