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Green buildingFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is about green building. For the building on the MIT campus, seeGreen Building (MIT).

US EPA Kansas City Science & Technology Center. This facility features the following green attributes:

*LEED 2.0 Gold certified

*Green Power

*Native Landscaping

Sustainable energy

Renewable energy

Anaerobic digestionBiomass

GeothermalHydroelectricity

SolarTidalWind

Energy conservation
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CogenerationEnergy efficiency

GeothermalGreen building

MicrogenerationPassive Solar

Organic Rankine cycle

Sustainable transport

BiofuelElectric vehicle

Green vehiclePlug-in hybrid

Envir onment portal

v

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e

Green building(also known as green constructionor sustainable building) refers to a structure and using

process that is environmentally responsible and resource-efficient throughout a building's life-cycle: from siting

to design, construction, operation, maintenance, renovation, and demolition. This practice expands and

complements the classical building design concerns of economy, utility, durability, and comfort.[1]

Although new technologies are constantly being developed to complement current practices in creating greener

structures, the common objective is that green buildings are designed to reduce the overall impact of the built

environment on human health and the natural environment by:

Efficiently using energy, water, and other resources

Protecting occupant health and improving employee productivity

Reducing waste, pollution andenvironmental degradation[1]

A similar concept isnatural building,which is usually on a smaller scale and tends to focus on the use

ofnatural materialsthat are available locally.[2]Other related topics includesustainable designandgreen
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architecture.Sustainability may be defined as meeting the needs of present generations without compromising

the ability of future generations to meet their needs.[3]Green building does not specifically address the issue of

the retrofitting existing homes.

A 2009 report by the U.S. General Services Administration found 12 sustainably designed buildings cost less to

operate and have excellent energy performance. In addition, occupants were more satisfied with the overall

building than those in typical commercial buildings.[4]

Contents

[hide]

1 Reducing environmental impact

2 Goals of green building

o 2.1 Life cycle assessment (LCA)

o 2.2 Siting and structure design efficiency

o 2.3 Energy efficiency

o 2.4 Water efficiency

o 2.5 Materials efficiency

o 2.6 Indoor environmental quality enhancement

o 2.7 Operations and maintenance optimization

o 2.8 Waste reduction

3 Cost and payoff

4 Regulation and operation

5 International frameworks and assessment tools

6 See also

o 6.1 Green building by country

o 6.2 General

7 References

[edit]Reducing environmental impact

Green building practices aim to reduce theenvironmental impactof buildings, and the very first rule is, do not

build in sprawl (spreading in disordered fashion). No matter how much grass you put on your roof, no matter

how many energy-efficient windows, etc., you use, if you build in sprawl, you've just defeated your purpose.

Buildings account for a large amount of land. According to the National Resources Inventory, approximately

107 million acres (430,000 km2) of land in the United States are developed. The International Energy Agency
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released a publication that estimated that existing buildings are responsible for more than 40% of the worlds

total primary energy consumption and for 24% of global carbon dioxide emissions.[5]

[edit]Goals of green building

the Blu Homes mkSolaire, a green building designed byMichelle Kaufmann.

The concept of sustainable development can be traced to the energy (especially fossil oil) crisis and the

environment pollution concern in the 1970s.[6]The green building movement in the U.S. originated from the

need and desire for more energy efficient andenvironmentally friendlyconstruction practices. There are a

number of motives to building green, including environmental, economic, and social benefits. However, modern

sustainability initiatives call for an integrated and synergistic design to both new construction and in

theretrofittingof an existing structure. Also known assustainable design,this approach integrates the building

life-cycle with each green practice employed with a design-purpose to create a synergy amongst the practices

used.

Green building brings together a vast array of practices and techniques to reduce and ultimately eliminate the

impacts of buildings on the environment and human health. It often emphasizes taking advantage ofrenewable

resources,e.g., using sunlight throughpassive solar,active solar,andphotovoltaictechniques and using plants

and trees throughgreen roofs,rain gardens,and for reduction of rainwater run-off. Many other techniques,

such as using packed gravel or permeable concrete instead of conventional concrete or asphalt to enhance

replenishment of ground water, are used as well.

