Green buildings prioritize sustainability by taking into account energy, water and material efficiency while taking occupant health, comfort and productivity into consideration.
Green buildings address these concerns through various strategies. They produce significant greenhouse gases while using limited resources [1, 2].
Green builders favor materials made with renewable and natural raw materials that are locally produced; this helps support local economies while cutting transportation costs.
1. Energy Efficiency
Green buildings reduce their carbon footprint through energy-efficient materials, solar power integration and sustainable heating and cooling systems, as well as by prioritizing water usage and waste reduction to conserve natural resources.
Considerations of thermal comfort are another effective strategy for minimizing building energy use, and can be achieved by positioning windows to optimize daylight penetration to reduce artificial lighting and heat needs.
Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) of green buildings often use LCA to understand the environmental impact of various building products from raw material extraction through to disposal, providing architects, engineers and manufacturers with information they can use during the building process to make more eco-friendly choices – which helps ensure these green structures stand the test of time.
2. Water Efficiency
Green buildings use alternate sources of water conservation and reuse in order to lessen their dependence on potable sources, while helping preserve these vital sources for future generations.
Sustainable development goals such as reducing energy and water consumption, encouraging responsible production and consumption, creating healthy communities that are livable, and spurring economic growth contribute to realizing these objectives. In turn they also play a vital role in job creation.
Low-flow toilets, rainwater harvesting systems, smart meters and zero waste designs are common features found in green buildings to reduce water usage. Unfortunately, assessment studies assessing potential improvements during design rather than simply monitoring recorded performance are rare – therefore this case study action research seeks to fill that critical void.
3. Long-Lasting Materials
Green buildings are constructed using materials that do not harm the environment in their creation, use, upkeep or destruction. This practice of construction goes beyond classical concerns to address all stages of lifecycle management of structures from siting through planning to design to upkeep to recycling and ultimately deconstruction.
Green buildings often incorporate recycled materials such as wood, straw and cork into their construction materials to reduce waste of these natural resources as well as any unnecessary materials discarded.
Green builders typically utilize AshCrete, an eco-friendly concrete alternative made up of fly ash from coal-burning power plants and bottom ash from industrial processes, for making cement. AshCrete is highly energy efficient due to being much lighter than traditional concrete and needing significantly less energy for transporting.
4. Site Planning
Green buildings take an holistic approach to design and construction, taking into account their environmental impact at every stage. They utilize sustainable technologies and practices that reduce resource consumption while mitigating any negative environmental effects.
Green building projects rely heavily on site selection. Selecting locations easily accessible via public transit, bike lanes and walking trails helps residents and visitors reduce their carbon footprint by opting for alternative modes of transport such as transit.
Orienting buildings so as to optimize sun exposure and take advantage of prevailing winds maximizes natural ventilation and daylighting while simultaneously reducing energy consumption. Furthermore, increasing green space with water-efficient irrigation systems and saving precious resources.
5. Indoor Air Quality
Green buildings prioritize indoor environmental quality by using less harmful chemicals in construction and products for building occupants, thus helping to lower airborne toxins linked to health conditions such as asthma and silicosis.
Ventilation systems are designed to bring in fresh outdoor air while filtering out pollutants that threaten health, such as those released by furniture, paints and cleaners that emit VOCs. They may also help mitigate VOC-emitting furniture such as sofas.
Studies have demonstrated that people living and working in green buildings tend to be more productive, healthy and content. Due to improved indoor air quality (IAQ), green buildings offer many advantages for employees with allergies or sensitivities to certain odors or scents.