Local Green News: Morrison Hall

From 2006-07, I had the pleasure of working at the Morrison Hall Renovation at UNC. My company, Skanska, basically gutted and rebuilt the interior of the 10-story building that was built in 1965.


The new building would become the home of the Sustainability community, as some senior class decided to give 176 rooftop solar hot water heating panels as their senior gift.
The school also rigged up this really interesting interactive TV display in the lobby that shows water, electricity and other usages by floor or in total. You can even convert the measurements into silly things like hamburgers and Tyler Hansboroughs!

At any rate, Morrison competed in the EPA's National Building Competition beginning in April 2010 along with 14 other buildings around the country. Other competitors ranged from another residence hall at NC State to a JC Penny in California. For a year the teams worked to step down energy and water waste in a "Biggest Loser" type competition. AND MORRISON WON!

Morrison cut energy consumption by 36 percent in a year, preventing 733 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions and cutting $250,000 in energy bills. (via the Daily Tar Heel)

Those foam fingers don't look very sustainable.

That's pretty impressive for 860 college kids who have probably never had to pay an electricity bill. I'm really pleased with this effort, but hopefully this momentum can spark some action in the hundreds of other buildings on campus. (Then maybe they won't have to hike up tuition every year!)
The article stated "Carolina is a recognized national leader in sustainability and energy and carbon reduction. UNC has committed to becoming carbon-neutral by 2050 and to stop using coal on campus by May 2020. " Good luck and keep up the good work!