While the practices, or technologies, employed in green building are constantly evolving and may differ from

region to region, there are fundamental principles that persist from which the method is derived:Siting and

Structure Design Efficiency,Energy Efficiency,Water Efficiency,Materials Efficiency,Indoor Environmental

Quality Enhancement,Operations and Maintenance Optimization,andWaste and Toxics Reduction.[7][8]

The

essence of green building is an optimization of one or more of these principles. Also, with the proper synergistic

design, individual green building technologies may work together to produce a greater cumulative effect.

On the aesthetic side ofgreen architectureorsustainable designis the philosophy of designing a building that

is in harmony with the natural features and resources surrounding the site. There are several key steps in
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designing sustainable buildings: specify 'green' building materials from local sources, reduce loads, optimize

systems, and generate on-site renewable energy.

[edit]Life cycle assessment (LCA)

Alife cycle assessment(LCA) can help avoid a narrow outlook on environmental, social and economicconcerns[9]by assessing a full range of impacts associated with all the stages of a process from cradle-to-grave

(i.e., from extraction of raw materials through materials processing, manufacture, distribution, use, repair and

maintenance, and disposal or recycling). Impacts taken into account include (among others) embodied energy,

global warming potential, resource use, air pollution, water pollution, and waste.

In terms of green building, the last few years have seen a shift away from aprescriptiveapproach, which

assumes that certain prescribed practices are better for the environment, toward the scientific evaluation of

actual performance through LCA.

Although LCA is widely recognized as the best way to evaluate the environmental impacts of buildings (ISO

14040 provides a recognized LCA methodology), it is not yet a consistent requirement of green building rating

systems and codes, despite the fact that embodied energy and other life cycle impacts are critical to the design

of environmentally responsible buildings.

In North America, LCA is rewarded to some extent in the Green Globes rating system, and is part of the new

American National Standard based on Green Globes,ANSI/GBI 01-2010: Green Building Protocol for

Commercial Buildings. LCA is also included as a pilot credit in the LEED system, though a decision has not

been made as to whether it will be incorporated fully into the next major revision. The state of California also

included LCA as a voluntary measure in its 2010 draft Green Building Standards Code.

Although LCA is often perceived as overly complex and time consuming for regular use by design

professionals, research organizations such as BRE in the UK and the Athena Sustainable Materials Institute in

North America are working to make it more accessible.

In the UK, the BRE Green Guide to Specificationsoffers ratings for 1,500 building materials based on LCA.

In North America, the ATHENA EcoCalculator for Assembliesprovides LCA results for several hundred

common building assembles based on data generated by its more complex parent software, the

ATHENA Impact Estimator for Buildings. (The EcoCalculator is available free at www.athenasmi.org.) Athena

software tools are especially useful early in the design process when material choices have far-reaching

implications for overall environmental impact. They allow designers to experiment with different material mixes

to achieve the most effective combination.

A more product-oriented tool is the BEES (Building for Environmental and Economic Sustainability)

software,[10]which combines environmental measures with economic indicators to provide a final rating.
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Particularly useful at the specification and procurement stage of a project, BEES 4.0 includes data on 230

products (including generic and manufacturer brands) such as siding and sheathing.

[edit]Siting and structure design efficiency

See also:Sustainable design

The foundation of any construction project is rooted in the concept and design stages. The concept stage, in

fact, is one of the major steps in a project life cycle, as it has the largest impact on cost and performance.[11]In

designing environmentally optimal buildings, the objective is to minimize the total environmental impact

associated with all life-cycle stages of the building project. However, building as a process is not as streamlined

as an industrial process, and varies from one building to the other, never repeating itself identically. In addition,

buildings are much more complex products, composed of a multitude of materials and components each

constituting various design variables to be decided at the design stage. A variation of every design variable

may affect the environment during all the building's relevant life-cycle stages.[12]

[edit]Energy efficiency

Main articles:Low-energy houseandZero-energy building

An eco-house atFindhorn Ecovillagewith a turf roof andsolar panels

Green buildings often include measures to reduce energy consumptionboth the embodied energy required to

extract, process, transport and install building materials and operating energy to provide services such as

heating and power for equipment.

As high-performance buildings use less operating energy, embodied energy has assumed much greater

importanceand may make up as much as 30% of the overall life cycle energy consumption. Studies such as

the U.S. LCI Database Project[13]show buildings built primarily with wood will have a lower embodied energy

than those built primarily with brick, concrete or steel.[14]

To reduce operating energy use, high-efficiency windows and insulation in walls, ceilings, and floors increase

the efficiency of thebuilding envelope,(the barrier between conditioned and unconditioned space). Another

strategy,passive solar building design,is often implemented in low-energy homes. Designers orient windows
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and walls and place awnings, porches, and trees[15]to shade windows and roofs during the summer while

maximizing solar gain in the winter. In addition, effective window placement (daylighting)can provide more

natural light and lessen the need for electric lighting during the day.Solar water heatingfurther reduces energy

costs.

