Green Lab certification program rolls out at Montana State

BOZEMAN - The coldest fluid on Earth is used to maintain the temperature of equipment in one of Montana State University's core research facilities. Over time, the valuable liquid helium boils away, and the cost of replacing it is subject to price fluctuations of the global commodities market.

But in October, thanks to a $300,000 National Science Foundation grant, MSU's Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Core Research Facility installed a system to recapture most of the helium it uses to cool its nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometers. NMR Core director Valérie Copié and manager Brian Tripet say the system is designed to recover at least 90% of the helium for reuse, preventing its release into the atmosphere and saving the facility nearly $30,000 a year.

"It will help the environment and also limit how much helium we have to order, so we'll be better able to manage the operating cost of the facility," said Copié, a professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry in the College of Letters and Science.

The new recovery system is part of an overall effort to boost and maintain sustainable practices across campus. Another initiative to further that goal is the recently launched MSU Certified Green Lab Program, led by Mark DeWald, manager and laboratory safety specialist at MSU's Jutila Research Laboratory, and Mary Gauvin, service centers director for MSU Research and Economic Development.

The effort began about two years ago, Gauvin said, when MSU's office of Research Integrity and Compliance negotiated discounted prices for specialized freezers used to store biological samples at temperatures as low as minus 80 degrees Celsius. Since then, nine ultralow temperature freezers were recycled and replaced with new, Energy Star-rated models, and rebate incentives were used to purchase two additional freezers for new projects.

"Some of the old freezers were purchased back in the '90s or '80s, but of course, we've come a long way with the energy savings on that type of equipment," Gauvin said.

Inspired to build on that success, she and DeWald began investigating lab sustainability programs around the country to see what would work well at MSU. Now, together with an advisory committee formed last spring, they are inviting laboratories to apply for certified "green lab" status and adhere to an established set of sustainable standards and practices.

"Everyone, individually, is mindful of not being wasteful, but the certificate will get the whole lab involved, too, because they have to be really mindful of it," DeWald said.

For a lab to be certified, its staff evaluates its protocols and practices according to a Certified Green Lab Checklist that assesses equipment management, water conservation, recycling, sustainable purchasing, waste management, and facility design and infrastructure. Each lab is assigned one of three certifications - Green, Gold or Silver - and they repeat the evaluation annually. Labs achieving Green status, meaning that they score 100% on the assessments, will be recognized with a certificate, lab lunch courtesy of Research Integrity and Compliance, and an MSU pint glass and sustainable tote bag. Labs achieving Gold or Silver status will be recognized with certificates.

Beyond individual labs, Gauvin, DeWald and the advisory committee identified other no-cost actions to help MSU's research enterprise operate efficiently and sustainably, such as promoting shared use of instruments and establishing a program for returning uncontaminated plastic shipping boxes to manufacturers for recycling.

"MSU is an R1 research institution and the biggest research entity in the state, and for a program that large, we already operate very efficiently," said Alison Harmon, vice president for research and economic development at MSU. "The Green Labs Certification Program amplifies our ongoing efforts and encourages research labs across MSU to look at their operations and take practical steps to ensure they're being good stewards of all MSU's resources. I look forward to celebrating their success at our End of Year Research Celebration on March 23, the theme of which is Celebrating Research Integrity and Sustainability."

DeWald and Gauvin hope the program will raise awareness of ways labs can operate more sustainably and encourage participation from everyone working in MSU labs.

"A lot of people have good ideas, and we're always open to suggestions," DeWald said. "It's a small program, but every little bit counts."