Over the past few weeks, our group has further explored and researched ideas for the café that will replace the Banana Boat. As one of the LEED Consultants I have begun to search for finish materials that are both sustainable and good for indoor air quality. I discovered that when a sustainable finish is made from recyclable material, it isn’t always good for indoor air quality. Paint and adhesives used for flooring, particleboard, and MDF can be toxic. Although high-quality air diffusers and ventilation devices can be nitrated into the ceiling to remedy this issue, we are striving to use LEED compliant finishes in our new establishment. Silestone by Cosentino, for example, offers a ‘cleaner safer countertop’ that promises responsible harvesting of raw materials, ecological production, and low to no emissions in air quality upon installation. They are also hard to scratch and come in a wide range of colour.
The nature of shop-fabricated materials like ceiling and floor tiles often makes them fall outside the rules for LEED credits, even though they may achieve the same sustainable goals. Modern ceiling, wall, and floor panel systems, on the other hand, can contribute to a number of different credits under the US Green Building Council’s LEED program. These panel systems are high in recycled content, low in VOC’s, can utilize wood from sustainably managed forests, and do not support mold growth, among other things that are hazardous in a public environment. In addition to finish materials, we have also begun to consider a few sustainable assemblies. For example, if we use curved ceiling panels to create light scoops at glazing with reflective finishes we can make the most of natural lighting.
-Ashley W. (PM)
LEED Consultant/ Interior Designer
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