Everyday the U.S. population is faced with the vast issue of energy reliability and availability. Those who were affected by the “Blackout of 2003,” know first hand the value of our natural resources. The absence of electricity and water dramatically impacts every aspect of our lives. For that reason, protectingand conserving our natural resources should be taken seriously.

Laboratories are one of society’s major energy users and consumers of natural resources, but that can be moderated by incorporating several different design strategies. Within the forensic industry, we refer to sustainable, or “green,” design to create laboratories that will endure the test of time and save energy.

Sustainable design provides facility users with a comfortable, safe, healthy, and productive environment while supporting a building infrastructure that enables the forensic laboratory functions to be energy efficient. These energy efficient laboratories meet the needs of today, without sacrificing future needs.

Forensic laboratories consume considerable resources during various criminal investigations, making sustainable design a challenge in these facilities. To overcome the obstacles that diminish our natural resources, new forensic laboratory projects incorporate several sustainable design strategies. Many facilities also seek U.S. Green Building Council Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED™) Certification. Fortunately, there are two excellent resources available to help designers and owners achieve their goals.

Sustainability Guidelines
The first is LEED,™ The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design initiative, sponsored by the U.S. Green Building Council. This is a voluntary, consensus-based national standard for developing high performance sustainable buildings. The members of the U.S. Green Building Council that developed LEED™ represent all facets of the building industry and are continuously updating the standard. LEED™ standards are available not only for new construction and major renovations, but for existing building and commercial interior projects. Additional information on LEED™ is available at www.usgbc.org.

The second resource is the Environmental Performance Criteria for Laboratories (EPC), jointly sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of Energy (DOE). EPC is an extension of the LEED™ rating system, but focused on laboratory projects. EPC requirements are over and above LEED™ because the environmental impact of laboratories is much greater than that of an average building. Currently there is not a formal accreditation process for the EPC. Additional information is available at www.epa.gov/labs21century