Local Building Is Model Of 'Going Green'

One man's trash is really another man's treasure at the Oglebay Institute Schrader Center.

Milk jugs, sawdust and recycled steel make up the walls, floors and ceilings.

"When you're in any room here, you look around and almost everything you see is made from some type of recycled material," said director Eriks Janelsins.

The floors in the bathroom are made of recycled bus and tractor tires. The walls are made from 50 tons of recycled newspapers.

The $2.5 million structure was built in the year 2000. Janelsins said the building has become a model for other “green,” environmentally friendly buildings.

Oglebay Institute's efforts to go “green” and stay “green” didn't end with the construction of the Schrader Center.

"We've looked at creating wetlands that would treat our wastewater that's leaving the building instead of putting it into a sewer," said Janelsins.

They also look for ways to keep you informed about going green, with programs for kids and a lecture series called "Living Green."