Sustainable Design - VA Palo Alto Health Care System
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VA Palo Alto Health Care System

 

Sustainable Design

Rendering of Lobby in Recreation Therapy Facility Building with sustainability in mind is not only crucial to showing stewardship towards your tax dollars but in making VA Palo Alto Health Care System (VAPAHCS) a leader in reducing emissions and efficiently using precious resources within our community.

Whether VAPAHCS is building something new or renovating existing spaces, we incorporate sustainable practices from the planning and design phases, all the way through the construction and activation of facilities. Five principles that guide sustainable practices across all Federal agencies are:

1. Employ integrated design principles (new construction) and integrated assessment, operation, and maintenance principles (existing buildings)
2. Optimize energy performance
3. Protect and conserve water
4. Enhance indoor environmental quality
5. Reduce environmental impact of materials

Detailed information explaining these guiding principles can be located in the Guiding Principles for Sustainable Federal Buildings developed by the Federal Energy Mangement Program.

Some of the major elements incorporated into the design of buildings within VAPAHCS include:

Site/Landscape

Sustainable design elements and practices incorporated into our sites include:

  • Drought Tolerant Plants: Ensure less water used for irrigation and adaptability
  • Water efficient irrigation with drip and low flow systems
  • Landscape maintenance using recycled wood mulch, integrated pest management, etc.
  • Energy efficient site lighting
  • Site furniture (benches, trash receptacles, bike racks, etc.) made of recycled and/or renewable materials.

Interior Design

Desks, tables, chairs and other furniture used in current and new office spaces must meet several sustainable requirements, including:

  • Recycled Materials & Recyclability: Even the chairs placed into each office are bought with sustainability in mind. Plastic based chairs are expected to contain up to 20 percent recycled content, while aluminum based chairs are expected to be constructed of up to 38 percent recycled content. Ultimately, up to 97 percent of the chair must have the ability to be recycled at end of life.
  • Free of Hazardous Materials: The material chemistry of furniture and other interior products must be constructed free of environmentally hazardous materials such as PVC, CFC, solvent-based adhesives, heavy metals (chrome, lead and mercury) and benzene.
  • Low-Emitting Materials: Interior design products placed into VAPAHCS facilities are expected to be free of environmentally hazardous processes such as those that produce Volatile Organic Compounds, or organic chemicals that easily vaporize into the air.

Construction

Current and future buildings within VAPAHCS that are aiming to fulfill the guiding principles for sustainment include:

Major General William H. Gourley VA-DOD Outpatient Clinic (Monterey)Major General William H. Gourley VA-DoD Outpatient Clinic

  • Attained LEED for Healthcare Gold certification in 2017
  • Landscape irrigation designed to accommodate a non-potable graywater system, to integrate into the City of Marina's upcoming Graywater infrastructure
  • On target to exceed 40 percent threshold for sustainably sourced materials

Recreation Therapy Facility (Palo Alto)

  • 50 percent of wood-based products - wood siding, ceiling and trellis are Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Certified
  • High R-values of walls, windows and roof insulation system
  • Structural steel made from 70 percent recycled materials
  • Plumbing incorporates high efficiency water closets, ultra high efficiency urinals and 0.5 gpm laminar flow control on all sink and lavatory faucets

Recreation Therapy Fieldhouse (Menlo Park)

  • Water efficient fixtures to reduce water usage in aggregate by 30 percent
  • Natural daylighting of spaces
  • Building envelope is insulated with thermal insulation materials of R-30 for the roof and R-19 for the exterior wall
  • Recycle and/or salvage at least 75 percent of the construction, demolition and land clearing debris with Waste Management Plan
  • Goal of 10 percent of building materials to be manufactured locally
  • Goal of 10 percent of building materials to be recycled content
  • Elimination of mercury, lead and cadmium from building materials and control systems
  • Use low or no VOC paints, sealants, adhesives, composite wood products, insulation, carpet furniture and exterior applied products
  • Zero use of CFC, HCFC, or Halon based refrigerants in HVAC and fire suppression system

Simulation Center Wing of the Learning Center (Palo Alto)

  • On target to achieve LEED Silver certification
  • Goal of 10 percent of building materials to be harvested or extracted and manufactured locally
  • Goal of 20 percent of building materials to be recycled content
  • Use low or no VOC paints, sealants, adhesives, composite wood products, insulation, carpet furniture and exterior applied products
  • Use low or no VOC paints, sealants, adhesives, paints, composite wood products, and flooring products
  • Recycle and/or salvage at least 75 percent of the construction, demolition and land clearing debris
  • Supporting lower-impact commuting choices by providing bike racks and preferred parking for fuel efficient vehicles
  • Zero use of CFC, HCFC, or Halon based refrigerants in HVAC and fire suppression system
  • User-controllability of lighting, including task lighting at all workstations
  • Thermal comfort monitoring, ensuring comfortability of occupants in the building, with adjustments made upon users survey after 12-18 months of occupancy.

Defenders Lodge (Palo Alto)

  • Attained LEED Gold certification in 2015
  • Utilization of solar pre-heat water system (solar panels on roof)
  • Occupancy sensors for interior lighting
  • Exterior lights on timer system
  • Low VOC paint
  • Low-flow plumbing fixtures

Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center

This upcoming building boasts a green roof area and a roof garden. Benefits of the green roofs include:

  • Visual relief and a connection to nature
  • Promotion of biodiversity and benefit wildlife (butterflies, bees, etc.)
  • Reduction in the urban heat island effect - Plants on green surfaces absorb heat and then use it through evapotranspiration. Green roofs play an important role in reducing urban temperatures, and subsequent improvements in air pollution/smog, as associated with the heat island effect.
  • Mitigatigation of stormwater runoff - Green roofs store rainwater in the plants and growing mediums, and evaporate water into the atmosphere, reducing the amount of stormwater going into the sewer system.
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