Sustainable Operations
The Compton Union Building is the first building on WSU campus to be LEED certified. The U.S. Green Building Council developed a green building rating system called the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) to provide a set of standards for environmentally sustainable construction.
In order to be LEED certified, a building must meet criteria in five areas:
- sustainable site development
- water savings
- energy efficiency
- materials selection and
- indoor environment quality
The CUB incorporates several new, green-friendly features including water saving flush valves, efficient radiant heating and cooling, and extensive recycling facilities. Additionally, the structure itself has been reused and much of the construction material removed from the site has been recycled. During construction, over 90% of the building material was recycled and over 11 million pounds of debris removed from the CUB during the renovation avoided the Whitman County Landfill.
View our LEED slideshow for a visual depiction.
CUB by the Numbers
35 - Public recycling containers located in the building
89.58 - Percent of all waste that was recycled during demolition and construction of the CUB
137 - Individual desk recycling containers
136,000 - Square feet of natural preserve space established by the CUB renovation
1,500,000 - Gallons of water to be saved annually in the CUB with the use of dual flush toilets
