Green buildings incorporate sustainability principles into their design, construction and operation – including conserving natural resources, using recycled or nontoxic materials and raising awareness about environmental awareness and occupant health issues.
Green building practices promote local sourcing, which not only stimulates the economy but also minimizes energy usage related to transport. They prioritize low-VOC products which enhance indoor air quality.
Energy Efficiency
Green buildings aim to minimize their environmental footprint through sustainable design, construction and operation, which includes features like energy saving techniques. Green buildings typically include features like:
Energy efficiency is an integral element of green buildings. From extracting and manufacturing building materials, to operating energy used for heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC). Installing energy-saving appliances and lighting as well as HVAC measures that minimize duct leaks are just some ways to achieve this goal.
Use of local and recycled products is also encouraged in order to stimulate the economy and reduce transportation costs, including products like engineered wood products that produce less VOCs, which can be harmful to human health, as well as low-VOC paint and flooring that minimize toxic offgassing. Furthermore, buildings which capture and reuse rainwater are preferred so as to offset drinking water requirements.
Water Conservation
Green buildings help conserve freshwater resources by using water efficiency measures like low-flow fixtures to save water, as well as redirecting rainwater towards landscape areas to reduce runoff and contamination.
Green buildings go beyond energy-efficient practices when it comes to design. Green buildings also frequently incorporate plants and trees into their plans to help lower carbon emissions, cool air temperatures inside, add beauty, and provide aesthetic value to the structure.
Green builders use premium, long-lasting materials and construction techniques that surpass current building codes to reduce maintenance and replacement costs while increasing property values. Green builders promote products made with recycled content or engineered wood that reduce waste and environmental impacts; some even feature formaldehyde-free adhesives that may be healthier alternatives to traditional wood products.
Materials
Building with eco-friendly construction materials helps reduce waste and increase environmental sustainability in any structure. Furthermore, green buildings typically employ premium materials that outshone minimum construction standards, thus decreasing maintenance costs over time.
Green construction materials include lumber sourced from sustainable forests, rapidly renewable plants such as bamboo or straw and recycled metals. Furthermore, some “living” concrete forms feature bacteria-infused pores to repair cracks over time and increase strength over time.
Green construction companies seek materials that will biodegrade when torn apart and don’t release harmful chemicals into the surrounding soil, such as carpet made with natural fibers that reduce pollutants and toxins, sealants with few volatile organic compounds (VOC), adhesives or paints with few VOC emissions and flooring options like tile, wood or true linoleum for long-term sustainability.
Indoor Air Quality
As well as emphasizing sustainable and non-toxic materials, green buildings should prioritize healthy indoor air quality. Generally, this involves selecting low emitting building materials as well as devising strategies to provide ample ventilation with efficient Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems that reduce outside pollutant sources entering the building.
Indoor air quality improvements bring many advantages, from reduced respiratory symptoms and enhanced cognitive functioning, to enhanced sleep quality and decreased headaches/fatigue/allergies/asthma symptoms.
However, recent findings reveal that certain green products and practices may actually compromise indoor air quality (IAQ). Furthermore, some green building certification schemes don’t sufficiently promote IAQ; most relying on ventilation alone as a control measure and neglecting opportunities to reduce exposure via emission source control. An IAQ index could allow more effective green building schemes to address this important consideration more adequately – studies have even indicated that green buildings tend to provide superior IAQ.