Environmental Sustainability

The school uses two primary forms of energy;

• electricity for lighting, computers and cooling and
• natural gas for heating

We use the equivalent of 34 average houses worth of natural gas and electricity to keep our school at a comfortable temperature, brightness and humidity throughout the year.

We are fortunate that our building is relatively new and designed to modern standards and is already energy efficient.  Our energy usage at 45 btu/sq foot is very favorable compared to schools in Fairfax County, but we continue to look for other ways to save energy.

In addition to those things required to meet building code, we also have the following features that help reduce our energy needs further:

• Motion detectors in classrooms so lighting switches off automatically if the classroom is empty
• Fluorescent and CFL bulbs in the gym, chader ochel and rest rooms.  Light bulbs have been removed where there is more light than required
• Kalwall Windows in classrooms; a window material that provides maximum natural lighting while also providing insulation to prevent heat loss

Heating

• Programmable thermostats with separately controllable heating zones. We pay careful attention to the temperature set points for each of our thermostats to avoid overheating in the winter and overcooling in the summer.

All of these initiatives help reduce costs as well as energy consumed.

Everyone, faculty, staff, parents and students,  can do their part to remember to turn off lights and computers when not in use.

We do not live in an area where water shortage is a major issue but we should still be conservation-minded in our usage.  At 310,000 gallons a year, our water usage is equivalent to 15.5 swimming pools.  The following design features minimize wastage

• Our toilets and urinals are low-flush or automatic flush designs.
• Our sink faucets turn off automatically

There is little else we have identified that we can do to reduce usage further.

Our water usage at 7 gallons/sq foot is very favorable compared to schools in Fairfax County.

Transportation represents a significant usage of energy for our school. Bringing our students, staff and faculty to school each day burns a lot of gas.   We can reduce this through using the school buses and through carpooling.

Our two school buses use about 3000 gallons of diesel each school year to bring our students to and from school.

The students in Mr. England’s Math Counts elective class are currently measuring the fuel it takes to bring everyone to and from school each day. We will post the results here as soon as they are assembled, along with ideas for reducing our emissions from commuting.

Parents are encouraged to avoid sitting with engines idling when waiting in the carpool line. Instead, please turn off your engine to save fuel and reduce pollution.

For all supplies, the golden rule is to (1) reduce, (2) reuse and (3) recycle, in that order. Wherever possible, (4) disposal should be the last resort and should always be done responsibly. We demonstrate all four practices in our usage of materials.

Paper

We use approximately 700,000 sheets of paper each year. This represents cutting down about 80 trees. We reduced the impact in early 2011 by buying paper with 30% recycled content which reduces the number of trees consumed to 56. Paper with 30% recycled content is a little more expensive. We will continue to monitor the price of paper and buy paper with an even higher recycled content when it becomes more affordable. Using paper with recycled content also raises the value of used paper and so creates a virtuous circle.

We try to reduce our paper requirements by maximizing the amount of double-sided copying we do and only copying single-sided when unavoidable. Our usage of technology for communications and for school work in the middle school is also helping to reduce our usage.

We try to reuse paper where possible by keeping single-side printed paper and using the second side for notes.

We recycle all our used paper at the school and urge everyone to do the same with paper that comes home with your children.

School Supplies

We did a rough assessment of the school supplies parents are asked to provide each year. The table below shows what it all adds up to.

Reduce: Our teachers have tried to minimize the list of required school supplies. We encourage our parents to provide no more than the requested amounts of supplies.

Reuse: Used supplies are fully acceptable, including folders and notebooks if they are in reasonable condition and have sufficient pages remaining. If you think your child might be disappointed, consider explaining to them that not having a full set of new supplies every year is part of respecting the environment as all materials come from nature. We are reinforcing these values at school too.

Recycle: Try where possible to buy supplies made from recycled materials (such as a high content of recycled paper), or marked with eco-friendly certifications such as FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) Certified. Items that can themselves be reused, recycled or composted are better than those that cannot.

Summer Reading Books

Please explore the separate section for summer reading books at the annual Gesher second-hand book sale.

If you cannot find the books you need there, used books are available elsewhere. Consistent with our sustainability values, please consider reusing or purchasing used copies of the books. On-line sites make this very easy, offering a range of choices of providers and book style. Even with postage, prices are generally less than purchasing a new book.

