Poland Spring's newest bottling facility in Kingfield has become the first manufacturer in Maine to earn LEED Gold certification. LEED is an internationally-recognized certification system that measures how well a building saves energy, uses water, reduces carbon dioxide emissions and manages its resources.
"LEEDS certification, as you've heard, is a very hard standard to meet," says Naomi Mermin, board president of the U.S. Green Building Council's Maine Chapter. "It is completely market-driven, there is no government subsidy or other incentive to do it, other than companies that see the business case and recognize the long-term profitability and responsibility of the environment to do it."
As part of its LEED design, the Kingfield plant saves 70 million BTUs of energy each year and conserves about 140,000 gallons of water.