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PIC Green Newsletter
AUGUST 2013
Water Water Everywhere
Dear  ,
 

Word from the Chairs:

 

We're in the midst of those lazy, crazy, hazy, days of summer. A great time to take a look at some cool sustainable solutions relating to water. 

 

Looking at water - AAM's Conference is in Seattle, WA in 2014 - located on Puget Sound. With 217 sq km of land area and 150 sq km of water area within city limits 41% of the city is water! Deadlines are approaching for proposals for AAM events, sessions and programs. If you have any sustainable presentation ideas, let us know.

 

Do you have hard water? Museums can save energy, maintenance costs and reduce water pollution using physical water treatment (PWT) solutions. (Article)

 

Green roofs can make a real difference in diverting run-off from entering the watershed, and can be a real green attraction for your community to engage with at  your museum.

 

Sustainability is a journey, not a destination. It is an evolving process on many levels, especially for museums. Michiel Doorn and Edwin Janssen map it out for you here.

  

Hope the rest of your summer is full of refreshing fun!  Our next newsletter will feature energy efficiencies in October.

 

PIC Green Network Co-Chairs  

Green Roof
Green roof at the Boston Children's Museum (Click image to read more)

Green Roofs and Museums Groofs

Brian Sykes, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, PMP 

  

When a raindrop lands in your neighborhood, what is its final destination?

 

I ask this question not to be trivial, but to pose a very fundamental question about how well we know our watersheds.  

 

In the Washington, DC area, water goes into the Chesapeake Bay.  When it rains, the raindrops in our region run off of the roofs of our buildings and paved streets of our cities.  Stormwater from urban areas delivers many pollutants to our streams, lakes, and beaches - including pathogens, nutrients, sediment, heavy metals and other pollutants.  Greenroofs, particularly those located in urban areas; mitigate the effect of pollutants from urban areas. (read full article)

Sleeping Rainbow Ranch
Photo Courtesy: Mark Chalom and Betty Tsosie

The Sleeping Rainbow Ranch Research Station conserves energy and eliminates water pollution using TAC.

SoftWater
Hard Water?
Softer Solutions.

Shengyin Xu

 

Water quality is often overlooked when thinking about water sustainability. Water treatment, particularly softening of hard water using salt-based methods, has a large impact in building energy efficiency and down-stream at the ecosystem level.

 

Hard water contains ions of common elements that can build up as scale in plumbing and heating systems. Scale increases maintenance, causes premature mechanical failure and can result in significant loss of energy efficiency in
water heaters.

 

Temple Assisted Crystallization (TAC) is an alternative, more sustainable option for reducing hard water scale in pipes, water heaters and related equipment. TAC is categorized as a Physical Water Treatment 

that effectively combats water hardness and scale build up. 

 

The primary goals of PWTs are to:    

* Avoid Checmical Additives

Minimize or Eliminate Waste Water

Avoid Pollution and DisposalCosts

* Minimize Cost and Maintenance

 

Read Shengyin Xu's blog post for the Minnesota Historical Society illuminating "Water Quality

 

 

 

 

Diagram of Sustainability Development
Distinct Levels of Development in
Sustainability Thinking for Organizations

SusJournSustainability - An Ongoing Journey with Distinct Levels

By Michiel Doorn M.E. 

and Edwin Janssen M.Sc

 

Sustainability, stewardship, green design, social responsibility - many interpretations of the same topic - are all gaining prominence in the operations of today's leading organizations.

 

Linked to the topic of sustainability are numerous concepts, tools, labels, certification programs, frameworks, as well as measurement, management and reporting systems.

 

How do you see the forest through all the green trees?  (Read More)

 
Click Image to Participate on Survey

 
The success of PIC-Green's Summit  is heavily dependent on the experiences institutions and affiliated museum professionals share with us. 

Current survey data, along with link to take the survey can be found at:  


Thank you to those organizations that have already participated in our survey.

Seattle
Photo: Daniel Schwen

For PIC GREEN Event at 

AAM 2014 Annual Meeting in Seattle, WA

 

Do you know of an innovative sustainability-minded project in the Seattle Area?

 

We're seeking ideas for topics, speakers, field-trips, or projects to highlight for a PIC-Green sponsored session at the 2014 AAM Conference.

 

Please email ideas to Kari Jensen at kjensen@omsi.edu

  

 

AAM 2014 is in Seattle, WA... SEE YOU THERE! 

Sarah, Elizabeth and Carter at Expo

PIC GREEN is growing. 

 

More people than ever are interested in sustainable options for museums. We need help with projects being undertaken on our sub-committees and especially with the Sustainable Operations Tool Kit.

  

Sub Committees Are:

Communications 

Development & Membership

Governance & Nominating

Programs & Education

Strategic Planning   

 

  

 

To learn more about AAM PIC GREEN Committees and volunteer needs click here.

 

Please email us if interested on helping PIC GREEN at:  aampicgreen@gmail.com.    

Being Green?     Let us know!
 

Share your success and experience in making sustainable museum choices. Maybe you have a great project, won green awards, or figured out a way to save money through green practices?  

 

Send info, topical projects, ideas and suggestions for articles to: aampicgreen@gmail.com.    

Connect with Us!  Like us on Facebook
If you would like to get more involved and join one of the sub-committees please e-mail us at aampicgreen@gmail.com.
 
Sincerely,
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