Onsite generation ofrenewable energythroughsolar power,wind power,hydro power,orbiomasscan

significantly reduce the environmental impact of the building. Power generation is generally the most expensive

feature to add to a building.

[edit]Water efficiency

See also:Water conservation

Reducing water consumption and protecting water quality are key objectives in sustainable building. One

critical issue of water consumption is that in many areas, the demands on the supplying aquifer exceed its

ability to replenish itself. To the maximum extent feasible, facilities should increase their dependence on water

that is collected, used, purified, and reused on-site. The protection and conservation of water throughout the life

of a building may be accomplished by designing for dual plumbing that recycles water in toilet flushing. Waste-

water may be minimized by utilizing water conserving fixtures such as ultra-low flush toilets and low-flow

shower heads. Bidets help eliminate the use of toilet paper, reducing sewer traffic and increasing possibilities of

re-using water on-site.Point of use water treatmentand heating improves both water quality and energy

efficiency while reducing the amount of water in circulation. The use of non-sewage andgreywaterfor on-site

use such as site-irrigation will minimize demands on the local aquifer.[16]

[edit]Materials efficiencySee also:Sustainable architecture

Building materials typically considered to be 'green' include lumber from forests that have been certified to a

third-party forest standard, rapidly renewable plant materials like bamboo and straw,dimension stone,recycled

stone, recycled metal, and other products that are non-toxic, reusable, renewable, and/or recyclable

(e.g.,Trass,Linoleum,sheep wool, panels made from paper flakes,compressed earth block,adobe, baked

earth, rammed earth, clay, vermiculite, flax linen, sisal, seagrass, cork, expanded clay grains, coconut, wood

fibre plates, calcium sand stone,concrete(high and ultra high performance, roman self-healing concrete[17]),

etc.

[18][19]

)The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) also suggests using recycled industrial goods, such ascoal combustion products, foundry sand, and demolition debris in construction projects[20]Building materials

should be extracted and manufactured locally to the building site to minimize the energy embedded in their

transportation. Where possible, building elements should be manufactured off-site and delivered to site, to

maximise benefits of off-site manufacture including minimising waste, maximising recycling (because

manufacture is in one location), high quality elements, better OHS management, less noise and dust.
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[edit]Indoor environmental quality enhancement

See also:Indoor Air Quality

The Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) category in LEED standards, one of the five environmental categories,

was created to provide comfort, well-being, and productivity of occupants. The LEED IEQ category addressesdesign and construction guidelines especially: indoor air quality (IAQ), thermal quality, and lighting quality.[21]

Indoor Air Qualityseeks to reducevolatile organic compounds,or VOCs, and other air impurities such as

microbial contaminants. Buildings rely on a properly designed ventilation system (passively/naturally- or

mechanically-powered) to provide adequate ventilation of cleaner air from outdoors or recirculated, filtered air

as well as isolated operations (kitchens, dry cleaners, etc.) from other occupancies. During the design and

construction process choosing construction materials and interior finish products with zero or low VOC

emissions will improve IAQ. Most building materials and cleaning/maintenance products emit gases, some of

them toxic, such as many VOCs including formaldehyde. These gases can have a detrimental impact on

occupants' health, comfort, and productivity. Avoiding these products will increase a building's IEQ. LEED[22],

HQE[23]and Green Star contain specifications on use of low-emitting interior. Draft LEED 2012[24]is about to

expand the scope of the involved products. BREEAM[25]limits formaldehyde emissions, no other VOCs.

Also important to indoor air quality is the control of moisture accumulation (dampness) leading to mold growth

and the presence of bacteria and viruses as well as dust mites and other organisms and microbiological

concerns. Water intrusion through a building's envelope or water condensing on cold surfaces on the building's

interior can enhance and sustain microbial growth. A well-insulated and tightly-sealed envelope will reduce

moisture problems but adequate ventilation is also necessary to eliminate moisture from sources indoors

including human metabolic processes, cooking, bathing, cleaning, and other activities.

