‘Living Building’ Opens at Washington U. in St. Louis

A new building at Washington University in St. Louis will meet strict green-building standards. (Washington U. in St. Louis image)

Washington University in St. Louis has opened a living-learning building that is designed to meet the Living Building Challenge, one of the most demanding green-building rating systems in the world. The Living Building Challenge was developed by the Cascadia Region Green Building Council, the Northwest chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council.

The materials and techniques that are being used in the building are adventurous for a college structure. For starters, the living-learning center will be a net-zero-energy building, meaning it produces all of its energy needs, and it will produce no wastewater. The building will use solar power for its energy, and its roofs will capture rainwater that will be purified. The building features composting toilets, which use natural decay processes to sterilize and break down human waste.

Rainwater that falls on the roof will be collected in a 3,000-gallon cistern, then purified for drinking. Porous landscaping will eliminate runoff. The structural lumber was cut 200 miles away — local by modern standards — and the cedar siding was cut from trees on the construction site.

Much like certification in the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program, a “living building” certification requires Washington University to monitor and track the building’s performance to find out if it’s as efficient as it was designed to be. The 2,900-square-foot building was designed by Hellmuth & Bicknese Architects and cost $1.6-million, according to an Associated Press story.