Mithun’s LEED Platinum Brightwater Center Educates Washington’s King County on Wastewater Treatment

Most wastewater treatment centers fade into the background and are barely seen or heard about. By contrast, the <a href="http://mithun.com/projects/project_detail/brightwater_center/">Brightwater Center</a> in Woodinville, Washington is a high-profile educational facility that brings people together to learn about the many issues that surround wastewater. This LEED Platinum center was established alongside the <a href="http://mithun.com/projects/project_detail/brightwater_water_treatment_facility/">Brightwater Wastewater Treatment Plant</a> and it was created by <a href="http://www.kingcounty.gov/">King County</a>, <a href="http://mithun.com/">Mithun</a>, <a href="http://www.hargreaves.com/">Hargreaves Associates</a>, and <a href="http://www.streeterhomes.com/">Streeter &amp; Associates</a>, among many other sustainably minded organizations.

<a href="http://www.kingcounty.gov/environment/wtd/Construction/North/Brightwater.aspx">The Brightwater Center</a> is a 15,000-square-foot facility set on over 114 acres that cost around $1.8 billion to build over nearly a decade.

<a href="http://mithun.com/projects/project_detail/brightwater_center/">Mithun</a> designed this facility to give back to the community it supports while serving as an example of <a href="http://inhabitat.com/index.php?s=LEED+Platinum">LEED Platinum</a> building.

The Center has educational space for school children to learn more about how wastewater is treated.

The interiors are finished with reclaimed wood, polished concrete and insulated concrete masonry units.

Mithun designed the interiors to be modern and clean, which shows how this facility differs from so many others around the world.

It uses 75% less energy and uses renewable energy sources to provide heat and hot water for the entire building.

The center's sustainable building strategies are shown in educational boards, which also outline the wastewater treatment processes within King County.

Up until the 1960s, over 40 million gallons of <a href="http://inhabitat.com/cal-poly-project-produces-energy-and-purifies-water-using-algae-and-human-waste/">sewage</a> spilled into Lake Washington daily from a pipeline near Discovery Park.

Part of King County’s mission for the Brightwater Center is to educate new generations of the importance of treating the city’s wastewater.

Public pieces of art are also found around the facility.

Daylighting provides the interiors with warmth and a sense of connectivity to the center’s natural surroundings.

The form of the building is a great mix of Pacific-Northwest architecture and contemporary sustainable design.