The Oregon Health & Science University Center for Health & Healing (CHH) has achieved double-platinum certification with its recent Platinum certification for LEED Existing Building Operations and Maintenance (LEED EBOM). The building is one of the largest LEED Platinum facilities in the nation. It was also the first medical facility in the world to receive the new construction Platinum certification (LEED NC) from the U.S. Green Building Council back in 2007.
In obtaining the new LEED operational certification, the facility received 82 out of the 83 credits submitted to the U.S. Green Building Council; 80 credits are required to be recognized for Platinum certification. With the help of consultants from Brightworks, a Portland, Ore.-based sustainability consulting firm, the building management team CBRE was able to use and enhance the established sustainability program and operational practices to ensure compliance with the LEED EBOM’s certification requirements.
"OHSU is proud of this significant environmental accomplishment,” said OHSU President Joe Robertson, M.D., M.B.A. “As an organization that seeks to improve the health of all Oregonians, we also believe we have a responsibility to protect the health of our environment. My thanks go out to the CBRE team and the many OHSU employees who worked hard to achieve this certification.”
Prior to receiving this LEED certification, the building was tracked during a “performance period” where the following issues were measured:
- Verified energy savings
- Water efficiency
- CO2 emissions reduction
- Indoor environmental quality
- Tenant modes of transportation
- Stewardship of resources and sensitivity to their impacts
Demonstrating significant improvements in these areas is a critical part of the litmus test of LEED’s third-party review process. One of the Center for Health & Healing’s major documented impacts included saving more than 5 million gallons of drinkable water annually by capturing rainwater and reusing building process water for irrigation, toilet flushing and other downstream uses. The established communications program was also key to ensuring data collection and ongoing buy-in from the client and occupants, resulting in optimal performance results.