St. Louis County Library’s effort to be more environmentally-friendly has become a campaign to raise awareness for green practices. When the Library’s Sustainability Committee began investigating using green products to perform some of the more common library tasks, they discovered a compulsion not only to go green wherever feasible, but to raise awareness of how the public can follow suit.

The Sustainability Committee, which consists of 7 staff volunteers, investigates how the library’s 20 branches, 7 bookmobiles and 17 vehicles can consume less or conserve more. A large project that illustrates this effort is the roof replacement of the Mid-County Branch. The branch’s new roof is a Thermoplastic Olefin (TPO) white roof which is Energy Star rated, durable and slightly more expensive (2-3% higher) than replacing it with a more traditional EDPM roof. The library expects the TPO white roof to cut energy costs at the flat-roofed branch and has plans to install the same surface on two more branches in 2008.

As a tax-supported entity, it is important for the County Library to choose products and practices that are eco-friendly, effective and affordable. As Barbara Brain, Assistant Director for Adult and Support Services and chair of the Sustainability Committee says, “The library can’t afford to go green at any cost.” There must be an appropriate balance.

The staff, for the most part, has embraced the call to conserve. Every branch has a pickup of recyclable materials such as office paper, books, and cardboard. The groundskeepers leave grass clippings, saving room in area landfills while adding a bit of nitrogen to the lawns. Plants native to Missouri are favored. Interior painting projects use Green Seal Certified paint which contains no volatile organic compounds. The Communications department is investigating using soy ink to print brochures and hand-outs. Grants and collaborative opportunities are being sought. Each idea evokes another, and the staff is reconsidering literally every practice and every product the library uses.

The Sustainability Committee is working on a celebration for April 20 -25, 2009 that will bring attention to earth friendly resources available in the St. Louis area and special programs for all ages. The library expects that the event will help spread enthusiasm and support, and that the library will be seen as a responsible entity—a source of good information and practices.