September 16, 2007... (by Lauren Garrison, Staff Reporter of the Norwalk Hour) When seventh through ninth graders at the New Canaan Country School returned to classes this month, they found themselves in a strange building where countertops are made of glass bottles and seashells, bathroom dividers are made of laundry detergent bottles and the windows can tell when the sun sets.

"It's beautiful, it's great," said Riker Jones, a 9th grader and one of 13 Norwalk students in the upper school. "What's really great is it's so environmentally friendly."

The building, which became home to around 200 upper-school students on Sept. 5 when school opened for the year, may look unusual, but it is friendly to the environment and its occupants. It reduces water use by 40 percent, utilizes 20 percent recycled building materials and 20 percent materials that were extracted, processed and manufactured within 500 miles of the site.

In addition, 85 percent of the waste produced during construction of the building went to a recycling plant, according to Dave Stoller, the school's environmental coordinator and director of technology.

Jones said he was pleased that the school chose to recycle so much of the materials when they could have easily thrown them out. He was also glad that the new building was constructed in part within an existing building from the 1970s, so that the existing structure didn't go to waste.

All the fans, motors and appliances in the building are Energy Star rated, meaning they use less energy than their non-rated counterparts. Sensors in the windows automatically adjust interior lights as sunlight levels change.

The school even produces some of its own energy using solar panels on the roof.

"Unfortunately the return on a solar panel system in Connecticut isn't the same as you get in, say, Nevada," said Stoller. "We're hoping to average out (producing) about eight to ten percent of what the building is using during occupancy."

On a sunny day, however, the school could produce up to 20 percent of its own energy.

Stoller said that the school has equipment that converts the solar energy produced "directly into usable building power."

 "We really felt that made a statement and a very proactive kind of effort towards reducing the greenhouse gas footprint of this building," he said.

The school hopes to obtain Leadership in Energy and Design certification. LEED is a "nationally accepted benchmark" through the U.S. Green Building Council "for the design, construction, and operation of high performance green buildings," according to the USGBC's Web site.

The school won't learn until early next year if they receive certification, Stoller said.

According to Christensen, the new 41,000 square foot, three-story building, which was constructed to accommodate the growing school, was designed in keeping with the school's mission, which states, "The school works in partnership with families to teach personal, social and environmental responsibility."

 "Environmental responsibility is at the heart of our mission," Christensen said. "It's not just that we made this building but we're using it as a laboratory to teach children about environmental responsibility."

The building includes some educational components, such as a touch screen computer in a common area where students can see how much energy the solar panels are producing at any given time.

But, said Stoller, "Some of the greenest elements of building a building you just can't see."

Therefore, the school is making an effort to incorporate into the curriculum lessons about the building and the environment.

If all goes well, beginning this spring the upper school students will be taught about recycling, green house gases and solar panels. They will explore the building and measure things like water efficiency and indoor air quality, said Stoller.

"I've always been interested in environmental stuff in a certain extent," said Jones. "This has encouraged me to do my own research and learn from the school even more."

Beyond being friendly to the environment, the building is healthier than most for its occupants.

All sealants, adhesives, paint and carpeting used in the building are low in VOCs, or volatile organic compounds, which could be harmful to the students' health.

Furthermore, the building was designed to have a pleasant atmosphere for its occupants. Seventy-five percent of all the spaces in the building receive natural day light, and 90 percent of spaces have outside views. Skylights were added to allow light into interior spaces, Stoller said.

While the features that make the building green added to the cost of construction, the greater efficiency is expected to reduce operating costs in the long run.

One immediate dividend comes from Connecticut Light & Power, which will give the school a rebate for its use of Energy Star rated appliances, Stoller said.

"As you look at the life cycle cost, it does pay back over time," Stoller said.