Charting a green future

Green buildings, environment-friendly buildings and sustainable buildings are the most talked about building practices in the construction industry. Energy conservation and energy efficiency are vital when it comes to making the transition to a clean energy future and building green, environment friendly and sustainable buildings.

Energy efficiency in the building sector assumes tremendous importance because the construction industry in the country is growing at 10 per cent as compared to the world average of 5.2 per cent. In countries like India the population is expected to grow at 1.3 per cent while the energy consumption rate is expected to grow at 4.3 per cent.

The major consumers of energy are industry, agriculture and commercial buildings. If energy efficiency measures are incorporated at the design stage, about 40-50 per cent of energy can be saved in buildings where as in existing buildings about 20-25 per cent can be achieved by implementing proper measures.

It is reported that in buildings, air conditioning is the highest consumer of energy with 60 per cent, lighting 20 per cent, miscellaneous equipment 15 per cent and ventilation fans about five per cent.

Building components

Every building type viz, homes, commercial, public and institutional buildings, retail facilities, schools, laboratories, healthcare facilities has different design and efficiency needs depending on its function. For a green building, the following major components should be addressed during the design stage: energy efficiency and renewable energy; water efficiency; environmentally preferable building materials and specifications; waste reduction; toxin reduction and indoor air quality.

Energy audit

An energy audit is an inspection, survey and analysis of energy flows in a building, process or system with the objective of understanding the energy dynamics of the system under study. Typically an energy audit is conducted to seek opportunities to reduce the amount of energy input into the system without negatively affecting the output.

When the object of study is an occupied building then reducing energy consumption while maintaining or improving human comfort, health and safety are of primary concern. Beyond simply identifying the sources of energy use, an energy audit seeks to prioritise the energy uses according to the greatest to least cost effective opportunities for energy savings.

An energy audit is a preliminary activity towards instituting energy efficiency programmes in an establishment. It consists of activities that seek to identify conservation opportunities preliminary to the development of an energy savings programme.

The energy audit action plan lists the steps and sets the preliminary budget for the energy management programme. The audit includes analysis of energy use; identification of energy projects; cost benefit analysis and action plan to set implementation priority

Certifying buildings

The only way to ensure that a building is green is to get it independently verified. The following programmes certify buildings as being green, or energy-efficient. Many of the programmes are offered through utility companies that provide rebates and incentives.

Some of the certification programmes are: Energy star; Environments For Living;  National Home Energy Rating Scheme (NHER); House Energy Rating-Australia; LEED (LEED India) and Indian Green Building Council.

LEED

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is basically a third-party certification programme. It is a nationally accepted organisation for design, operation and construction of high performance green buildings. This ensures the buildings are environmentally compatible, provide a healthy work environment and are profitable.

LEED India

The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED-India) Green Building Rating System is a nationally and internationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings. The rating provides building owners, architects, consultants, developers, facility managers and project managers the tools they need to design, construct and operate green buildings.

It promotes a whole-building approach to sustainability by recognising performance in the following five key areas: sustainable site development; water savings; energy efficiency; materials selection and indoor environmental quality.

LEED-India

LEED-INDIA rating system provides a roadmap for measuring and documenting success for every building type and phase of a building lifecycle. Specific LEED-India programmes include:  LEED India for New Construction (LEED India NC); LEED India for Core and Shell (LEED India CS) and LEED India Certification.

LEED-India-certified buildings are leading the transformation of the built environment;  are built as designed and perform as expected; have lower operating costs and increased asset value; are healthy and comfortable for their occupants; reduce waste sent to landfills; conserve energy and water; reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions; demonstrate an owner`s commitment to environmental stewardship and social responsibility

IGBC

The Council, which is a part of CII - Godrej GBC (Godrej Green Business), is actively involved in promoting the green building concept in India. The council is represented by all stakeholders of the construction industry comprising corporate, government and nodal agencies, architects, product manufacturers, institutions, etc.

The Council is headed by Prem C Jain. The council operates on a consensus based approach and is member-driven. The vision of the council is to usher in a green building revolution and facilitate in India’s emergence as one of the world leaders in green buildings by 2010

IGBC rating system

Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) Green Homes is the first rating programme developed in India, exclusively for the residential sector. It is based on accepted energy and environmental principles and strikes a balance between known established practices and emerging concepts. The system is designed to be comprehensive in scope, yet simple in operation

Benefits of green homes

A green home can have tremendous benefits, both tangible and intangible. The immediate and most tangible benefit is in the reduction in water and operating energy costs right from day one, during the entire life cycle of the building.

Benefits

Energy savings: 20 - 30 %
Water savings: 30 - 50%
Intangible benefits include
Enhanced air quality,
Excellent day lighting,
Health & wellbeing of the occupants,  Conservation of scarce national resources
Enhancing marketability of the the project.