Sustainable (Green) Building

Monterey Regional Waste Management District Administration Building

Location: 14201 Del Monte Boulevard, Marina, CA
Type of building: Public Facility
Size (Sq. ft.): 8,050 sq. ft.
Renovation Project
Date completed: March of 1994
Cost: $1,436,000
Owner: Monterey Regional Waste Management District
Designed By: Paul Davis Partnership

Showcase of high quality, affordable, recycled-content and/or environmentally friendly building materials.

In an effort to "close the recycling loop," the administration building and scalehouse were expanded and remodeled in 1994 using a green building approach. Construction materials made from reused or recycled items were selected wherever possible.  In addition to recycled content products, items made from renewable resources were selected. 

The project included a new boardroom, an expanded second story, two new truck scales, a separate scalehouse, a new septic system, roadways, paving, landscaping and other site improvements, equipment, and furniture. 

Sustainable Building Strategies: 

Energy Efficient System

• Building powered solely through the electricity generated by the Landfill Gas Project. 

Resource Efficient Materials

• The linoleum flooring is made from linseed oil, pine resins, jute, and cork rather than petroleum products.
• The decorative and structural beams, instead of being made from old growth trees, are made from small, fast growing trees that were "reassembled" into straight, strong, and defect-free parallel beams.
• The oriented strand board (OSB) replacing  plywood is made from fast growing trees instead of old growth trees.
• The two types of insulation used in the walls and ceiling contain recycled material. The fiberglass insulation is made from 30% recycled bottle glass, and the cellulose insulation is made from 100% recycled newspapers.
• The wall paneling in the boardroom and upstairs conference room is made from 100% recycled newspaper.
• The floor tiles in the entryway are made from recycled automobile windshields.
• The carpeting throughout the building is made from recycled plastic soda bottles.
• The restroom partitions are made from 35% recycled plastic. 
• The wheel stops in the parking lot are made from 70% recycled plastic.

Water Conservation

• Compost and mulch for the landscaping around the building is made from the wood waste and yard waste collected on site.

Waste Reduction

• The base rock underneath the parking lot and roads was made from the District's concrete rubble and asphalt recycled at the landfill. 

Lessons learned: No matter whether a goal for recycled content materials is developed for a project, it is important to pick materials carefully. Tile was specified in the lobby for a high profile recycled content material, however, when it gets wet it is very slick. Additionally, there were two colors of recycled content carpet incorporated into the public building and the lighter colored carpet has shown spots more than the darker colored carpet.

Information Contact:
Heidi Feldman
Public Education Coordinator
Monterey Regional Waste Management District
Tel.: 831/384-5313     FAX: 831/384-3567
Email: hfeldman@mrwmd.org

Last updated: January 15, 2008