Sun Harbor Marina has set the eco-bar high by becoming the first marina in the world to be LEED certified.
Created by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), the Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) certification process provides the highest standards for designing, building and certifying green structures.
The USGBC is a coalition of leaders from the building industry that have come together to implement building practices designed to promote environmental safety, healthy working environments, and responsible, sustainable building policy guidelines.
Working within the guidelines set by the USGBC, the Sun Harbor Marina, 5000 North Harbor Drive, has pulled ahead of the pack with the designation.
The certification process includes documenting and tracking everything from waste disposal to controlling and limiting greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere.
Sun Harbor has spent the last three years meeting the USGBC standards. The green building guidelines are not yet required by law, instead serving as a standard to which contractors, engineers and companies can measure their project’s sustainability and environmental impact.
“Because I’m an activist, and I have been my whole life, one of the things I’m most passionate about is saving our environment,” said Mary Lou LoPreste, owner and managing partner of the marina. “So when I became aware of LEED about five years ago, I thought, ‘You know, if I ever get the chance to redevelop my marina, that’s how I’m going do it.’ And [we] did.”
LoPreste said that the work was frustrating at times, documenting just about every detail from site selection to making sure the construction area keeps the environment clean from dust, dirt and pollution.
LoPreste and the team of engineers, designers and contractors used environmentally friendly products, reducing resource depletion, such as fast-growing, sustainable lumber.
In upgrading to green, Sun Harbor paid attention to minute detail as they started from the ground up.
The old buildings’ materials were taken to Mexico to be reused and recycled. Energy-efficient light bulbs were used as well, with an emphasis on natural light using specially designed windows.
Each building has its own recycling center where occupants can recycle the usual corrugated cardboard, glass, aluminum, plastics and metals. Water storing, or succulent, plants and replanted trees in and around the harbor conserve water. Even parking space was limited to encourage alternative transportation.
The newly remodeled harbor is not only easy on the environment, but easy on the eyes, with public art and state-of-the-art design intended to capture the imagination of those who visit.
The project cost about $5.5 million, with an additional 5 to 10 percent of that amount spent on LEED certification alone. But the energy savings will eventually outweigh the cost, said LoPreste, adding that she is already experiencing about 37 percent in water savings and 38 percent in electricity.
“It definitely pays for itself within five years,” she said.
Sun Harbor Marina has been recognized by the California Senate and Washington state, and has also received the E.A.R.T.H award from San Diego Earth Works.
Awards aside, the lessons learned from rebuilding Sun Harbor may also provide a model for the Port of San Diego to follow in future projects.
“It’s great for them, obviously. And it’s also good for us because we are an environmental steward of San Diego Bay, and being LEED certified means that you use materials that help the environment,” said Marguerite Elicone, spokeswoman for the Port of San Diego.
While the economic benefits of going green are already taking shape for the marina, LoPreste had more than economics on her mind when taking on LEED certification process.
“It’s imperative to me that my grandchildren have an opportunity to experience our Earth the way I have. Everyone should be able to hike in a forest that has got old-growth lumber in it that isn’t clear-cut. And we should be able to swim in our oceans and breathe clean air,” LoPreste said. “The list just goes on and on.”
For more information about the LEED process visit the U.S. Green Building Council Web site, www.usgbc.org.