Why Phipps Conservatory Was Chosen for the G-20 Welcome Dinner

President Obama and the First Lady selected Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens in Pittsburgh's Oakland section as the site of the welcome dinner reception for visiting delegations to the G-20 because Phipps shines as an example of cutting edge green rebirth. As a horticulturist who worked there for eight years in the 1980's, I know first hand the extreme scope of the transformation.

According to the Phipps website historical timeline, Phipps Conservatory began as a classic Victorian glasshouse conservatory, gifted to the city of Pittsburgh by industrialist Henry Phipps in 1893. Over decades, it remained one of the most beloved venues in the city as generations of locals and visitors enjoyed the permanent plantings and seasonal flower shows. Time degraded the old style facility. Upkeep was expensive, heating costs soared and cooling was crudely attempted with the existing methods of narrow, hand-cranked roof vents. The toxic pest control methods in vogue during the mid 20th Century produced floral beauty at high environmental cost.

From 1980 to 1988, I worked at Phipps as a grower, managing a production greenhouse which produced tropical foliage and seasonal plants for the flower shows. While proudly aware of the institution's historic and sentimental value, I lamented the run-down facilities. When it rained outside, it rained inside, too, due to the leaks in the crumbling structure. Temperatures in the greenhouses routinely reached 118 degrees on summer days, making work torture. Even the copious population of rats and cockroaches weren't happy.

Under the ownership of the City of Pittsburgh, Phipps saw incremental improvements and repairs over the years, but with the typical municipal budgetary problems, nothing drastic was even envisioned or accomplished.

The seeds of change began to sprout in 1993, when, in its 100th anniversary year, management of Phipps passed from the city to Phipps Conservatory, Inc., a foundation which developed a startlingly innovative vision for the grand old horticultural palace. Merging with the former Pittsburgh Civic Garden Center, a multi-year expansion and renovation plan was developed, not simply with an eye to repair or enlarge, but to alter the basic nature of the Conservatory in a way that would be attuned to the 21st Century.

The Conservatory's website explains that Phipps opened its Welcome Center in 2005, as the first LEED certified public garden visitors center in the US. Production greenhouses with computer controlled environments and multiple growing zones were finished in 2006. Each phase of the new complex debuted more radical environmental innovation, so that today, Phipps is "the most energy efficient conservatory in the world," according to a Phipps pamphlet.

Showcasing the biodiversity and beauty of nature in its permanent and changing exhibits is a core educational task of Phipps, but practicing the sustainability makes it "The Green Heart of Pittsburgh," as the visitor's guide pamphlet describes it. The guide elaborates on many of the amazing features which earn it the title.

Designed to utilize the natural winds from the nearby ravine, alternate roof panels open to provide HVAC-free cooling, eliminating the typical stifling greenhouse heat. The computerized vents passively suck out the hot air. Concrete "Earth Tubes" are installed fifteen feet under ground, where the temperature is a steady 55 degrees F. Hot air passing out of the Conservatory's vent system creates a vacuum, pulling inside air through the tubes, cooling it. In winter, the 55 degree tubes contribute part of the heat. Energy blankets shade the glass enclosed areas and contribute thermal insulation.

Water for the plants is tempered by waste heat. A 5kW solid oxide fuel cell, the world's first in a conservatory, utilizes natural gas to generate electricity for Phipps, while emitting no nitrous or sulfur dioxide.

Phase III of the rebirth of Phipps will result in what is billed as a Living Building, the Center for Sustainable Landscapes (CSL). This wonder of modern technology will exceed Platinum LEED standards by being a net zero energy and water facility, generating all of its own energy and capturing and treating all of its water on site. An anerobic waste digester will compost all organic waste, turning it into methane for electricity. Runoff from the parking lot is used by a rain garden. Geothermal cooling and heating with 500' boreholes, wind turbines and photovoltaic cells add to the sustainability.

The full scope of the revolutionary design and methods can only we appreciated by visiting the Phipps website. Beyond sustainability, Phipps has leaped forward in aesthetics and cultural contributions with a recent breathtaking exhibition of glass by Dale Chihuly and the current Hans Godo Fräbel show.

As the G-20 visitors enjoy the reception, Phipps will sparkle as a vision of the future for the leaders of the world.

Sources:

Phipps conservatory and Botanical Garden website, http://phipps.conservatory.org/
Pittsburgh Post Gazette, "Some G-20 Event times Announced" http://community.post-gazette.com/blogs/bigstory/archive/2009/09/23/some-g-20-event-times-announced.aspx
Phipps Conservatory visitors' phamplet, "The Green Heart of Pittsburgh"