The environmentally responsible Station at Mill Point represents one of Elon’s most recent strides in campus sustainability initiatives. Situated amidst 24 residential buildings for upperclassmen, the Station at Mill Point recently attained LEED Silver Certification.
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), according to the U.S. Green Building Council, is a renowned sustainable building program that promotes environmental stewardship through green projects. LEED certification recognizes high performance buildings that successfully meet LEED requirements throughout the construction process.
“Sustainable buildings provide environmental and occupant benefits through reduced resource use and a healthy indoor environment,” Elaine Durr, the Director of Sustainability, said. “Sustainable facilities also serve as a unique educational tool. The LEED program provides third-party verification, which demonstrates Elon’s commitment to sustainable building practices. Elon’s Green Building Policy specifies the use of the LEED program”.
According to Elon’s Sustainability Master Plan, new buildings on campus will be constructed with sustainable features in order to achieve LEED certification. Guidelines will be strictly adhered to throughout the construction process with the hopes that each new facility will obtain at least a Silver Certification upon completion.
Elon’s public commitment to uphold green building initiatives helps promote environmental awareness on campus, according to Corinne Haywood, a peer educator with the Eco-Reps Program.
“We want people to genuinely care about environmentalism”, she said. “The more that people know about it, the more that a lot of people will care. If we don’t realize what the environment gives us, we are going to destroy it and diminish it.”
The construction of LEED certified buildings subsequently supports environmental awareness campus-wide and presents an opportunity for students to learn about their environmental impact.
“LEED certified buildings on campus allow for students to ask questions, and get answers those questions”, Haywood said.
According to Anthony Weston, professor of Philosophy and Environmental Studies, while sustainable building initiatives on campus represent a solid start in fostering environmental consciousness among Elon students, the location of the Station at Mill Point, just far enough from campus where students may be tempted regularly use their vehicles, presents a problematic dimension to the otherwise environmentally friendly development.
“Building a building that doesn’t wreck the environment, as far as it goes, it should be appreciated,” Weston said. “What Elon is trying to do is, number one, be responsible, and secondly, hopefully be a model for others schools”.
In comparison with other universities across the country, campus-wide environmental initiatives on Elon’s campus have been nationally recognized. For the past three consecutive years, the Princeton Review named Elon “one of the most ‘environmentally responsible colleges’” in the nation.
This month, Elon is participating in the RecycleMania competition against other higher education institutions across the nation. The contest seeks to reward the university with the highest rate of recycling.
“Some students recycle, and some just don’t,” an employee, who wished to remain anonymous, at Octagon Café said.
According to the mission statement of the Office of Sustainability, newly implemented campus sustainability initiatives dovetail with the program’s overall goals of environmental education, being less wasteful, and decreasing greenhouse gas emissions.