Personal temperature and airflow control over the HVAC system coupled with a properly designedbuilding

envelopewill also aid in increasing a building's thermal quality. Creating a high performance luminous

environment through the careful integration of daylight and electrical light sources will improve on the lighting

quality and energy performance of a structure.[16][26]

Solid wood products, particularly flooring, are often specified in environments where occupants are known to

have allergies to dust or other particulates. Wood itself is considered to be hypo-allergenic and its smooth

surfaces prevent the buildup of particles common in soft finishes like carpet. The Asthma and Allergy

Foundation of American recommends hardwood, vinyl, linoleum tile or slate flooring instead of carpet.[27]The

use of wood products can also improve air quality by absorbing or releasing moisture in the air to moderate

humidity.[28]

Interactions among all the indoor components and the occupants together form the processes that determine

the indoor air quality. Extensive investigation of such processes is the subject of indoor air scientific research
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and is well documented in the journal Indoor Air, available

athttp://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=0905-6947.An extensive set of resources on indoor air

quality is available athttp://www.buildingecology.com/iaq.[29]

[edit]Operations and maintenance optimization

No matter how sustainable a building may have been in its design and construction, it can only remain so if it is

operated responsibly and maintained properly. Ensuring operations and maintenance(O&M) personnel are part

of the project's planning and development process will help retain the green criteria designed at the onset of

the project.[30]Every aspect of green building is integrated into the O&M phase of a building's life. The addition

of new green technologies also falls on the O&M staff. Although the goal of waste reduction may be applied

during the design, construction and demolition phases of a building's life-cycle, it is in the O&M phase that

green practices such as recycling and air quality enhancement take place.

[edit]Waste reduction

Green architecture also seeks to reduce waste of energy, water and materials used during construction. For

example, in California nearly 60% of the state's waste comes from commercial buildings[31]During the

construction phase, one goal should be to reduce the amount of material going tolandfills.Well-designed

buildings also help reduce the amount of waste generated by the occupants as well, by providing on-site

solutions such ascompost binsto reduce matter going to landfills.

To reduce the amount of wood that goes to landfill, the CO2Neutral Alliance (a coalition of government, NGOs

and the forest industry) created the website dontwastewood.com. The site includes a variety of resources for

regulators, municipalities, developers, contractors, owner/operators and individuals/homeowners looking forinformation on wood recycling.

When buildings reach the end of their useful life, they are typically demolished and hauled to landfills.

Deconstruction is a method of harvesting what is commonly considered waste and reclaiming it into useful

building material.[32]Extending the useful life of a structure also reduces wastebuilding materials such as

wood that are light and easy to work with make renovations easier.[33]

To reduce the impact onwellsorwater treatment plants,several options exist. "Greywater", wastewater from

sources such as dishwashing or washing machines, can be used for subsurface irrigation, or if treated, for non-

potable purposes, e.g., to flush toilets and wash cars. Rainwater collectors are used for similar purposes.

Centralized wastewater treatment systems can be costly and use a lot of energy. An alternative to this process

is converting waste and wastewater into fertilizer, which avoids these costs and shows other benefits. By

collecting human waste at the source and running it to a semi-centralizedbiogasplant with other biological

waste, liquid fertilizer can be produced. This concept was demonstrated by a settlement in Lubeck Germany in

the late 1990s. Practices like these provide soil with organic nutrients and createcarbon sinksthat remove
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carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, offsettinggreenhouse gasemission. Producing artificialfertilizeris also

more costly in energy than this process.[34]

[edit]Cost and payoff

The most criticized issue about constructing environmentally friendly buildings is the price. Photo-voltaics, new

appliances, and modern technologies tend to cost more money. Most green buildings cost a premium of


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China:GBAS

Finland:PromisE

France:HQE

Germany:DGNB/CEPHEUS

Hong Kong:HKBEAM

India:Indian Green Building Council (IGBC)

Indonesia:Green Building Council Indonesia (GBCI)/Greenship

Italy:Protocollo Itaca/Green Building Council Italia

Japan:CASBEE

Korea:KGBC

Malaysia:GBI Malaysia

Mexico:LEED Mexico

Netherlands:BREEAM Netherlands

New Zealand:Green Star NZ

Philippines:BERDE/Philippine Green Building Council

Portugal:Lider A

Qatar:[7]

