World of Coca-Cola Earns Gold Rating
The Coca-Cola Company announced on March 5 that its World of Coca-Cola® was awarded a "Gold" rating by the U.S. Green Building Council.
The attraction opened in downtown Atlanta, Ga., in May 2007 as a venue to showcase the complete story of the company and its brands.
The World of Coca-Cola adheres to the council's standards for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, which encourages development of "high-performance, sustainable buildings" through an emphasis on energy and water efficiency, recycling, reuse of resources, and waste reduction.
About 20 percent of the construction materials for the building were of a recycled or "green" nature, including bamboo and recycled rubber flooring. Recycled polyethylene terephthalate -- the key ingredient in plastic beverage containers -- was used in the carpeting. Along with all the recycled matter that went into the building, almost 90 percent of construction waste from the project was salvaged, reused, or recycled.
The building is 30 percent more energy efficient than the Georgia state energy code requires.
The attraction also uses 40 percent less water than standard buildings as every faucet and water fixture has been fitted for lowering water consumption. Additionally, the drink cups are produced from 100-percent compostable cornstarch.