WSP Environment and Energy's office at Convention Tower represents just one corner of a global environmental and sustainability consultancy that boasts over 1,000 employees across 65 locations. Headquartered in Dubai since 2005, the firm specialises in climate change, sustainability, environmental and energy issues, and has worked on a number of high profile projects in the region, including Dubai Urban Development Framework, Sustainability Guidelines for Jumeirah Garden City, and Marafiq Independent Water and Power Project.
In 2008, WSP Environment and Energy was asked by Dubai Municipality (DM) and Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) to develop a set of Green Building Regulations for Dubai. Based on the early findings of the study, WSP recommended that DM and Dewa adopt mandatory regulations, because this would bring about greater energy and water savings.
Brent Ridgard, director of WSP Environment and Energy, explains how the regulations have evolved since the study inception, and why they're so important to the property market.
Tell us about the Green Building Regulations, they seem to have been in the works for a good while.
The intention was always to phase the regulations in over a period of time. This would give the market adequate time to adapt and respond appropriately to the new regulations.
We understand that the first 17 regulations should be out by July this year, although the first phase was originally due to be published in 2009. More regulations have been scheduled for 2012, and the third phase should be implemented in 2015. The timing may change, but this phased approach is intended to avoid the sort of problems that would crop up if they unveiled all the regulations at once. Certain materials simply would not have been available, or would be too expensive, thus limiting the ability of the market to respond to the requirements of the Green Building Regulations.
Dewa and DM commissioned the regulations jointly, but will there be one governing authority?
It would seem to make sense that Dewa (as the authority responsible for the management of power and water in the emirate) should be responsible for the energy and water regulations, but we will have to see how this unfolds.
The first tranche of 17 regulations deal with power and water efficiency — there are 14 energy and three water regulations. The regulations are broken out by building type, and they are also differentiated between some that are mandatory and others that are optional, which is a slight deviation from what had originally been proposed.
I believe DM and Dewa are giving the market some time to build up momentum before they make all aspects mandatory, while giving the message that the market should be prepared for additional regulations going forward.
The Qatar Sustainability Assessment System and Estidama [Abu Dhabi's green buildings rating system] have been able to move faster than Dubai's Green Building Regulations, mostly because they started developing these before us. I think the economic downturn has also impacted the release schedule.
One can fully understand why the Dubai government might be a little nervous about putting a new set of regulations into the market in a downturn, especially where they add more cost (in the short-term) in an already stressed property market.
Can you give an example of one of the regulations?
For all new villas and labour accommodations, a solar water heating system must be installed to provide 75 per cent of the domestic hot water requirements.
Another regulation stipulates that, where the light power density of external lighting exceeds a certain level, any additional lighting load must be supplied through renewable sources.
The reason I mention these two is that they start to introduce renewable energy sources into the frame, which is very exciting.
You mentioned earlier that the regulations will eventually apply to existing buildings. What would be the starting point for a local developer who wants to retrofit with sustainability in mind?
We did a very interesting study of a company with a large property portfolio in the UK, which showed large spikes in energy use at intervals throughout the day, but they were at unusual times.
What we found was that, over a 24-hour cycle, the cooling and ventilation system was switching on at 2am, and staying on until 11pm at night, well beyond the actual hours in which the building was occupied. So we were able to show the client that they could achieve a huge cost (as well as energy) saving by setting the system to start up an hour before employees arrive each day, and an hour after they leave. Just by doing that we were able to cut energy consumption in the buildings by 30 per cent, which is very significant.
We've also found cases in Dubai, where intelligent building systems have been installed to monitor and control energy consumption, but then somehow the final stages of setup aren't completed, or there's no staff tasked with managing the system and thus the benefits aren't realised.
So the first thing to do is to consider an energy audit.
Why should UAE residents be concerned about the Green Building Regulations?
Everything we buy — televisions, computers, food, and so on — has a carbon footprint, and it's not always intuitive. In a study we did in the UK, this time for a retailer, we were able to work out that the meat on their shelves had a higher carbon footprint than the energy used in all their buildings combined.
In another case, it was determined that it was less carbon intensive to procure roses from Kenya, than to grow them in greenhouses in the UK. So it is possible to make a difference, but you really need to be informed. The latest numbers that I've seen places UAE's carbon footprint at about 32 tonnes per person per year. Qatar is around 50 tonnes per person per year, the US is around 20 tonnes, and the UK is down around 8 tonnes per person per year.
Collectively in the GCC and in the UAE we've got to do a lot better and these green building regulations are going to be a very good start.
What has this project meant to your firm?
To see WSP's work published in the marketplace is very rewarding. It sounds a bit idealistic, but this is one of the reasons why we do this kind of work. It fundamentally influences the way buildings are designed and operated with an estimated effectiveness of 20 per cent to 30 per cent savings in electricity and water consumption, and a decrease in waste generation of up to 50 per cent.
Clearly from WSP's perspective, we're one of the foremost green building consultancies in the Gulf, and this sets us up nicely to advise clients around a framework that we were instrumental in putting it in place.
