As our world moves to a deeper shade of green, environment-focused opportunities continue to unfold. In the United States, a huge shift is being made in the design world, where many new buildings are taking the green approach. Examples of platinum-rated buildings granted by the U.S. Green Building Councils’ LEED rating system can be found from coast to coast and from individual residences to large corporate office buildings. The growing trend in green building is not confined to the United States, however. In over 15 countries across the world, rating systems similar to the U.S. LEED rating system exist, with energy efficiency and the environmental conservation as their top priorities. The general goals of global green building, aside from their respective rating systems, are increasing the efficiency of resource use — energy, water, and materials — while reducing building impacts on human health and the environment during the building’s lifecycle, through better siting, design, construction, operation, maintenance, and removal.1 Some notable examples of the green design projects across the world include:2
• India Tower, Mumbai. To be completed in 2010, the design incorporates the use of solar shading, natural ventilation, day lighting, rainwater harvesting, and green interior finishes and materials to make this one of the greenest buildings in India.
• Burj al-Taqa, UAE. The Burj al-Taqa is a totally self-sufficient office tower to be constructed in Dubai, Bahrain and Riyadh that will use wind, solar and water to produce all necessary energy with zero emissions.
• Masdar, Abu Dhabi. A 64,583,462 square foot project is a mixed use, high density new walled city which promises zero emissions and no waste. Wind turbines, solar arrays, and plantations will make it completely self sustaining.
• CH2, Melbourne. Located in the center of Melbourne, the 10 story Council House 2, aka “CH2,” is a United Nations award-winning building with sustainable design and energy efficiency clearly displayed. You can find thermal mass cooling, photovoltaic cells, wind turbines, sewage recycling, chilled ceilings and an amazing tapestry of photovoltaic-powered recycled wooden louvers that track the sun and promote a healthier internal environment.
• 30 the Bond, Sydney. Achieving one of Australia’s highest green ratings, the building is using chilled beans for cooling, individually operated external shades to manage heat and solar gain, winter garden rooms and rooftop gardens with drought resistant plants that increase biodiversity.
• BMW Welt, Munich. On the roof of the building there is a large photovoltaic array, made in Germany by Solarwatt, to produce a minimum of 824kWp. The designers also installed a network of steel panels on the roof that helps to heat the building via solar gain.
• DuBiotech, Dubai. Set to be one of the largest green buildings in the world, DuBiotech will be oriented to maximize daylight, minimize solar gain and regulate the internal temperature in what is one of the hottest climates on earth. There will also be a 500,000 square foot nature reserve for the conservation of indigenous species.
• Center for Interactive Research on Sustainability, Vancouver. It is anticipated that the Centre for Interactive Research on Sustainability (CIRS) will be the most “innovative and high performance” green building in North America. Taking the successes of recent architectural designs, CIRS will be capable of 100 percent rain capture and the ability to harvest daylight through exterior transformation. Because our world operates on different systems of measurement and many new green design projects are taking place within multinational firms, a cohesive system was necessary to compare the performance of new green building. Just recently, the world’s three largest green building rating systems signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to unify their measurements of buildings’ environmental impact.3 The ratings systems aligned in this MOU include the U.S. Green Building Council LEED rating system, the United Kingdom’s BRE Trust BREEAM rating system, and the Green Building Council Australia Green Star rating system. According to BREEAM, “Rating tools are a key component in the market for green building around the world, but there has been a growing demand for consistency and comparability between the tools, particularly with regards to the way they account for carbon emissions.”4 The key objective of the MOU, as stated in the document, is to map and develop common metrics to measure emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalents from new homes and buildings. It is also hoped that this cohesive agreement should add a new and seamless momentum for more green building.
For more information about the U.S. Green Building Council LEED rating system and examples of platinum-rated buildings in the United States, check out Greeniacs article