Republic of China (Taiwan):Green Building Label

Singapore:Green Mark

South Africa:Green Star SA

Spain: VERDE

Switzerland:Minergie

United States:LEED/Living Building Challenge/Green Globes/Build it Green/NAHB

NGBS/International Green Construction Code (IGCC)/ENERGY STAR

United Kingdom:BREEAM

United Arab Emirates:Estidama

IAPGSA Pakistan Institute of Architecture Pakistan Green Sustainable Architecture

Jordan:EDAMA

Czech Republic:SBToolCZ

[edit]International frameworks and assessment tools

IPCC Fourth Assessment Report

Climate Change 2007, the Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on

Climate Change (IPCC), is the fourth in a series of such reports. The IPCC was established by the World
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Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to assess

scientific, technical and socio-economic information concerning climate change, its potential effects and options

for adaptation and mitigation.[44]

UNEP and Climate change[8]

United Nations Environment ProgramUNEPworks to facilitate the transition to low-carbon societies, support

climate proofing efforts, improve understanding of climate change science, and raise public awareness about

this global challenge.

GHG Indicator[9]

The Greenhouse Gas Indicator: UNEP Guidelines for Calculating Greenhouse Gas Emissions for Businesses

and Non-Commercial Organizations

Agenda 21[10]

Agenda 21is a programme run by the United Nations (UN) related to sustainable development. It is a

comprehensive blueprint of action to be taken globally, nationally and locally by organizations of the UN,

governments, and major groups in every area in which humans impact on the environment. The number 21

refers to the 21st century.

FIDIC's PSM[11]

The International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) Project Sustainability Management Guidelines

were created in order to assist project engineers and other stakeholders in setting sustainable development

goals for their projects that are recognized and accepted by as being in the interests of society as a whole. The

process is also intended to allow the alignment of project goals with local conditions and priorities and to assist

those involved in managing projects to measure and verify their progress.

The Project Sustainability Management Guidelines are structured with Themes and Sub-Themes under the

three main sustainability headings of Social, Environmental and Economic. For each individual Sub-Theme a

core project indicator is defined along with guidance as to the relevance of that issue in the context of an

individual project.

The Sustainability Reporting Framework provides guidance for organizations to use as the basis for disclosure

about their sustainability performance, and also provides stakeholders a universally applicable, comparable

framework in which to understand disclosed information.

The Reporting Framework contains the core product of the Sustainability Reporting Guidelines, as well as

Protocols and Sector Supplements. The Guidelines are used as the basis for all reporting. They are the

foundation upon which all other reporting guidance is based, and outline core content for reporting that is

broadly relevant to all organizations regardless of size, sector, or location. The Guidelines contain principles
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and guidance as well as standard disclosuresincluding indicatorsto outline a disclosure framework that

organizations can voluntarily, flexibly, and incrementally, adopt.

Protocols underpin each indicator in the Guidelines and include definitions for key terms in the indicator,

compilation methodologies, intended scope of the indicator, and other technical references.

Sector Supplements respond to the limits of a one-size-fits-all approach. Sector Supplements complement the

use of the core Guidelines by capturing the unique set of sustainability issues faced by different sectors such

as mining, automotive, banking, public agencies and others.

IPD Environment Code

The IPD Environment Code[45]was launched in February 2008. The Code is intended as a good practice global

standard for measuring the environmental performance of corporate buildings. Its aim is to accurately measure

and manage the environmental impacts of corporate buildings and enable property executives to generate high

quality, comparable performance information about their buildings anywhere in the world. The Code covers a

wide range of building types (from offices to airports) and aims to inform and support the following;

Creating an environmental strategy

Inputting to real estate strategy

Communicating a commitment to environmental improvement

Creating performance targets

Environmental improvement plans

Performance assessment and measurement

Life cycle assessments

Acquisition and disposal of buildings

Supplier management

Information systems and data population

Compliance with regulations

Team and personal objectives

IPD estimate that it will take approximately three years to gather significant data to develop a robust set of

baseline data that could be used across a typical corporate estate.

ISO 21931

ISO/TS 21931:2006, Sustainability in building constructionFramework for methods of assessment for

environmental performance of construction worksPart 1: Buildings, is intended to provide a general

framework for improving the quality and comparability of methods for assessing the environmental performance

of buildings. It identifies and describes issues to be taken into account when using methods for the assessment
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of environmental performance for new or existing building properties in the design, construction, operation,

refurbishment and deconstruction stages. It is not an assessment system in itself but is intended be used in

conjunction with, and following the principles set out in, the ISO 14000 series of standards

1green building

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