Green is the New Gold: Why Real Estate Embraces Green Buildings
In line with the rapid depletion of valuable resources
vis-à-vis the emerging trends in building construction, many corporations
worldwide are now becoming more environmentally aware and responsible – putting
in vital consideration the overall impact of their building to people and to the
environment. Thus, the rise of green building is proliferating.Green buildings are smartly-designed, cost-effective structures that maximize natural sources to reduce wasteful consumption. It is characterized mainly by efficient use of energy, water, and other resources; indoor quality condition; reinforcement of natural systems; use of eco-friendly materials and construction methods; and reduction of degradation to nature.
This innovative green design is more evident in the architecture of the latest skyscrapers and buildings. Meanwhile, existing buildings keep up by retrofitting and upgrading theirs.
History of Green Buildings
The concept of green building began as early as the late nineteenth century. With the higher fuel consumption and cost due to the creation of glass-enclosed buildings and invention of modern conveniences such as air conditioning, a group of concerned individuals were encouraged by the growing environmental movement. However, it was the oil embargo in 1973 that provided a catalyst for paradigm shift. People began questioning their heavy reliance on cheap and readily available fossil fuels for construction. The potential of green building was further explored and later on became globally recognized as a sustainable way of addressing the dilemma of climate change.
Different sectors banded together to form a group that will provide the much-needed groundwork for the green movement. The United States Green Building Council was created to promote buildings that offer more ecological incentives. Likewise, they are focused on developing ideas for greener construction and sharing best practices. They developed a methodical and standard way of identifying factors for a green building on a point-based system. The metrics help classify how sustainable a particular building is. This is where the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification comes in.
The LEED Certification
LEED is internationally recognized as a third party certification program that validates whether a particular structure meet the qualifications for green building design, construction, and operation. Benchmarks are set to measure different ecological qualities of buildings according to its purposes.
In order to earn a LEED certification, a project must satisfy all LEED prerequisites and earn certain points. Commercial buildings and neighborhoods should get a minimum of 40 points on a 110-point LEED rating system scale, while homes must earn a minimum of 45 points on a 136-point scale.
The process includes determining the rating system the company want to get and preparing the certification application, registering the project, submitting the certification application, and waiting for the application review and then receiving the certification decision.
Why Build Green?
Buildings have a huge and crucial impact on humans, the environment, and the economy. The raw materials and natural resources it uses as well as the greenhouse gas emissions during the construction and operation stage highly affects people and nature. Designing and making a sustainable building will help alleviate the negative repercussions that come with using the limited resources available. Indeed, the economic and environmental performance of buildings can be maximized well through the successful adoption of green building strategies.
Initially, the price of creating a green building is more expensive than other regular buildings. Nonetheless, the risk and cost of not going green is even higher in the long run. The first risk is that of becoming obsolete. As more and buildings become LEED-certified, how can a traditional, non-environment friendly one compete? Expect a decrease in occupancy rents and rates because companies will prefer to move in a place where they will be able to save more and to have employees that will perform better. Another risk is violation of regulations. Once this movement becomes the “new norm”, there will be mandates that will adhere to green construction. Pollution is also a risk that will be the downfall of any previously established buildings. Failure to upgrade into a greener structure makes these buildings continue to become one of the biggest contributors to environmental pollution.
There are many long-term benefits that come with green buildings. These can be classified in three categories: environmental, economical, and social advantages. For the environment, it is about enhancing the protection of the ecosystems, reducing toxic wastes, and conserving and restoring natural resources. Meanwhile, the economic benefits are extremely favorable especially to building owners. These include lower operating costs, increase in return of investment through higher occupancy by attracting and retaining quality tenants, increased employee productivity, and further sales improvement. Lastly, social benefits include heightened aesthetic appeal and market value as well as improved overall quality of life.
Green Building in the Philippines
Although the concept of building sustainable structures in the Philippines is still in the early stages of establishing its grounds, it is now gaining momentum where the demand for green architecture is growing very fast. Many multinational companies require that their offices be resource-efficient and offer a productive environment. As such, more local business owners are investing to build high performance structures or to enhance the efficiency of their existing buildings.
An initiative has also been made to specifically address the fundamental ecological needs of the Philippine environment. The Philippine Green Building Council, a non-profit organization which promotes and shares knowledge on green practices, developed the BERDE (Building for Ecologically Responsive Design Excellence) program. It is the local counterpart of the LEED green rating system.
