Pennsylvania distillery earns LEED Gold certification

Bellefonte, Pennsylvania-based Big Spring Spirits announced that it has been awarded LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified Gold level. The LEED rating system, developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), is the foremost program for buildings, homes and communities that are designed, constructed, maintained and operated for improved environmental and human health performance.

Paula Cipar, partner of Big Spring Spirits says, "Big Spring Spirits is thrilled to be one of the first LEED-certified distilleries in the country. Our team has worked diligently throughout the construction process and in all areas operationally to stay true to our reduce-recycle-reuse policy. We look forward to maintaining these high standards and educating the public through tours of our facility, where we highlight how it has been engineered to be energy efficient as well as environmentally friendly."

According to an article on Penn State University’s website, the alumni owned distillery incorporates many reuse and recycling elements, including “eclectic fabric scraps covering the chairs to the sewer grate-turned-railing on the patio, from the bar made of salvaged Pennsylvania walnut to the recycled drains in the manufacturing space.”

Big Spring Spirits is the first distillery in Pennsylvania and only the third in the world to receive a Gold rating from LEED, according to the article. Owners Cipar and Kevin Lloyd comb junkyards, research how and where to salvage materials, and address how to make the MEP — mechanical, electrical, plumbing — environmentally friendly.
“Going for LEED certification was a commitment and big effort on the part of many,” says Cipar, who designed the distillery’s tasting room, using her own fabric scraps to adorn the chairs. With steel beams providing a stark contrast to the building’s nearly 100-year-old brick walls, Big Spring exudes a rustic warmth that attracts both local residents and visitors to sample its lineup of spirits. “It made sense to use old things in an old building, and that was also smart both financially and environmentally,” added Cipar.

Big Spring Spirits achieved LEED Gold certified for implementing practical and measurable strategies and solutions aimed at achieving high performance in sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality. There are four levels of LEED certification – Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum.

LEED is the foremost program for the design, construction and operation of green buildings. Over 69,000 projects are currently participating in the commercial and institutional LEED rating systems, comprising over 12.4 billion square feet of construction space in all 50 states and 150 countries.

"Big Spring Spirits' LEED certification demonstrates tremendous green building leadership,” said Rick Fedrizzi, President, CEO & Founding Chair, U.S. Green Building Council. “The urgency of USGBC’s mission has challenged the industry to move faster and reach further than ever before, and Big Spring Spirits' facility serves as a prime example of just how much we can accomplish.” Fedrizzi went on to say, “The green building movement offers an unprecedented opportunity to respond to the most important challenges of our time, including global climate change, dependence on non-sustainable and expensive sources of energy and threats to human health.”

Located at the historic Match Factory, Big Spring Spirits distillery, tasting room and cocktail lounge border Talleyrand Park in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, just 10 miles from Penn State University's main campus.  The distillery overlooks the Big Spring, which is the source of the award-winning water that is the linchpin of the fine spirits.

Founded in 2014 by Penn State alumni Kevin Lloyd and Paula Cipar, Big Spring Spirits currently bottles ten products including vodka, several rums, gins, white whiskies and bourbon cream.  They started Big Spring Spirits inspired by their individual talents: he, a well-known scientist looking for his next endeavor and she, a top-notch interior designer with a remarkable talent for creating sophisticated and eclectic spaces. Together, they share a pride in the central Pennsylvania region they call home--the community surrounding Penn State University--and a desire to give back to that community by creating a business focused on “local” that helps support the local economy through both ingredient-sourcing and tourism.

The finest ingredients are contracted from local farmers who are as passionate about agriculture as we are about spirits.  From the herbaceous 7 Governors Gin to the smooth Silver line of white whiskeys, our spirits showcase carefully-nurtured ingredients. Big Spring Spirits is dedicated to making distinguished, well-crafted spirits from grain to glass.

“LEED is part of everything we do,” Lloyd tells Penn State. “It’s not just in the building design — it extends to our production area as well. We just feel like we have a responsibility to the environment.” The firm of Albert A. Drobka, Architect, engineering firm Michael L. Norris and Associates, and Karen Norris, a LEED certification professional from Green Collar Consulting, guided Cipar and Lloyd through the construction.