Most Environmentally Sound Water Tanks

The Living Building Challenge standards were met by this facility. It also goes above and beyond the USGBC’s Platinum LEED rating. The potable water is obtained by harvesting rainwater that is stored in a 10,000 gallon ferrocement tank. The building also has a natural ventilation system using a smaller ferrocement tank for thermal storage.

In 2009 the Hawaii Preparatory Academy in Waimea built their new energy lab using the most stringent environmental guidelines today. Following the Cascadia Green Building Council, Living Building Challenge the builders were required to use only materials that contained no chemicals on a “Red List” that the LBC has developed. Additionally the materials must come almost entirely from no further than a 500 mile radius, a real challenge in Hawaii. Our tanks were chosen for the project because they are made almost entirely from crushed lava rocks. They contain no PVC or any of the many other chemicals on the Red List.