Wintermester 2012 Texas Study Tour Conclusion

Overall the trip was a great success.  We had a few mix-ups along the way, but that is to be expected when meeting with the number of people and covering the amount of locations in the timeframe that we did.  I would like to thank all of the individuals that took time out of their busy schedules and welcomed us into their organizations.  I would also like to thank Adam and Kyle for putting in the time and effort to research and network with the organizations that we visited with.  Last, but definitely not least, special thanks to Dr. Freg Forgey for accompanying us and helping everything come together as smoothly as possible.  All of us are very appreciative of your hospitality.

Day Eight: Dallas, Texas

This evening we visited Recycle Revolution.  It is located east of downtown Dallas in Deep Ellum.  Eddie Lott is the Founder and Executive Director of RR.  I first heard about Recycle Revolution while watching channel 5.  Here is a video overview of what RR is all about.While awaiting Eddie's arrival, I had an entertaining conversation with his mother Maria who also works at RR and is very passionate about her son and the mission of RR.  I learned that she is from the Philippines.  I just had to know who her pick was regarding arguably the two best welterweight boxers of all time: Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather.  She chose her countryman Pacquiao.  I also learned about the raised fist or clenched fist that is in the RR logo.  She told me that it stood for unity, solidarity, and support.  The idea to use it came about when they were trying to come up with a name for the business.

Here are a few interesting facts about Recycle Revolution:

• Independently owned and operated (woman and minority owned)
• Founded in Spring 2008
• Solely a shipping and receiving operation
• Looking to expand into Fort Worth
• Primarily work with mom and pop type companies/restaurants
• Also work with local bars
• Provide fee based recycling
• Drop-off location for those that wish to bring items in
• Accepts styrofoam
• Accepts toilets
• Accepts glass
• Accepts Hard To Recycle Products
• Just because an item has a recycling logo on it, it may not be recyclable

RR is a small company that is doing big things.  Eddie is extremely passionate about his business and the recycling sector.  He has taken a proactive approach to challenges.

Day Seven: Fort Worth, Texas

This evening we visited the Botanical Research Institute of Texas.  BRIT is located between the Fort Worth Botanic Gardens and Will Rodgers Memorial Center.  BRIT documents the diversity of plant life and conducts extensive research around the world.

The BRIT building has numerous sustainable features.  The 70,000 square foot building is LEED platinum.  There are only eight buildings in Texas that hold that distinction.

Here are some interesting facts about the BRIT building:

• Built by Beck
• Non-profit, public trust
• Bamboo ceilings
• Living roof
• Natural lighting throughout
• Geothermal wells aid in HVAC costs
• Rooftop photovoltaic array
• 5,000 Gallon cistern captures rain runoff
• Wool carpeting
• Waterless urinals

BRIT owns the building and leases the land from the City of Fort Worth for $1 per year.  I did not get the chance to ask what the projected return on investment is.  With the extensive features I would imagine that it may not be reached for a long while.

Day Six: Houston, Texas

This morning we visited Hibiscus Hill Plantation, a 272 acre working ranch and farm located in Waller County.  Here we met Rick Bost, who spoke to us about the day to day operations and gave us some background on how it all came about.  Rick's wife Georgia is the creator of the "Village Botanica," a business of promoting and harvesting health and wellness sustainably.

Hibiscus Hill Plantation is a sustainable operation selling grass-fed beef, natural pork, true free range poultry and organic produce.  Georgia also does extensive research and development on North American hybrid Hibiscus.

Here are the highlights from the visit:

• Farm purchased in 1999
• Little/no antibiotic usage
• Animal welfare approved young castration
• Hibiscus is a sustainable biomass feedstock
• Chicken feed supplement is corn and soy free
• Over 1000 chickens, produce 100-300 dozen eggs a week
• Grass fed Hereford and Black Angus Cattle
• Grass fed beef contain 1/8 times less saturated fat than traditional fed
• FDA definition of fresh is a joke
• USDA organic definition is also a joke
• The term natural has nothing to do with how an animal is raised

This stop was one of the highlights of the trip for me.  Unfortunately, we ran out of time the previous day, and did not get to visit the market or restaurant.  I will make it a point to visit the next time that I am in the Houston Area.  Rick was very down to earth and had a plethora of knowledge.  Many thanks to Rick for taking the time to show us around the operation.

Day Five: Houston, Texas

We began our day visiting New Hope Housing.  2424 Sakowitz is a LEED platinum, single room occupancy provider.  The purpose of New Hope is to provide affordable housing for limited income individuals.

