Washington DC home to first "green" stadium in U.S.

By Lisa Lambert

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Washington Nationals' gleaming new baseball park that opens Sunday night will be the first green professional stadium in the United States, the U.S. Green Building Council said Friday.

The Nats' stadium received a LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, certification from the council on Friday for its energy-conserving and environmental design.

To earn the certification, the ballpark was outfitted with energy-saving light fixtures, water-conserving plumbing, drought-resistant plants, and a green roof over the concessions area.

It was also erected on a restored brownfield that once had contaminated soil, and it has special systems in place to keep stormwater runoff from polluting the nearby Anacostia River.

"One of the things that really strikes me about stadium facilities is that they directly touch millions of people over the course of their existence," the council's Brendan Owens said.

The stadium's eco-friendly design would encourage visitors to preserve the environment in other ways, Owens said.

The stadium will use air-cooled chillers for concessions instead of water-cooled ones, as well, which will likely save six million gallons of water each year.

The city spent $611 million to build the stadium, selling $535 million in bonds in 2006. The DC Sports and Entertainment Commission said construction alone cost $311 million.