building a sustainable zoo
DESCRIPTION
Building a Sustainable Zoo. What is Conservation?. Animals Habitats Resources. What is Sustainability?. “,,, able to be maintained” The capacity to endure The ability to provide for the needs of the present without detracting from the ability to serve the needs of the future - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Building a Sustainable Zoo
What is Conservation?
•Animals•Habitats•Resources
What is Sustainability?
“,,, able to be maintained”
•The capacity to endure•The ability to provide for the needs of the present without detracting from the ability to serve the needs of the future•Sound business practice, corporate social responsibility
What’s the Deal?
What are we doing and why?• Reducing energy, resource, and water
consumption• Increasing use of alternative energy
sources, increase diversion from the landfill
• Board approved policy statement - 2008• Board-level Carbon Neutral/Zero Waste
Task Force - 2010
Sustainability Policy
Recognizing its impact on all stakeholders,
the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium will develop a world class sustainability program leading to the meaningful
reduction of its carbon footprint.
- Adopted by the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium Executive and Appointed Board, December 2008
What happens at home?
• 580 acres of land• Over 10,000 individual animals in our care• More than 1.9 million guests visited in
2012
Areas of Concentration
Waste Reduction
•Reuse old wetsuits as protective gear for animal handling
•Reuse celery and/or grocery bags as well as the rubber bands that hold broccoli bunches together
•Deliver food to animal areas in reusable containers
•Use barrels and trashcans rather than trash bags to collect soiled bedding
•Put up dry erase boards for checklists and communication
•Save handles to broken tools so they can be reused with new heads.
Just the facts, ma’am
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2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Recycling
Trash
Electronics
Manure
Waste Recycling 2012•816 tons manure, bedding material and food waste •126.73 tons of baled corrugated (21 tons in 2010)
•5.21 tons of paper (Abitibi) •7.46 tons of mixed metal •11.22 tons of co-mingled recyclables (8.81 tons in 2011)
•Cell phones recycled (183 in 2011)
•Over 5,000 light bulbs – fluorescent, metal halide, U-tubes,,,•21.5 tons electronics –Public drop off event
Save a Watt, Save a Lot
Energy Conservation
• Is it driven by money or mission?
WildLights at the Zoo
WildLights at the Zoo
• Converted 3 million traditional holiday lights to LED bulbs
• 85% reduction in electricity• 2-year effort• Major support by American Electric Power
Warehouse Lighting
• The lighting system was upgraded to more energy efficient lights
• Active daylighting system was installed (fancy skylights)
• The daylighting system is integrated with the lighting system
Warehouse Lighting
• The lights are connected to occupancy sensors • The Zoo has seen a savings of $11,000 per
year on its electric bill• The estimated ROI on this project was 2.4
years
Flux Drive Installations
• Frictionless coupling of motor and pump using magnet technology
• Design life of 20 years
Flux Drive Installations• No throttling; all valves are wide open• Provides variable speed control to reduce
flow as required• Saves energy & money* • No harmonics• Reduced noise and vibration* • Straightforward in design, easy to operate
& understand• Designed to operate in harsh
environments *documented at the CZA
Who cares?
Polar Frontier
• Theming• Reuse• Rethinking• Plantings
Polar Frontier
• Geothermal System provides geothermal heating and cooling to 3 buildings, including the Battelle Ice Bear Outpost
• Heats and cools the water for all bear pools
• Geothermal system eliminated need for traditional air-cooled chillers, gas-fired boilers and heating units
• Zoo water tower serves as heat sink and heat source
Life Support System Controls
• LSS Control changes at Manatee Coast and Polar Frontier
• Touch screen controls on Zoo-wide network, remote log-in– Staffing efficiency
• Programming changes for optimal operations efficiency
Savings
Energy Savings Program
Active Energy Savings Program for years:
•Lighting•Ciralight active skylights•Fluxdrives•Building Controls
Recycling
270 new sets of combined recycling/trash
containers are now on-grounds
The project was funded in part by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Recycling and Litter Prevention
Cell Phone Recycling
Partnering with ECO-CELL, the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium will lead efforts in our community to collect used cell phones and approved handheld electronics for recycling in an environmentally-minded manner
Stepping it up, Embracing our Future
Carbon Footprint Baseline Results
Breakdown of Greenhouse Gas Sources
When is waste a resource?
•Compost•Waste to
energy
Future Projects
Planning for a Bright Green Future