Duluth, Minnesota

This facility features the following green attributes:
Green Power
Water Management Plan
Native Landscaping

Mid-Continent Ecology Division Laboratory

Total Facility Area: 88,577 gross square feet (GSF)
Estimated Personnel: 145 persons
Energy Consumption: 27,880,885,984 Btu per year
Btu per GSF per Year: 314,764
Total Water Consumption: 884,197 gallons per year
Gallons per GSF per Year: 10.0

All energy and water data are reported as of FY 2010.

Description

The Mid-continent Ecology Division (MED) Laboratory is a research facility for EPA's National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory under the Office of Research and Development (ORD). It conducts research to determine the ecological effects of water pollutants on fish, wildlife, and ecosystems. MED also operates the Large Lakes and Rivers Research Station in Grosse Ile, Michigan.

Duluth was selected for the site of the MED research facility because of the need for water from Lake Superior to conduct its research. The unchanging quality of the water over the past 30 years is essential to the credibility of the ecotoxicology research performed. Currently, the facility uses about 94 million gallons of Lake Superior water annually for research and cooling.

Unique Environmental Features

Energy Conservation

In FY 2006, EPA completed designs on a project to replace the Duluth laboratory's constant volume air handling units (AHU) with a more energy-efficient variable air volume (VAV) unit, and install more current AHU technology overall. One AHU, covering 10 percent of the laboratory's fume hoods, was replaced in FY 2008, saving approximately 34,000 kilowatt hours per year. Two more AHUs covering an additional 12 fume hoods are slated to be replaced in FY 2012 or FY 2013.
The facility's use of Lake Superior water for "free" and reduced energy cooling is unique among EPA laboratories, and is a significant energy savings contributor.

Green Power

MED purchases approximately 24,000 kilowatt hours (kWh), or approximately 1 percent, of its annual electricity consumption in the form of delivered green power. The facility began this practice in March 2002.
EPA offsets the rest of the electricity consumption at MED with renewable energy certificates (RECs) purchased through the Agency's current blanket green power contract. Learn more about EPA's current and past blanket green power contracts.

Water Conservation

In September 2009, EPA updated its water management plan for the Duluth laboratory (PDF) (22 pp, 468K, About PDF). The facility's first water management plan (PDF) (15 pp, 360K, About PDF), which is superseded by the updated plan, was completed in January 2004.
In FY 2007, MED completed a water recycling project to reduce the amount of water that was discharged into the facility’s sewage system after having been drawn from Lake Superior and used for laboratory processes. Approximately half of the 94 million gallons of water used annually for cooling and aquatic research is cleaned and returned to the lake, reducing the facility’s annual sewer charges. A water filtration project completed in FY 2008 increased the facility’s water recycling rate to 95 percent.

Stormwater Management

Two acres of meadow grasses and other native plants surrounding MED provide a buffer between the site’s impervious surfaces and Lake Superior. As stormwater runs through the meadow, the native landscaping helps filter out pollutants and allow for ground absorption.

For More Information About This Facility

Website: www.epa.gov/med

Rod Booth (booth.rod@epa.gov)
6201 Congdon Boulevard
Duluth, MN 55804
Phone: (218) 529-5000
Fax: (218) 720-5703