Built Green with Union Labor

Built in 2003, the David L. Lawrence Convention Center is the largest convention center in the United States ever certified by the U.S. Green Building Council. Not only is it the first of its kind in the world—every square inch was built and is operated by members of the union movement.

They created a convention center where natural light and ventilation are abundant. In fact, more than 75 percent of the building is naturally lit, and the vast primary-hall space is 100 percent naturally lit by skylights and glass walls. Workers installed a natural ventilation system that allows fresh air to cool the building, a result of the roof design and riverside louvers.

Union members built an on-site water reclamation plant that recycles wastewater from sinks, drinking fountains and faucets. Groundsworkers maintain landscaping indigenous to southwestern Pennsylvania, which relies solely on natural rainfall with no irrigation. Union labor built an aquifer 50 feet beneath the center that provides make-up water for the cooling towers. This dramatically reduces the use of the city water supply.

Those are some of the more obvious features of the center, which, in 2003, won the Gold LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) from the U.S. Green Building Council. Just as important, the staff throughout the center uses green materials and employs environmental practices every day—including pre-set thermostats and light sensors, mouse pads made from discarded tires and low- or no-volatile organic compounds in paints, carpeting, adhesives and sealants.