Sustainability
Corporate Office Properties Trust is a leader in the development of 'green' office buildings. A member of the U.S. Green Building Council, we seek to obtain "LEED" Silver certification on all of our new buildings.
The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating SystemTM is the nationally accepted standard for the design, construction and operation of high-performance green buildings. LEED recognizes performance in five key areas of human and environmental health:
- Sustainable site development
- Water savings
- Energy efficiency
- Materials selection
- Indoor environmental quality.
COPT'S Green Building Program
We believe that developing green office buildings is the right thing to do for many reasons: it lowers operating costs, reduces natural resource consumption and improves the quality of life for those who occupy the buildings. Just a few examples of the kinds of things you'll find in COPT projects:
- Improved indoor air quality
- Low-emitting materials (such as in carpeting), which cuts down the levels of annoying and/or harmful gases such as formaldehyde
- Building design that promotes views of the outdoors for most occupants
- "Green housekeeping" programs, which utilize environmentally friendly cleaning products
- White or lighter color roofs (instead of more typical black), to reduce "heat island" effect
- Street lighting that's directed downward (rather than upward), reducing "light pollution" in surrounding areas.
Sustainability at Fort Ritchie
A number of non-historic, unsafe structures have been taken down at Fort Ritchie to make way for new development. In the demolition process, we have recycled metals, concrete, block and brick, and macadam roadways and parking areas. Approximately 90% of the demolition products were recycled, preserving valuable landfill space and demonstrating our commitment and leadership in environmental stewardship.
Our first construction project, the 21,000 square foot state-of-the-art Fort Ritchie Community Center, achieved LEED Gold certification. This environmentally friendly and energy efficient facility is the first LEED certified building in Washington County. All future buildings at Fort Ritchie will also be constructed to meet a minimum LEED Silver certification.
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