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Photo courtesy of Westwood Public Schools. Westwood's Pine Hill Elementary School has been recognized as a green building leader.
3-04-2025 12:51am
Pine Hill Elementary School "Goes Gold" with LEED Certification
Darlene Cancell
Editor
Thanks to Westwood Public Schools for contributing this news to Westwood Minute.
Every aspect of the design of Westwood’s Pine Hill Elementary School considered sustainability and the environment. Initially designed to earn LEED Silver certification, the town recently learned that the school has been awarded Gold level status by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design and is the most widely used green rating system for buildings in the world.
There are four levels of LEED certification – Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum. To achieve these levels, a building must implement programs to reduce energy consumption and waste, manage resources efficiently, and reduce operating costs.
“Pine Hill Elementary School’s LEED certification demonstrates tremendous green building leadership,” said Peter Templeton, president and CEO, USGBC. “LEED was created to make the world a better place and revolutionize our buildings and communities by providing everyone with access to healthy, green and high performing buildings. Pine Hill is a prime example of how the innovative work of project teams can create local solutions that contribute to making a global difference.”
Pine Hill not only utilizes solar panels for power, but it also has 60 (600’ deep) geothermal wells, which uses the earth’s consistent temperature from deep below the earth’s surface to heat or cool the water as it transfers to and from the building for heating and cooling.
“The Pine Hill School is an outstanding example of what an energy efficient school should be and very successfully combines energy efficiency and utility,” said Westwood Energy Manager Thomas Philbin. “It definitely sets the efficiency standard for all future buildings.”
According to the USGBC, buildings are responsible for 40% of global energy carbon emissions and are routinely recognized as a critical sector in tackling climate change.
“From the start, the School Building Committee made sustainability a priority for this project, to ensure we aligned the new school with the town’s environmental goals. We are thrilled to see the hard work and tremendous effort of the SBC, our project manager, our design team and our construction team rewarded with the LEED Gold certification, said SBC Chairperson Maya Plotkin,
“What this exemplifies is the dedication, commitment and contribution that the residents of Westwood have made to doing their part for the climate, while providing a resilient, durable, sustainable building for the Town of Westwood, “said Roberto Fitzgerald, Project Architect from Dore+Whittier. “This building is not only one of the most energy efficient schools in Massachusetts, it is a warm, light-filled, inspiring and inviting place to learn, teach and engage with other community members for many years to come.”
LEED projects earn points by adhering to prerequisites and credits across nine measurements for building excellence from integrative design to human health to material use. The LEED green building rating system was initially launched in 1998 and has undergone several updates since then.