Food

Our food waste and utensils are recycled through composting and used as part of the Gesher Green Program to provide nutrition to our gardens.

Supplies From Home

Used plastic gift and other cards These can be left in the marked container at the front of the school and will be collected by Ms. Wolin. Her artistic daughter is reusing them by turning them into lovely original earrings.

Markers, crayons, pens, pencils and glue sticks These can be left in the marked container at the front of the school for recycling. The company that takes them back will also pay for them. We lower the trash volume, help the environment, and raise money for Gesher all at the same time! It doesn't get much better than that!

Rechargeable Batteries In Fairfax County regular alkaline batteries can be disposed of in the trash, but other batteries cannot. Please leave your rechargeables in the container at the front entrance of the school when they have stopped holding a charge. We will add them to batteries used in school and ensure they are disposed of responsibly.

Approximate Annual School Supplies

Item	Count
Pencils	7,260
Pens	696
Tissue Boxes	248
Glue Sticks	903
Crayons	1,408
Pocket Folders	1,161
Markers	2,688
Highlighters	672
Composition Books	237
Notebooks	261
Index Cards	28,500
Sheets loose paper	52,750
Colored Pencils	1,224
Stick On Notes	153

 

 

Carbon dioxide emissions are caused by the burning of fossil fuels. We can reduce carbon emissions by reducing energy use, which is covered in the energy section.  But there are additional ways to reduce carbon emissions.

The chart below shows the carbon dioxide emissions due to the primary resources we use at school.

Our greatest opportunity for reduction is our energy from electricity.

Electricity – 58%

Natural Gas – 17%

Paper – 2%

Diesel Fuel for Buses – 7%

Reducing Electricity Emissions Through Peak Usage Reduction

The maximum emissions occur on hot summer days when demand for air conditioning peaks.  Power companies have to draw on their oldest and least efficient power stations at these times to meet everyone’s needs.  We have joined forces with other organizations committed to reducing the peak usage by working with a company called Enernoc. Enernoc pays us a small annual retainer in return for agreeing to shut off our air conditioning for short periods at peak time on just one or two days in the summer.    We are given advance warning and can increase the a/c in advance to minimize the impact during the shut down.   If we are part of a peak reduction event we receive a further rebate so we save money and help the environment at the same time.

Exploring Wind Power

We have explored the possibility of erecting a tower, with a wind anemometer, to measure if wind conditions are strong enough to provide energy. We were offered a free tower for a year as part of a program at James Madison University but we decided not to progress.   The tower would have required zoning approval and more generalized studies indicate that the cost of zoning and installation for wind turbines in Northern Virginia lead to very lengthy payback periods. Even a sizeable wind tower and good wind would have generated only 1-2% of our needs.

Exploring Solar Power

We have explored the possibility of solar energy at the school. Our geographic situation for solar is good.  Although the state incentives for solar energy in Virginia are not as good as other states, there is still a long-term economic benefit.  However, equipment would require a significant up front investment. We have included various solar power options in the Capital Campaign and would welcome hearing from anyone who would be interested in helping the committee explore these options further for our school.

Transportation Sources

The school buses use diesel fuel which has slightly lower emissions than petroleum for the equivalent amount of energy.

Private drivers can reduce the emissions required to commute through more energy efficient vehicles and alternative fuels such as diesel, hybrid or all electric.

We are in the process of calculating the carbon emissions due to all the cars that bring our children and staff to school each day. We are anticipating this is going to represent a significant proportion of the school emissions.

In November 2011 we were very proud to receive certification as a “Green School” through the Virginia Association for Independent Schools 2011 Green Schools Challenge.

The Green Independent Schools Challenge is a friendly competition designed to encourage implementation of specific environmental policies and practical actions that reduce the carbon emissions generated by Virginia's independent schools and the broader community.

Schools are awarded points for initiatives they have carried out. With a maximum possible score of 200, schools receiving over 100 points are awarded the green school certification. Gesher received 123 points for our programs which combined initiatives of Gesher Green and the Environmental Sustainability Committee.

Only 7 schools in the state were awarded this certification.

We are in contact with the energy management coordinator of Fairfax County Public schools to understand and align our efforts with county priorities. We also had an audit completed by students from George Mason University environment class in 2010. These contacts have helped us identify the areas on which we have focused our attention and ensure we continue to be best in class.