Reducing the carbon footprint of the new Devens development – ​​Sentinel and Enterprise

DEVENS — Renderings of today’s Devens tell a story of smart growth and environmental planning, told in color — gleaming new buildings in the business district; electric vehicle charging stations; recycling plant; modern, rural investments of energy-efficient houses.

Behind the scenes, eco-friendly innovations and initiatives embedded in Devens’ policies and regulations help with issues such as resource conservation and water conservation, as well as solving problems such as noise and light pollution. More recently added to this list are the Carbon Reduction (ECR) guidelines for new construction projects, which the Devens Enterprise Commission (DEC) adopted late last year.

In a recent interview, DEC Director Neil Angus talked about the initiative’s long- and short-term goals of minimizing Devens’ carbon footprint, one project at a time.

Angus said carbon dioxide could come from systems and activities inside the building.

“Everything is interconnected,” he said. “Builders may say it’s more expensive, but over time the costs come down.”

Concrete, for example, is “carbon intensive,” he said, citing activities such as mining and steelmaking. “It has a huge impact,” he said. However, alternatives are starting to become available, such as the use of recyclable materials such as ground glass.

“This is our origin story,” Angus said, summing up DEC’s involvement in ECR efforts. “What matters here… is our stance on how (certain building materials) impact a community’s carbon footprint and how to build better,” he said. “There are alternatives.”

When asked if and when the ECR guidelines would become requirements, Angus replied that this was the intention. But not yet.

For now, he said, the guidelines are “tools to help applicants” in project planning. “We educate.”

Prospective applicants, presented in the form of a checklist, are asked to respond to each item, indicating which ones they may be ready, willing and/or able to include in their project plans or if they have already done so. Developers see the checklist “before they apply… so they can reflect on it and use it as a design tool,” he said.

Angus said the guidelines were created collaboratively and with input from experts.

We focused on how to “build better, smarter, faster and stronger…”, asking questions like “will it hold up?” he said. You’ll find all this in the checklist. Topics range from reusing existing infrastructure such as roads (rather than building new ones), to changes in manufacturing and design, and the use of alternative building materials, indoors and out.

For example, using less pavement. Or other material. Black tar, typically used on roads and parking lots, can create “heat islands” and increase a building’s carbon footprint. It can also collect standing water, causing runoff problems. But Angus said there is an alternative: porous paving material.

The porous material looks just like traditional pavement, he said. Although it is not durable enough for large road projects, it can be used on smaller road sections and small-sized parking lots. He also helps with catwalks. Instead of collecting on the surface, water filters through the porous surface into the drainage system below.

Other low-emission materials include the use of laminated timber instead of steel in buildings of a certain height. Building codes require steel structures at levels above the first floor, Angus said. However, steel leaves a “large carbon footprint,” he said. “Laminate is as strong as steel, but lighter and easier to work with. We’re trying to get people to look at it.”

Angus explained that aligning individual functions with carbon reduction goals can be a challenge as companies entering the Devens Regional Enterprise Zone (DREZ) have a variety of operational needs.

A biotechnology company, for example, needs “clean rooms.” Another company’s manufacturing process relies on hydropower, which creates a “huge” carbon footprint, he added.

Another key element is where enough energy for Devens’ needs comes from; industrial, commercial and residential.

“Devens has its own utility company that gets some of its energy from renewable energy products,” Angus said, noting that he hopes to increase the percentage of renewable energy. “The goal is 100 percent achieved.”

The ECR guidelines address this problem at all levels, he said. The total CO2 impact of a material is tracked based on the energy required for mining and manufacturing, through to transportation and on-site installation.

When it comes to moving from guidance to regulation, Angus anticipates bumps but not roadblocks, and is taking a broad view. “We need to look at the bigger picture,” he said, saying they need to address the entire process, from inception to production.

In Massachusetts, wind and solar farms track where their energy comes from, who gets credit for it and where it goes through the New England Generation Information System, he said.