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King Abdullah University of Science and Technology Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
HOK

Saudi Arabia's first and the world's largest LEED Platinum-certified project covers 14 square miles. It took just two years to construct the campus from a 22-mile stretch of desert. The 5.5 million square-foot campus includes a sprawling array of over 30 water feature displays served from 24 individual equipment spaces. Water conservation was a primary design consideration especially for the larger displays. Filtration techniques were utilized which employ regenerative filters that self-clean with backwashing, saving thousands of gallons of water per week compared with traditional sand filters.

The grand Sea Tidal Court seawater display, which incorporates integrated stands of mangrove trees, provides an aesthetic connection between the harbor at the University's edge and the rest of the Campus. In order to minimize evaporative loss of potable water, fountain water is drawn from the harbor, filtered, and used to fill the pools. High-powered ozonation systems then convert the ocean's dissolved chloride into active chlorine for ongoing sanitation, while the pool water continues to be filtered.

Tanner Springs Park Portland, Oregon
Atelier Dreiseitl and Gustafson Guthrie Nichol, Ltd

Tanner Springs Park in Portland, Oregon with client Atelier Dreiseitl is another project that demonstrates the creative use of environmental technology. Part wetland, part art installation, this urban park reflects the history of the old Tanner Creek. A man-made spring was fine-tuned, both visually and audibly, to create an interplay between the cascading water, surrounding stones, native grasses and trees

The park is self-contained with none of the surface storm water flowing to the surrounding streets. Rainwater seeps into a biotope that filters the water before it reaches an underground holding tank. Underground, the water is treated with ultraviolet light before it bubbles up to the surface through the spring. The design saved the city of Portland 50% of the usual filtration equipment costs, and the pond water will irrigate the grasses and trees.

The Kogod Courtyard at the Smithsonian Institution’s
National Portrait Gallery and American Art Museum Washington, D.C. Gustafson Guthrie Nichol, Ltd

This 28,000 square-foot courtyard, covered by a signature Norman Foster skylight, contains four long rectangular water scrims. These flush features can be independently modulated to produce effects ranging from textured, slightly rippled surfaces, to mirror-like planes that beautifully reflect the intricate lattice of the skylight above, to no effect at all. When the fountain is turned off, it virtually vanishes into the surrounding paving, leaving its footprint available for whatever purpose the gallery has in mind.

This water feature presented a number of unique design challenges resulting from the complex and unyielding structure of the historical building where it lives. For instance, hundreds of gallons per minute of flow had to disappear into, and then be transported from an existing below-deck space barely 6-inches high. Nonetheless, the result is a beautiful fountain, enjoyed and appreciated by all who visit the courtyard.