Here are a few highlights:

• 166 Units, 6 vacancies at the moment
• 24/7 front desk staffing
• Rainwater capturing
• Energy star appliances
• Not a shelter, allows adults to maintain their sense of dignity
• Computer lab for job seekers

I was somewhat disappointed that the tenants are allowed to smoke inside of their rooms and that each room had its own HVAC unit.  That seems counterproductive to me.  I was also surprised that there was not any quantitative data being compiled to further educate the tenants.  Tenants can essentially turn on all of the lights and turn the A/C on full blast all day and still pay the same low rent (~$430/month).


Our next stop was with Momentum Bay Associates.  The office is certified LEED Silver for commercial interiors.  We sat around a table as owner Mark Robinson spoke to us about his accomplishments.  Robinson has a considerable amount of lucrative contracts.  He also spoke of being good stewards and the moral obligation that we have to care for people and the environment.

Here are a few items that I took away from the meeting:

• Initial improvements should be low-cost, no-cost
• Robinson is active in the community
• Search engine optimization is vital, people won't use your services if they can't find you
• Healthy productivity cannot necessarily be quantified
• Do not overlook faith-based institutions  

Here is a video about the wind turbines that Robinson offers through Green Power 4 Texas

We next visited the Bayou Preservation Association.  Here we met with Steve Hupp (Water Quality Director) and Katharine Lord (Executive Director).  The BPA is a citizens group whose mision is to "protect and restore the richness and diversity of our waterways."  BPA promotes and encourages low impact development.  The bayou is home to the longest paddle trail in Texas, spanning 26 miles.  Many recreational and awareness activities take place along the Bayou.  The Trash Bash is a program that encourages bayou goers to pitch in and devote their time to pick up trash along the banks of the bayou.  This is a great community service opportunity for local boy scout and girl scout troops.  The BPA also utilizes criminal justice facilities by allowing inmates to participate in recreational and occupational activities along the bayou.  We also spent some time learning about the invasive plants and animals that have been introduced into the bayou.  Of interest to me was the Chinese Tallow Tree.  It has very high seed germination and is a feedstock for biodiesel that does not challenge the food supply.

We next toured Discovery Green Park.  The park was constructed in 2009 and achieved LEED Gold status.  The park has seen over 3 million visitors in its short existence.  The project cost roughly $128 million.  The park is a non-profit and is sponsored by BP.  The park utilizes solar pv arrays to power the buildings.  One aspect of the park that I liked was that many of the old trees were left in place instead of being cut down.  This produces a great amount of shade that I am sure park goers can appreciate.

In viewing the project profile and the park, 0 out of 5 points were earned for water efficiency.  Even though runoff water is captured and used, the use does not seem wise.  There are two water intensive devices located at the park, a mist tree and fountain.  The day that we visited was somewhat windy.  I cannot imagine the amount of water that is lost on an annual basis due to evaporation.

Our last visit for the day was with Steve Stelzer at the Houston Green Building Resource Center.  The HGBRC has achieved LEED Gold status.  The building was completed in July of 2011, and is a one stop permitting center for both homeowners and businesses.   Upon arrival one can see the unique rain capturing device in place.  The building also houses a living roof.  There are numerous items on display from low use water appliances to insulation materials.  Essentially this is a place where one can come and see a wide variety of ecofriendly and efficient building materials.  You may also bring in your building plans and have them evaluated for improvements.  The center encourages employees to ride their bicycles to work and has bike racks and showers to accommodate those that chose to do so.  Stelzer encouraged each of us to view the Human Footprint by National Geographic.  The video may be viewed here for free. The Human Footprint.

Day Four: San Antonio, Texas

Poteet Architects was formed 14 years ago in San Antonio, Texas.  Its purpose is to redevelop south downtown San Antonio.  Unlike new builders, Poteet tries to utilize existing structures.  Interiors are the firms primary niche.  There is a shipping container across the street that the firm designed that has received worldwide recognition.  

