TreePeople Center Underground Cistern

Winner! 2011 Project of the Year: GreenSite Awards 
This projected was selected as the Judge’s Choice for the Project of the Year under the Industrial category.

Based in Los Angeles, California, TreePeople is a non–profit organization that addresses urban issues such as water and energy conservation, flood prevention and storm water pollution. The TreePeople Center for Community Forestry is a state of the art environmental education campus currently under construction in California's Coldwater Canyon Park.

Designed to achieve the US Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum rating, the center features a 950,000 liter (250,000 gallon) underground concrete cistern. The largest of its kind in the continental United States, this tank will capture rainwater to irrigate the center's gardens and forests. Once completed, the cistern will be covered with landscaping, including an elaborate labyrinth. Since access for maintenance and repairs will be next to impossible, the owners needed a permanent waterproofing solution for the structure.

Solution

Because conventional waterproofing membranes deteriorate over time, the center's owners opted instead to use Kryton's Krystol Internal Membrane (KIM) and the Krystol Waterstop System. When added to the concrete mix, KIM cures to form crystals that fill the spaces between concrete particles, permanently waterproofing the structure. KIM also reacts with incoming water to self-seal any small concrete cracks, providing lasting protection against leakage from any direction. By eliminating costly repairs and maintenance, KIM will provide worry-free waterproofing for the life of the cistern.