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IMPACT ConferenceApril 29, 2015
About the Facilities
• Saint Paul RiverCentre (1998) 250,000 ft2 of exhibit halls, meeting rooms, ballrooms Includes Roy Wilkins Auditorium (1938)
• Xcel Energy Center (2000) 18,000-seat NHL hockey arena and concert venue
• Together they host 3 million visitors/year
• Individual budgets, but operational staff are shared
• Also responsible for adjacent RiverCentre Parking Ramp (1970)
• None of these facilities were built “green”
Why Sustainability?
• Wanted to reduce environmental impact and be a good community partner
• Also believed that by acting strategically it could be a smart business decision– Mobilizing staff behind an effort; creating a better place to work– Improving the efficiency of operations, both logistically and in
resource use– Efficiency Reduced Resource Use Cost Savings Bottom
Line Benefit
• But where to begin?
2009 Mission - Become a Regional Leader in Sustainability
Strategic Sustainability -• Find out where we were (Benchmark)• Define where we wanted to be (Goals)• Create a comprehensive plan & program (Implementation)
Reduce Trash by 50%, achieve 50% recycling in 2 years
How to get there: – Re-designed the entire process for waste handling in complex
– New bins, equipment, and ways of doing things
– 1:1 ratio of recycling vs. trash
– Introduced composting (among first venues in nation)
– Large-scale, organized collection behind the scenes
– Tools to make it safer & easier
– ‘Transfer Points’ to hand off material between departments
Waste Reduction & Recycling- Waste is visible & touches everyone – staff and guests alike- 2.8 million pounds of waste generated per year- A big goal and success could generate buy-in for other actions
Recycling Results
By the numbers– Reached 50% recycling in 18 months
– Reduced trash over 1 million pounds per year
– Today: Recycling over 60% of all waste
– Just received a grant from MPCA to add even more
Beyond the numbers– Success of the program rallied staff to participate
– Also highlighted other areas of focus Purchasing• People saw what remained in trash
• Spurred requests for new buying practices
*****
Purchasing Playbook
Multiple categories of purchases– Modeled after LEED approved third-party standards
– Consumables, Cleaning Materials, Cleaning Equipment, Durable Goods, Facility Alterations
– Provided parameters on what to look for AND cost threshold• Within 10% of non-green = BUY
– Biggest challenge was a good tracking system
Green Purchasing Stats Today – 75% of cleaning materials campus-wide (including F.S.)
– 65% of office products and other consumables
– Major purchases consider environmental attributes• 5,000 of the chairs in this room (2013)
– Also use primarily compostable Foodservice products
Sustainability & Energy
Less visible but just as impactful
Focused on 3 areas– Operating Practices: Using energy only when needed
• Procedures for better communication
– Efficiency Upgrades: New equipment and retrofits• Reducing the load when we do need it
– Renewable Energy: Reducing carbon footprint
Looked for partners to help us– Xcel Energy:
Rebates JEEP
– Other Vendors: Sage High-speed doors
Mayor Coleman’s Vision for Saint Paul
• The most livable city in America
• Sustainability is a huge cornerstone
• Early priority was to find funding for energy efficiency &
renewable energy
• RiverCentre & Xcel Energy Center began work in
sustainability just as funding became available
– $2.7 million Energy Efficiency Block Grant
Lighting at RiverCentre Ramp
• Over 1,000 high-pressure sodium lights replaced with fluorescent
• Project cost: $126,000– Stimulus funding: $44,000– Xcel Energy Rebate: $73,000
• Annual Savings: $50,000
• Project payback to RiverCentre: < 3 months
Solar PV, Electric Car Charging
• 82-kW PV system on vertical face of RiverCentre Ramp
• Largest of 10 City projects funded by ARRA from the U.S. Department of Energy
• Generates 60,000 kWh energy per year
• Great tie to Electric Car Charging
– Additional funding from ARRA enabled installation of 26 charging stations across downtown Saint Paul
– 3 stations at RiverCentre Ramp can charge up to 6 cars at once
Solar Thermal Integration
• $1 million grant from U.S. DOE and Solar America Cities
• 1 MW Solar thermal array– First system in US to be tied to a District Energy grid– Generates 1 Million kWh heat energy per year– Energy used at SPRC first, then down-line
• The partnership:– City and MPCA secured funding– Additional funding supplied by District Energy, owner of panels– Roof and mechanical space supplied by RiverCentre
• The result:– Visitors from all over world have toured this state-of-the-art
installation
Off-Site Wind Power
Windsource®
• Clients can purchase wind per-event
• Today’s event is offset!
• Also have multi-year contract to cover all Wild games & some other events
We are a Top 5 Purchaser of Windsource in Minnesota!
Renewable Energy Credits• Additional wind power to further offset
energy use• Total wind power in 2014 =
10,000,000 kWh
Energy Efficiency Continues• Now upgrades are happening almost continually
– Over 2,100 total light fixtures upgraded since 2010– Over $200,000 annual energy savings– Over $275,000 in efficiency rebates from Xcel Energy
• Example: Roy Wilkins Exhibit Hall– 300 fixtures upgraded in January– Metal Halide to LED– 81% energy savings– Brighter, better quality of light
• Our biggest projects may be yet to come• Two major lighting upgrades for 2015• RiverCentre Exhibit Halls, Arena Sports Lights• Both will be LED• Up to 750 more fixtures, $100,000 energy savings
What about Certifications?
Always considered as a likely option for future
• Knew certifications were on table, but didn’t want them as endgame
• Once building performing well time to get stamp of approval
• Decided to pursue 3 certs - ‘sustainable by any standard’
• LEED-EBOM: U.S. Green Building Council
• Green Globes CIEB: Green Building Initiative
• APEX/ASTM: Green Meeting Industry Council
CIEB: Focused on improving building operations on an ongoing basis
Highlights:• On-site auditor walked through
building to review practices
• Impetus for written policies backing up existing practices
• Added new topics to sustainability scope
– MSDS & Haz-Mat documentation– Site history review
• 94% on Environmental Mgt: Due to purchasing standards, policies, community education
• Bonus Surprise: 3 of 4 Globes
Venue-specific certification has no credits; all topics are required
Highlights:• Majority of work is common to other
certifications
• Reviewers available to clarify & walk through process
• Great link to Events world– Required load-in/load-out policy– No-idling written rule for staff– Event-specific resource guide for reuse of
leftover items
• Already using twice the percentage of green products required by APEX standard
APEX/ASTM Certification Requirements
EBOM: Focused on operational practices vs. New Construction
Highlights:• PM and Ops procedures – finally in
writing (15+ yrs in engineer’s head)
• Recommissioning – full building testing with punch list to address
– 28 projects done, mostly low-cost– Est. $80,000 annual savings
• Bonus Surprise – Staff Commuting– 40% of trips made by efficient means
• Spurred new focus on water – Benchmark existing fixtures upgrades– Added interval monitoring of water use
Certification Firsts:Green Globes • First major event venues in the world
APEX/ASTM • RiverCentre was one of the first 10 convention centers in North America• Xcel Energy Center is the first major sports facility
LEED • Xcel Energy Center is the only NHL Arena in U.S. to have LEED-EBOM• RiverCentre is one of less than 20 U.S. convention centers
Thank you!
Jim Ibister – [email protected]
Anne Hunt – [email protected]
Christina Reeves – [email protected]
Questions?