Pearl San Antonio utilizes many sustainable features at their certified LEED Gold facility. They include:

• Texas' largest solar installation
• Drought resistant Xeriscaping
• Rainwater Harvesting
• Reflective roofing
• Walkable, bicycle friendly
• Non-smoking facility
• Mixed use food/retail/offices

Lake Flato Architects are housed in a building that was once a 1920's car dealership.  They employ 50 full time employees and provide affordable, modular housing.  The firm also specializes in commercial, residential, community, pre-fab, and university projects.  Nearly all of their projects utilize natural lighting.  Also they attempt to have all residential projects LEED certified.  Most of their recent work has been existing renovation or commercial in nature since the economic downturn.  The in house sustainability specialist is a mechanical engineer by education.  Both quantitative and qualitative methods are used to measure success.  Energy modeling is used to attain an idea of how different designs will work.  The majority of employees are bicyclists and cycle to work on a daily basis.  Networking and sharing of information are common practices of employees.

We met with Lawrence Jetter, President of Advanced Earthen Construction Technologies. AECT, manufactures a machine that is capable of producing compressed earth blocks.  Here are a few facts about compressed earth blocks:

• Cheaper to build
• Better insulation
• Stronger than adobe
• Can build up to two stories high
• 10" dirt wall equivalent to R36 value
• Evaporative cooling (1 degree in 1 hour)
• Higher appraisal value
• 300lb compression
• Less fossil fuel used than on traditional construction

We had a routing issue and were directed to the wrong location.  We were supposed to visit the Green Spaces Alliance of Texas but instead ended up at a locked gate in the middle of a road.  Once we made it back to the proper location we caught the tail end of the presentation.  According to their website they are a local land trust and:

• Preserve large parcels of land
• Foster community gardens
• Educate the public

We ended our day at The Vistana.  We parked in the parking garage and went to meet up with our contact person.  We waited on the other group to arrive so that we could begin our tour.  Once they arrived we went to the office to alert the tour person that they had arrived and the office doors were locked.  Apparently there was some confusion on their part regarding our intentions.  We ended up leaving without a tour.  To ad insult, the parking garage machine would not read our ticket and we ended up having to pay $10 to get out of the garage.

Day Three: San Antonio, Texas

We started our day by meeting with Stephen Colley of Palo Alto College. PAC is a part of Alamo Colleges.  Colley spoke to us about the green initiatives that he was trying to implement at the school.  Here is a list of items that he spoke about:

• Rainwater harvesting
• Solar hot water
• Contractor/sub-contractor education
• Economical viability and profitability
• Mini-splitter a/c systems
• Natural gas drilling related to earthquakes?
• Energy rebates
• Support from HUD and other agencies

Colley mentioned and recommended us to Advanced Earth Construction Technologies, which manufacture a machine that makes compressed earth blocks.  

We had the opportunity to visit Lamar Elementary's Slow Food Garden.  The garden is the first of its kind in San Antonio.  The garden must have parent involvement to be successful.  Inclusiveness is a theme that the garden portrays.  Students are able to visit and work in the garden on a biweekly basis.  I was surprised to hear that you are not allowed to grow food on school property and feed it to the children during school hours.  However, there are ways of working around it.  Funding is an issue due to the size of the organization.  Sponsors are carefully selected to avoid conflicts of interest.  There are several fundraising events throughout the year to help raise money to keep the program afloat.

Our next visit was to the University of Texas, San Antonio Sustainable Business Program.  The purpose of the program is to expand businesses to adapt to sustainable practices.  The program currently has 200 clients of various sizes with up to 500 employees.  The staff is excited about potential expansion to cover 23 counties in 2012.  

The Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance is a non-profit organization that promotes advocacy for protection of the Edwards Aquifer.  The Aquifer runs north of Austin to Del Rio and is the most environmentally sensitive in the state of Texas.  Water quality is an issue because real estate pressures to build into protected areas.  The coalition began in 2003.  The group lobbies in Austin to initiate legislation.

Build San Antonio Green is San Antonio's residential green building program.  BSAG is a non-profit organization.  Currently 830 total buildings are certified.  Rebates and incentives apply for new as well as existing residences.  Also single and multi-family residences apply.  KB Homes is building all of their new houses through the program.  There are several levels of certification.  New construction is eligible for three certification levels.  Two site observations are conducted during the building process.  However, there is no quantitative data recorded after the house is built.  Energy, water, site selection, and indoor air quality are all factors in determining the certification level.

Alamo Architects have been in business since 1984.  They employ 45 specialists and incorporate sustainable architectural design into their projects.  Their building is an old truck trailer plant and is certified LEED Silver.   95% of the pre-existing structure was recycled by weight.  The firm practices accountability and not just familiarity with practicing LEED.  Many of the decor and features of the building's exterior are recycled from the previous structure.  There is recycled lumber used throughout the building as well as rain water catchment and extensive use of natural lighting.