Presently, there are nearly 20 LEED-certified buildings in the country under different categories. The list includes:
Commercial Interiors: DTSI Office and Shell Shared Services Office
Core and Shell: World Plaza, Megaworld Uptown Place Tower 2 and 3, Megaworld Design Alliance Building, Lopez Tower and Museum, Sun Life Financial Headquarters, Nuvali One Evotech
Nuvali One Evotech: Awarded the LEED Silver
Certification for promoting sustainable architecture. Image courtesy of ayalaland.com.ph.Existing Buildings: SunPower MODCO EB and Asian Development Bank Headquarters
Asian Development Bank Headquarters: The building’s
rooftop solar power project is proof of their commitment to support green growth
in the country. Image courtesy of business.inquirer.net.New Construction: Pilipinas Shell Admin Building, MWC Rodriguez WTPP, Aegis People Support Center in Cebu, The Mind Museum, and Texas Instruments Philippines (Baguio and Clark, Pampanga)
The Mind Museum: Showcasing a world-class Science
museum with an innovative and sustainable design. Image Courtesy of en.wikipedia.org.
Texas Instruments Philippines – Clark: The first
ever LEED Gold-certified building in the Philippines. Image courtesy of alltravels.com.Likewise, more than 40 other LEED registered projects are waiting to be awarded this prestigious recognition. Some of those vying for the certification includes Alphaland Makati Place, 6780 Ayala Ave JAKA, KMC MAG Group HQ, Wells Fargo 8 Campus Bldg A, Arya Residences, SM City Baguio Expansion and Renovation, Zuellig Building, and United Doctors of St. Camillus Hospital.
Zuellig Building: The first Gold pre-certified
edifice aims for the Platinum certification by 2013. Image courtest of zuelligbuilding.com.Taguig City leads in Green Building
Taguig City may be home to the fastest growing development in the country – Bonifacio Global City, but it remains faithful to its advocacy to create a modern and innovative community that does sacrifice clean and healthy environment. The Mind Museum and Sun Life Financial Headquarters are two buildings in the city which recently received a Gold LEED-certification. Meanwhile, four other buildings received a Silver rating. These include the World Plaza, Megaworld Uptown Place Tower 2 and 3, and Megaworld Design Alliance Building. Furthermore, 14 out of the 40 LEED registered projects are located here. This is indeed a true testament to their pledge to help build a greener society.
Following closely is Makati City. With two LEED-certified buildings and 11 LEED registered projects.
Other places taking a green building initiative include Quezon City, Pasay City, and Mandaluyong as well as the provinces of Cebu, Baguio City, Pampanga, Laguna, Cavite, Batangas, , Iloilo, and Nueva Ecija.
Go Green
The building sector definitely plays a key role in the mitigation of climate change. As major contributors to carbon emissions and other pollutants, they are also the ones who will provide major solutions. Business and homeowners, designers, architects, and other stakeholders are becoming more passionate in discovering better, sustainable materials and techniques on how to build a sustainable community that nurtures clean and healthy living for the current and future generations.
By going “green”, they hold true to their commitment to provide the best home and work environment for everyone. Indeed, green building is not just a passing trend. It is now the future of building construction.
Sources:
http://www.usgbc.org/Docs/Resources/BDCWhitePaperR2.pdf
http://www.philstar.com/good-news/2012/12/24/889678/us-embassy-annex-cited-green-building
http://www.philstar.com/modern-living/2012/12/15/886021/first-green-building-greenhills-reflects-optimism-green-property
http://business.inquirer.net/21061/raising-the-bar-for-%E2%80%98green%E2%80%99-buildings-in-the-philippines
http://business.inquirer.net/108973/30-of-mncs-prefer-green-buildings
http://business.inquirer.net/108957/bgc-remains-a-green-haven-with-new-projects
http://business.inquirer.net/108947/indoor-environmental-quality
http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/382191/building-sector-seeks-green-standards#.US2TrqJvDrA
http://new.usgbc.org/leed
http://www.epa.gov/greenbuilding/pubs/about.htm#4
http://www.gosolidus.com/pdf/Building_Impacts_Why_Build_Green.pdf
http://www.conservationcenter.org/assets/GreenBuildingresourcesfinal_000.pdf
Author Bio:
Zipporah Antonio currently works as a Content Writer for HousingInteractive Inc. You can reach her at zipporah@housinginteractive.com. You can also add her in Google+: +Zipporah Antonio.
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