View of GREEN LIBRARY: GOVERNANCE AND SUSTAINABILITY

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Vol.03, Issue 04, April 2018, Available Online: www.ajeee.co.in/index.php/AJEEE

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GREEN LIBRARY: GOVERNANCE AND SUSTAINABILITY

Dr. Raj Kumar Singh ( College Librarian) L. S. Govt. P G College, Adalhat, Mirzapur (U. P.)

Abstract:-It is difficult to turn on the television or read a news story today without learning about how green and sustainable practices are being implemented throughout society. Libraries are not exempt from these broader trends. In some cases, libraries and librarians have been at the forefront of these efforts.

The creation of green libraries is approaching a tipping point, generating a Green Library Movement, which is comprised of librarians, libraries, cities, towns, college and university campuses committed to greening libraries and reducing their environmental impact. Constructing a green library building using a performance standard like LEED is a way some libraries are choosing to become green and sustainable.

Libraries are life-long learning centres for people of all ages in communities. Libraries are not only repositories of knowledge, but are also important information resources for raising awareness about environmental concerns. Green libraries educate the public about environmental issues through their collections, sustainable and environmentally friendly facilities, and public library programs. Among other things, green libraries maximize the effects of natural sun light and natural air flow; green libraries are thoughtfully designed while taking into account site selection to structural design, energy use, materials used and human health effects.

Keywords: Green Library Movement, green, stainable, libraries, programs, LEED, environment, peak oil, climate change.

INTRODUCTION:

A green library is designed to minimize negative impact on the natural environment and maximize indoor environmental quality by means of careful site selection, use of natural construction materials and biodegradable products, conservation of resources (water, energy, paper), and responsible waste disposal (recycling, etc.). In new construction and library renovation, sustainability is increasingly achieved through Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, a rating system developed and administered by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).

Green libraries are a part of the larger green building movement. Also known as sustainable libraries, green libraries are being built all over the World with many high profile projects bringing the concept into the mainstream. Along with library 2.0, green design is an emerging trend, defining the library of the 21st century.

What makes a library green?

There are many ways to define a green library, but there are a number of central themes that run through all of them, including, minimizing the negative impact the building will have on the local environment, and if possible having a positive impact. Reducing the use of water and energy by designing in a way that maximizes the use of natural and renewable resources.

Integrating actual greenery and vegetation into the building and site design; preferably, using drought resistant and/or native vegetation. And,

maintaining high standards of indoor air quality to help ensure the health of the people who inhabit the building.

Special needs:

Sustainable library design is strongly tied to the overall green building movement, but libraries have specific needs that present some extra challenges for green builders.

The biggest challenge is balancing the sometimes conflicting needs of the patrons and the materials. One of the central themes of the library's mission is to preserve knowledge, so that it can be passed on to future generations.

For over a thousand years books have been the dominant way to do that. While the internet has become the information medium of choice for many, books still play a very important role in the preservation of knowledge. In order to be preserved, books must be kept away from extreme temperatures, moisture, and sunlight.

In contrast, many individuals find sunlight to be the most enjoyable light for reading. Sunlight also plays a major role in green design, because it can be used to reduce the reliance on artificial lighting. For a long time, libraries needed to protect the collection from the damaging ultra- violet rays of the sun. New developments in glass technology over the past ten years have given designers more flexibility in their ability to place collections.

Another, often overlooked, challenge the library presents is the weight of the books. A common strategy in green design is to raise the floors to increase circulation, but the weight of the stacks can be an impediment to this strategy. To deal

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2 with this challenge, many designers have resorted to zoning the library into designated areas, so these strategies can be enacted in certain areas, and alternatives can be used in others. Libraries need to be built flexibly, in order to make room for expansions in size and in wiring capabilities. Library buildings are long term investments into the community, so when designing those architects need to be looking 50 or 100 years into the future. These obstacles by no means present insurmountable challenges to green libraries. The special needs of the library just need to be taken into consideration from the beginning of the project.

