North Texas Fire Station Goes Green

Texas gets a lot of attention for its pollution. It's not the first state that would come to mind when you think of local governments moving toward more environment-friendly structures.

That's why it's such big news that a Denton fire station will be the first "green fire station" in North Texas.

The facility is built with a good deal of recycled construction materials, uses natural lighting, stores rainwater, and even uses a geo thermal well system to heat and cool the building. The project recycled 30 TONS of construction waste.

While the station used more money in up front construction cost ($200,000), Denton estimates that the building will save over $1 million in years to come.

As similar buildings become more common, technological innovations and more competition will likely bring down initial construction costs. For now, the building is going through LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification.