Great River Energy: A prime Example of How to Build Green

Great River Enegy recently released a white paper detailing the construction of their Maple Grove, Minn. headquarters, the first building to achieve LEED Platinum in the state. The text of the white paper can be found here.Great River Energy not only built a sophisticated building which scored 56 points but also built a structure which can be used to educate others.

The key features of the Great River headquarters are:

1. Uses 50% less energy and 90% less water than a structure built to just state codes
2. Utilizes an in lake geothermal HVAC system
3. In floor displacement ventilation system
4. Daylight harvesting
5. 72 kilowatts of on site solar power and a 200 kilowatt wind turbine
6. Only cost 10% more than a traditionally built structure

The Great River Energy headquarters is an excellent example of how proper research, communication between all team members, and follow up evaluation and corrective action can create a building that is not only sustainable and efficient but also an excellent educational tool to spread the message that green building does not need to break the bank.

We need to rethink the way we evaluate buildings and energy usage for as the CEO of Green River Energy said: “At Great River Energy, we know the cheapest—and cleanest—kilowatt-hour is the one we don’t have to produce. So conservation and energy efficiency have become our first
fuel.”