Libraries becoming green:

Green design is an integrated process. No one aspect of a building's architecture makes it green architecture. Without proper integration from the earliest moments of the planning phase, redundancies can occur, eliminating many of the potential benefits of sustainable design. Good sustainable design capitalizes on the synergistic relationships that occur between the various design elements. LEED groups these elements into five categories. Buildings can be designed in a way in which, good design in one category helps another category fulfil its goal.

Site selection:

Before building can start, a site must be chosen.

The selection of the site has a large impact on how ecologically friendly the library will be.

LEED has a number of guidelines to help the site selection process. There are a number of questions to consider that will help guide the site selection process, including, what kind of impact will construction have on the local environment, will there be erosion, what can be done with storm runoff, and is the site already green? Also, the library should be located in a densely populated area, near a number of other service related buildings. People should be able to reach the building via public transportation and the parking lots should give priority parking to those driving energy efficient automobiles.

The heat island effect can be reduced by shading hard surfaces, putting them underground, or by implementing a vegetative roof (LEED, 2005) Water conservation:

There are many different ways for libraries to conserve water. A number of them rely on proper site selection. If a site is selected properly strategies can be used to capture rainwater runoff to be used in irrigation.

Another strategy is to use low flow fixtures, and waterless urinals.

Energy conservation:

Energy efficiency is considered by many to be the most important category in becoming sustainable. In the LEED rating system it is the heaviest weighted of all the categories. Energy efficient design is in many ways a return to passive design principles that evolved over thousands of years, until the advent of air conditioning and cheap energy made those strategies appear to be unnecessary. After air conditioning became widely available, buildings were designed to eliminate influences of the outside environment. Lamis illustrates this point in "Greening the Library" when he compares two libraries built near the turn of the 20th century, the New York Public Library and the Boston Public Library; to two more recently built libraries, the Chicago Public Library and the Phoenix Public Library. The two older libraries have interior spaces that are narrow, so they can be reached by natural light and air.

Whereas the two more modern libraries have large floor plans, with interior spaces far removed from the outside environment. As environmental awareness increases, as well as the cost of fossil fuels needed to operate giant heating, air conditioning, and ventilation ([HVAC]) systems, building designers are beginning to recognize that the outside environment cannot be ignored, and should be taken advantage of. What 21st-century designers are beginning to do is implement ancient passive design principles, while taking advantage of the most advanced technology available.

The passive strategies vary according to location, but they are always implemented to capitalize on the natural elements, mostly wind and sun, to manage the temperature and to provide ventilation and light. Active strategies are more technologically advanced solutions that include using various forms of renewable energy resources and using sensors to adjust lighting. Using photovoltaic cells that turn sunlight into energy is becoming an increasingly popular way to reduce energy dependence. In order to fully maximize energy efficiency and comfort, libraries are combining passive and active strategies.

Building materials:

It is believed that up to 40% of landfill space is filled with construction waste material. The primary responsibility in selecting materials for the library is to contribute as little waste as possible. Another responsibility is to choose materials that can be produced without causing too much damage to the natural environment. In

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3 order to fulfil the first responsibility, post- industrial and post-consumer recycled materials are being used. When purchasing materials claiming to be made from recycled goods it is important to investigate what their claims mean.

It is a common marketing practice to exaggerate how green a product is by using misleading statements. Also, materials should be chosen that are going to be able to be reused or recycled 50–100 years down the road when the library building has reached the end of its useful life (Tseng, 2007). As non-renewable resources decrease, reusing and recycling are going to become increasingly necessary in the future.

Indoor air quality:

Along with energy inefficiency, poor air quality has been another side-effect of the post air conditioning building design. Because most modern buildings are temperature controlled, they are designed to be airtight. The lack of ventilation can not only make buildings expensive to cool, it also traps harmful toxins that can do serious damage to people's respiratory systems. Toxins come from a variety of sources. Materials that make up the library, including paints and carpeting; have volatile organic compounds (VOC's), which produce a ground-level ozone after reacting with sunlight and nitrogen. The carbon dioxide that people breathe into the atmosphere is another toxin. To improve air quality, materials can be bought that have a low VOC content, and CO2 monitors can be installed to ensure that CO2 levels remain at a safe level. On average, people spend about 90%

of their time indoors. Therefore, green buildings need to be designed in a way in which the air gets recycled, and does not stay stagnant. A green library is not just about taking care of the environment, it is about taking care of the health and well-being of those who work in it and patronize it.

