When the first period bell rings in a new school year at Salmen High School this fall, the students will be soaking up knowledge in an energy-efficient, quiet, and disaster-resistant building. Their previous school building, with only three decades of service, was all but demolished by the wrath of Hurricane Katrina. The newly constructed Salmen High School in Slidell, La., is built on a 14-ft elevation and features flooring constructed with insulating concrete forms (ICFs) and precast concrete wall panels. The new school takes advantages of concrete’s numerous sustainable benefits.

Read more about how concrete helped rebuild Salmen High School.

Excessive noise can have an adverse effect on personal health and well being, ability to perform quiet tasks, and productivity in general. As a result, sound/acoustic control is an increasingly important issue in sustainable construction. Concrete walls provide a buffer between outdoor noise and the indoor environment in a building, highway noise and neighborhoods with a sound barrier, and indoor noise between adjoining apartments or other spaces as a separating wall.

Learn how concrete can be an effective control of sound transmission.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the number of persons aged 65 and older is expected to double between 2000 and 2030, from approximately 35 million to an estimated 71 million, and those aged 80 years and older is expected to grow from 9.3 million to 19.5 million during the same period. As the Baby Boom generation enters the later stages of life a host of new housing challenges must be met.

Located in Morton Grove, Ill., Bethany Terrace is meeting this challenge head on by generously expanding its living quarters by 44,000 sq ft with precast concrete floors and walls. Precast concrete is an ideal building material for the residents’ needs because of concrete’s inherent fire resistance, structural capacity for open floor plans and wide hallways, mass for sound dampening, and thermal mass for comfortable interiors. More on Bethany Terrace.

Holcim’s Newest Plant Designed to Minimize its Footprint

Holcim (US) recently hosted a celebration of its newest plant located in Ste. Genevieve County, Mo. In addition to establishing extensive emissions controls, the majority of the property around the plant has been set aside and will be preserved and protected in its natural state. Holcim (US) is working with an expert conservation partner to manage the habitat surrounding the plant. The company has already created or restored more than 60 acres of new wetlands to offset any impacts from construction. The company also has in place an ongoing reclamation plan that will restore the land that has been mined, ensuring that no more than 200 acres of land is actively mined at any one time.

CEMEX Plants Recognized with ENERGY STAR Status

Three CEMEX USA plants received 2010 ENERGY STAR® distinction by the EPA and the U.S. Department of Energy for superior energy performance. The CEMEX plants in Demopolis, Ala., Clinchfield, Ga., and Louisville, Ky., have implemented significant measures to improve energy usage. Each plant conducted compressed air system surveys to identify leaks, installed more efficient motors, completed staff energy training programs, upgraded lighting systems with motion sensors, increased the use of permitted and authorized alternative fuels, reduced equipment idle times, performed process inspections, and conducted audits to reduce unnecessary power usage.

The Online Clearinghouse for Sustainable Concrete Information

The website of the Concrete Joint Sustainability Initiative (CJSI), a unified group of 26 concrete associations, is a new online source for information about sustainable construction practices utilizing concrete. The website includes theory and application, delving into where and how ideas are being applied as well as the facts behind the claims. Case studies, research findings, and data reports to help web visitors dig a little deeper into concrete sustainability. Also available are toolkits for sharing this information with colleagues and specification guidelines.

Visit the CJSI website at sustainableconcrete.org.

The Heartland Bleeds Green

The green building industry isn’t just taking hold on the coasts, evidenced by regional interest in the U.S. Green Building Council’s 7th Annual Greening the Heartland conference in Minneapolis, May 19-21. The Heartland Region is comprised of 12 states including the cities of Chicago, Columbus, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Kansas City, St. Louis, Des Monies, Omaha, Milwaukee, and Minneapolis. In addition to the quality education and networking opportunities, attendees expressed a particular interest in pervious concrete alongside the latest in green building products and services. The 2011 conference is scheduled for June 20-22 in Cincinnati. Save the date now!

Mayor Richard M. Daley has pushed Chicago to be an early adopter of energy efficient and sustainable building practices, establishing it as one of America’s greenest cities. The Windy City may be a little too crowded for wind turbines along Lake Michigan, but it will once again host the world’s largest gathering of green building advocates, researchers and practitioners with the Greenbuild International Conference and Expo, scheduled for November 17-19, 2010. Make plans now to participate in the industry’s preeminent green building event.

P.S. The 2010-11 NHL regular season will be in full swing by November. Take the “L” from McCormick Place West to the United Center and check out the 2010 Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks!