High-performance Building in the Meadowlands: Industrial Green Building

This report identifies opportunities for high-performance building for warehousing and distribution in the Meadowlands, a dominant land use within the Commission's jurisdiction. This work examines whether opportunities exist to increase the performance of warehouses according to key measures as identified by LEED: Sustainable Site, Water Efficiency, Energy and Atmosphere, Materials and Resources, Indoor Environmental Quality, and Innovation in Design Process. While much of this research could be found to apply to high-performance building generally, it makes explicit the unique characteristics of the Warehousing and Distribution land use which, in some cases, present challenges to existing smart growth and green building guidelines. This research, which was originally conducted in 2004, suggests that many measures can be implemented in a fashion that is beneficial to building owners, tenants, and area residents. These include the introduction of energy- and water-saving techniques and equipment, renewable energy building systems, an alternative vehicle refueling station, reflective roofs, building commissioning, building material reuse, and the reduction of solid waste. The study also addresses whether a more ambitious undertaking- the creation of one or more eco-industrial parks within the Meadowlands District- might be feasible.This report is a product of the Institute for Meadowlands Studies (IMS), Center for Urban Policy Research, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, for the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission.Purpose: To identify opportunities for green building and associated infrastructure improvements in the Meadowlands