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Heartland Community College

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Construction & Green Space

Heartland strives to use energy, water, and material resources efficiently to minimize our negative impact on the environment utilizing thoughtful building siting, design, construction, operation, maintenance, waste removal and conservation of our green space.  

Campus facilities

The College uses a wide range of green practices to maintain and operate its facilities.  

    • WDC is the first state funded building in Illinois to seek Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification

    • Instructional Commons North, Receiving and Storage Building, Child Development Lab, Fitness and Recreation Center, and Astroth Community Education Center built in accordance to LEED standards

    • Normal Readiness Center (Illinois National Guard) LEED Gold certified

    • Building automation systems increase building heating, cooling and lighting efficiency

    • Occupancy sensors turn off overhead lights when the room is not in use

    • Energy efficient T8, T5, and LED lighting

    • Interior exit signs are powered by LED lights.

    • Double door entry vestibules that reduce loss of conditioned air

    • Desktop virtualization uses mix of thin clients and low power PCs, which draw 10 to 15 watts each, compared to 50 to 200 watts for conventional PCs.

    • CRT monitors have been replaced campus wide by lower power LCD displays, which use roughly half as much power.

    • Photography lab is equipped with an on-demand hot water heater to reduce energy demands

    • Thermal recovery system is employed in the HVAC system in the WDC, CDL, and ACEC

    • Natural day lighting in all buildings reduces reliance on overhead lighting

    • Crosswalk signs are solar powered

    • Ground-facing outdoor lighting to reduce light pollution

    • 1.65MW Wind Turbine

    • Geothermal heating and cooling at the Workforce Development Center, Child Development Lab and Normal Readiness Center

    • A rainwater collection system that drains into Birky Pond

    • Bathrooms are equipped with low-flow toilets that use 1.6 gallons per flush and urinals that use 1.0 gallons per flush

    • Restroom sinks are equipped with aerators that use 0.5 gallons per minute

    • Low maintenance landscaping for efficient water use

    • Adopted campus-wide green cleaning practices in 2007

Green Space

Before we broke ground on the Normal campus, we worked with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to develop a habitat plan to inform and guide future grounds management. 

 green space

Features of the 256 Acre campus include: 

  • Fruit trees and raised beds at the Child Development Lab

  • Restored prairie – the Hawks’ Hill Prairie and Red Tail Tallgrass Prairie

  • Two miles of trails – Birdhouse Trail and Memorial Trail

  • Native trees

  • Birky Pond (13 acre stocked pond available for fishing)

  • Adjacent wetlands that help naturally filter storm water run-off from campus before it enters the Sugar Creek waterway  

  • Grass clipping are left on the grounds to allow for nutrient recycling.

  • Integrated pest management practices reduce broadcast pesticide application

The College's Greenspace team help oversees our outdoor spaces and also strives to increase appreciation for the environment, guide grounds development, provide learning opportunities for students, and manage the Habitat Area (a registered National Wildlife Federation Habitat and Yard Smart certified area).

For more information about Heartland’s green space, please contact HCC Facilities at (309) 268-8450 or email Amanda.Jones@heartland.edu.