Hampden #55 unveils indoor greenwall to keep air clean

August 27, 2020

Through grant funding from FOH and the Hampden Community Council , a green wall has been added to HEMS! From the WBAL-TV piece on this installation:

It's a literal green wall of plants in full view of students and staff members.

It's not what some would expect to see when walking into a school building, but it's a project that's good for the environment and learning at Hampden Elementary-Middle School.

"Like, you walk in through the doors and then all of a sudden, you see this, like, bright green masterpiece," Hampden Elementary-Middle School student Zion Parran said.

A masterpiece with a purpose: to help clean the air throughout the school building. It's a project that's been more than a year in the making. It's the brainchild of Ray Greenstreet, president of Greenstreet-Greenwalls.

"We are actually pulling in the dirty air in up there from that fan, and it's sucking the air into the wall and there's a double panel wall. It looks like siding on your home and we pressurize that wall. And we bring fresh water in from the faucet and it fills the wall," Greenstreet said. "NASA discovered that active plants through the root zone or rising sphere, the plants actually breakdowns VOCs -- volatile organic compounds."

The greenwall is often used as a teachable moment for students who are eager to show it off.

"The greenwall will help our school environment by producing clean air and increasing the health of our environment," student Emily Laricci said.

"We hope that the plants that we grow and give away will spread happiness throughout our community," student Joseph James said.