Green Design Elements for Libraries:

Green libraries combine the needs of a library, sustainable design, and real cost savings in energy consumption (Brown, 2003). The main goal of green buildings is to develop and use sustainable energy-efficient resources in construction, maintenance, and overall life of the structure. Libraries considering green design will often look at the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system.

Brown (2003) identifies the following green design elements, which can be incorporated into libraries:

Community collaboration – makes sure that community assets are efficiently used and helps to maintain public support

 Daylight – pair daylight with artificial lighting to reduce energy costs

 Green materials – use renewable materials like wood, linoleum, bamboo, and cork

 Green roofs

 Raised floor systems

 Energy efficiency

 Natural ventilation

 Green power and renewable energy

 Indoor environmental quality Why are libraries becoming green?

First, libraries have been expanding the scope of their mission statements, to include working for the betterment of mankind. Second, technology is no longer a barrier. Third, it is great for the image of the library. Finally, sustainability offers the library a degree of independence, because cost of maintenance goes down, as does reliance on the volatile fossil fuels market.

Mission:

All libraries have a mission statement, and spoken or unspoken, libraries are here to improve the condition of mankind. An institution can no longer, in good faith aim to improve the human condition while contributing to the destruction of the future:

Buildings produce about 40% of the dangerous greenhouse gasses emitted into the atmosphere (Anisko & Willoughby, 2006). The environmental debate has evolved. The fact that humans are having a negative impact on the environment is no longer seriously questioned.

Now, two questions shape the debate: What is our responsibility to fix it, and what can we do to fix it? Individuals and private organizations have a right to find their personal answers to those questions, but libraries are an investment in the future of our society. Libraries have a responsibility to not contribute to the destruction of the environment, to educate the people regarding our current situation, and empower them to make a difference. Libraries are discovering that their green building gives them a great opportunity to educate the citizenry (Tseng, 2007). As libraries continue to take a more progressive stance on improving the human condition, sustainability will have to be a central theme.

Technology:

The availability of the technology and knowledge to build green buildings has passed a

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4 tipping point. Green buildings are constructed all over the world in every sector of the economy; residential, commercial, non-profit, government, etc. Another breakthrough is the diversity of green technology. There is an abundance of options, so any green builder has the ability to capitalize on the local natural resources available, and customize the building to most efficiently operate in the local environment. Along with the advancement of technology, the increasing awareness of environmental issues decreases the burden on the green builder. With the development of organizations like the USGBC and the FSC, green builders have information resources available to them. These organizations offer measurable levels of achievement to strive for, along with acting as watchdogs to help prevent the exaggeration of green credentials or "green- washing." With these advances, sustainable construction is no longer a utopian fantasy, but is simply becoming the way good buildings are being built.

Image:

The library is undergoing an identity transformation. It is struggling to stay relevant, as a vocal minority predicts its demise. While its image as an outdated institution is not entirely deserved, it is trying to assert itself as an irreplaceable part of the community that plans on being an assertive force for good in the 21st century. Green design helps it do that three different ways.

1) A sustainable building makes a statement that the library is investing in the future of the community.

2) Sustainable buildings are smartly designed, aesthetically pleasing, and are powered by state- of-the-art technology. When people see these emerald marvels they will no longer be able to maintain false stereotypes regarding libraries as anachronistic relics from an analog age.

3) More and more people take environmentalism seriously, so a green image is a good image. The public awareness on this issue is only going to increase. Libraries want the public to believe that they are still relevant, and that their mission is to better humankind.

Many have decided that a green library is a physical manifestation of their mission statement, and it provides an image of how libraries want to be seen in the 21st century.

