What is green building?
The building and construction industry has the potential to become a leader in the sustainability space. Currently, this sector is one of the most prolific consumers of natural resources and biggest contributors to global warming.
What is green building?
Green building, also known as green construction, is a process that strives to be more environmentally responsible and resource-efficient than traditional construction.
When creating a green building, developers strive to build a structure that reduces or eliminates negative impacts, and endeavors to create positive impacts, on its natural environment and the global climate. The main objective is to preserve natural resources, minimize environmental impact, and improve quality of life for its occupants throughout the structure’s entire lifecycle, from design and construction to operation and eventual demolition.
A sustainable or green building is one that can:
- Maintain or improve its surrounding natural environment.
- Conserve energy and resources.
- Reduce exposure to hazardous substances for humans and wildlife.
- Contribute to quality of life for its occupants and the community.
It’s important to remember that every building location is unique and will have its own definition of sustainability. What makes a building green in one place may not work in another.
Important considerations when building green
From the beginning, engineers, architects, and designers of green buildings strive to create smart places with the environment in mind. Questions they often ask themselves include:
How can we power the space sustainably?
- Install energy-efficient fixtures, including:
- Energy-efficient lightbulbs and motion sensors for lights.
- Upgraded insulation, doors, and windows.
- High-quality HVAC or ductless heating systems.
- Rely on renewable energy sources such as solar power.
- Bring in more natural light to reduce the amount of electric lighting needed.
How can we use and manage water more efficiently?
- Install water-saving fixtures, including:
- Low-flow toilets, or those with variable flush strengths.
- Motion-controlled sink fixtures that automatically turn off when not in use.
- Harvest water on-site for indoor use.
- Ensure surrounding stormwater and drainage infrastructure is not put under stress.
How can this building generate less waste?
- Use more durable materials.
- Reuse and recycle.
- Plan for the recovery and reuse of waste generated by the building’s end-of-life demolition.
How can this building contribute to its occupants’ quality of life?
- Improve the air quality through ventilation and purification.
- Create easier access to the outdoors.
- Incorporate natural light and views of natural surroundings.
- Design for ears as well as the eyes by paying attention to acoustics and installing proper sound insulation.
How can we mitigate the impact of this building on the surrounding landscape?
- Build on land that’s already polluted.
- Create new green spaces.
- Encourage and protect wildlife.
How can we ensure this structure stands the test of time?
- Use durable, high-quality materials.
- Choose a site and materials that can withstand extreme weather and man-made disasters.
- Prevent obsolescence by designing flexible spaces that can adapt to future needs.
Embodied energy
Why is it so important that green buildings stand the test of time?
The term “embodied energy” refers to the cost of the resources (both human labor and materials) consumed during a building’s construction and use. This energy is squandered when the building is allowed to decay or be demolished. That’s why it’s critical that builders plan for the entire lifecycle of a structure before it’s even built. For green buildings, resiliency and flexibility are essential.
Resiliency
A resilient building is one that can still function under extreme conditions. Think extreme temperatures, sea levels rising, natural disasters, or man-made disasters such as terrorism or war.
Flexibility
A green building is one that can be used multiple ways over its lifetime. It may start out as an office building but turn into apartments or a shopping center in the future. This level of adaptability means taking a more modular or non-permanent approach to furniture, partitions, walls, and even heating and cooling systems.
Sustainable construction for green buildings
A building is only as green as its construction process. If builders use the same old construction practices, they’ll still generate tons of waste and disrupt the surrounding ecosystem.
Retrofitting: A green construction alternative
We’ve said before that the construction industry generates a huge amount of waste, and demolition is one of the biggest reasons why. Some cities are quick to tear down an existing structure and build something entirely new in its place. But just because a building wasn’t originally designed with future flexibility in mind, that doesn’t mean it’s unusable.
Rather than starting from scratch, green builders look at existing structures and how they can retrofit them to satisfy current needs. Not only can retrofitting be more cost-effective, but it also keeps projects from contributing to the millions of tons of waste generated by traditional construction.
Sustainable building materials
Using wood, steel, concrete, and other building materials can cause deforestation, contribute to pollution, disrupt natural ecosystems, and produce immense carbon emissions.
Green construction means taking a close look at how the materials being used are sourced, processed, and disposed of to make sure it’s as environmentally friendly as possible. There are several ways to achieve this, including building with:
- More natural materials that don’t need a lot of processing.
- Materials that are processed in a less toxic way.
- Higher-quality materials will last longer and reduce the need for frequent repairs or replacement.
- Recycled material, either from demolished projects or unused components that were scraped by other projects.
The future of green building
Smart cities and sustainable building
A smart city is one that uses digital technology such as cloud computing, the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), augmented reality (AR), and blockchain to create an urban space that’s more efficient, sustainable, accessible, and enriching.
Often, environmental sustainability is a top priority for governments focused on creating smart cities. They look for ways to lower their city’s carbon footprint and bring natural spaces back into an urban environment. Green buildings are the perfect way to satisfy both needs.
Green Building and Construction
The future of green construction is bright. According to the International Finance Corporation (IFC), green buildings are one of the biggest global investment opportunities of the next decade.
With any luck, green buildings will continue to grow in popularity and provide more sustainable places for people to work and live.
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