Oglebay Hall was built in 1917, but is the first building on campus to attain the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or L.E.E.D. certificate.

Many of the green features are subtle, like redesigned ventilation hoods, but the building is still a showpiece for the university's move toward sustainability. It houses the Forensic Sciences Department's offices, classrooms, and labs.

"It's a case of what is going to become the norm," says Keith Morris, the head of the department. "They expect this so when they go into buildings that don't have that kind of feature, they might wonder why this isn't the case or what's being done to try and improve it."

While some of the measures have very high initial costs, the savings can be big. Oglebay Hall will save the university thousands of dollars in heating and cooling costs because of its design features. Other buildings are also recieving upgrades and new buildings designed with energy efficiency in mind. Not all of them will go through the long and detailed L.E.E.D certification process.

"Other buildings are all designed with most energy efficient lighting, heating, because it just makes good business sense," says John Thompson with WVU's Facilities Management. "Where we can use other measures like recycling and using sustainable materials we'll do that as well."

A new greenhouse is expected to also receive L.E.E.D. certification after it is completed.