High-profile green libraries: In the 2000s (decade) a number of high-profile green libraries have been built in the U.S. and in the rest of the world.

1. Fayetteville (AR) Public Library, Minneapolis, US

2. Seattle Central Library, US 3. National Library, Singapore 4. Minneapolis Public Library, US

5. Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, US

6. Children's Museum of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh

7. University of California, Merced Kolligian Library, US

Ways to Make Your Library a Little Greener:

Librarians need to be on the constant cutting edge in terms of technology, researching, web tools and even architecture and design. But libraries are also a great place to educate the public and your students about the environment, from eco-friendly lifestyle choices to organizations that promote green causes.

Here ways to make your library a little greener.

1. Maintenance and Green Building > Keep your library clean and eco-friendly with these tips.

Turn down the heat one or two degrees:

Care2 writes that "each 1-degree drop for an eight-hour period reduces your fuel bill percent," saving you money and cutting down on electricity usage

Use fans: If you can, install ceiling fans to cool down the library without overusing the A/C.

 Take advantage of windows: Strategically placed windows will provide natural light and may help with heating or cooling costs.

 Use eco-friendly light bulbs: Switch to eco-friendly light bulbs that save money and electricity.

 Use Energy Star products: Products with the Energy Star have been approved by the U.S. government as energy-saving products.

2. Hardware > Learn how to choose the right computers and resources by reading this list.

 Purchase eco-friendly computers: When you need new computers, search for eco- friendly versions.

 Use laptops: Laptops use less electricity than desktop versions.

 Know how to clean your computers: Eco- friendly, safe computer cleaning tips include using biodegradable dust cloths and old t-shirts.

 Recycle computers: Safely recycle computers instead of harming the environment when you throw them away.

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 Buy recycled items: Buy recycled ink cartridges and other supplies.

 Consider the Kindle 2: It’s expensive and may upset some reading purists, but the Kindle 2 is an eco-friendly reading tool.

Purchase one for the library to spread awareness to readers.

3. Special Events and Projects > Host special events like contests, and go after environmental grants to raise awareness and become a greener library.

 Apply for grants: Certain grants awarded by environmental agencies or the government will help your library with funding for green projects and renovations.

 Start a paper drive: Ask the public and your students to bring in old newspapers and other papers to recycle: they may even be turned into books one day!

 Hold recycling contests: Hold recycling contests between grades, individuals, or against other libraries.

 Apply for green awards: Find out if your state or community offers an award for libraries who go green.

 Put up a display about reducing your carbon footprint: Put together a presentation or display to discuss each person’s carbon footprint.

4. Awareness > Spread awareness about your green policies through these projects.

 Sell Fair Trade coffee in your snack area:

Fair Trade coffee is used in many academic libraries and is made in humane, eco-friendly conditions.

 Go all out for Earth Month: It’s not just about Earth Day anymore. Use the whole month of April to showcase your library’s green progress.

 Sell eco-friendly snacks and drinks: Sell drinks and snacks that are bottled and packaged in eco-friendly materials.

 Use an eco-friendly car as your bookmobile: If your budget allows for a bookmobile, lobby for an eco-friendly vehicle to drop off books.

 Abide by the 100-mile rule: Provide food that is from within 100 miles of your community to ensure that you’re supporting local farmers and cutting down on pollutants from shipping food.

 Start a blog: Spread awareness about your library’s green activities by blogging about it regularly.

5. Using the Web > Take advantage of all the web tools and sites you can use to cut down on paper.

 Second Life: Hold meetings and organize training workshops online through the virtual world Second Life instead of requiring employees to drive to retreats.

 Move accounts online: Cut down on paper notices and make it easier for patrons to keep up with their accounts by making them accessible online

 Create an online catalogue: Cut down on paper by moving your catalog onto your website.

 Send e-mail updates: Instead of mailing out paper newsletters, create e-mail campaigns to announce special events and keep in touch.

 World Cat: Connect with other libraries around the world to share information electronically.

 Move archives online: Put newspaper and magazine archives online to help preserve the originals.

 Monkey on Your Back: Send memos and reminders via this online service, rather than wasting paper and sticky notes.

6. Outdoors > don’t forget to turn your outdoor environment into a greener, more sustainable spot.

 Start an organic garden: Grow a garden to spread awareness on sustainability and provide a healthy eating option for participating library patrons and workers.

 Plant flowers: Show pride in your environment by planting in-season, local flowers and shrubs.

 Use safe pesticides: Safe and/or natural pesticides will help keep your plants healthy without damaging your health or the environment.

 Opt for natural mosquito repellent: Plants like catnip and citronella grass are natural mosquito repellents.

 Compost: If you’re allowed, get rid of waste by composting.

 Minimize formal landscaping: Cut down on excessive landscaping that rips up the natural environment.

7. Networks > Make sure your library is tuned in to the latest environmental news and trends by networking with these organizations and through these platforms. You’ll find materials for educating and engaging your patrons, too.

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 Care2: Care2 is a social network that organizes people who want to make a difference by living green.

 Tree Hugger: Learn about the latest trends in green design, food, fashion, building, travel and technology.

 U.S. Fish and Wildlife: Learn about environmental contaminants, pollutants that hurt animals and natural ecosystems, and how you can help.

 United Nations Environment Programme:

This network discusses natural disasters and global conflicts, ecosystem management, pollutants, resource efficiency, climate change, and more.

 Energy Star: Learn about environmentally safe electronics, lighting solutions, heating and cooling resources, and more.

 National Audubon Society: Discover how your library can support this wildlife protection agency through special projects, field trips and sponsorships.

Conclusion:

The library is undergoing an identity transformation. It is struggling to stay relevant, as a vocal minority predicts its demise. While its image as an outdated institution is not entirely deserved, it is trying to assert itself as an irreplaceable part of the community that plans on being an assertive force for good in the 21st century. The creation of green libraries is approaching a tipping point, generating a Green Library Movement, which is comprised of librarians, libraries, cities, towns, college and university campuses committed to greening libraries and reducing their environmental impact. Constructing a green library building using a performance standard like LEED is a way some libraries are choosing to become green and sustainable. Libraries are life-long learning

centres for people of all ages in communities.

Libraries are not only repositories of knowledge, but are also important information resources for raising awareness about environmental concerns.

REFERENCES:

1. Anisko, E. & Willoughby, M. (Producers) (2006).

Deeper shades of green [Television mini-series episode]. [Directed by Tad Fettig, narrated by Brad Pitt, & with Ken Yeang]. Arlington, VA: Public Broadcasting Station.

2. Boyden L. & Weiner J. (2000) Sustainable libraries:

Teaching environmental responsibility to communities [Electronic version]. The Bottom Line, 13(2), 74-82.

3. Boyden L. & Weiner J. (2001) For the public good:

Sustainability demonstration in public library building projects [Electronic version]. Public Libraries, 40(6), 44-6.

4. Brown, B. (2003) The new green standard: With the LEED rating system in place it is easier to make sure your new library saves money as it treads lightly on natural resources [Electron Version]. Library Journal, 128(20), 61-4.

5. Fox, H. (2004) Seattle central library: Water conservation [Web Video]. Retrieved November 20,

2007, from

http://www.seattlechannel.org/videos/video.asp?ID=

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6. FSC (1996) Forest Stewardship Council. Retrieved

November 23, 2007, from

http://www.fscus.org/standards_criteria/

7. LEED. (2005) Reference Guide, Version 2.2. US Green Building Council. Retrieved from http://www.usgbc.org/DisplayPage.aspx?CategoryID

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8. McCabe, G.B. (2003). New Concepts for Technology in Library Design. In G.B. McCabe & J.R. Kennedy (Ed.) Planning the Modern Public Building (pp. 31-45).

Westport, CN: Libraries Unlimited.

9. MPL (2006) New Minneapolis Central Library.

10. 10. S.H. (2007) An eco-building, a healthy life, and good service: A new Century in public library architecture [Electronic version]. Public Libraries 46(4), 50-5.