GN Focus | Quality Certification
Building a green future
Eco-consciousness in the construction sector means long-term healthand economic benefits at very little extra cost
- By Sona Nambiar | Gulf News Report
- Published: 00:00 May 25, 2011
- Image Credit: Gulf News Archive
- An artist's impression of Mubadala's Masdar City in Abu Dhabi, which upholds renewable energy and sustainable technology
While most developers hum the green mantra, they are deterred by what they see as initial higher investment costs to actually build that green project. Yet, according to recent research by Global Industry Analysts, the global market for green building materials is expected to be worth $406 billion (about Dh1,491 billion) by 2015.
Leed in the region
Meanwhile, there has been dissent among regional architects, structural engineers and construction professionals on the practicality of implementing Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (Leed), an internationally recognised green building certification system developed by the US Green Building Council (USGBC).
Leed provides building owners and operators with a framework for identifying and implementing practical and measurable green building design, construction, operations and maintenance solutions.
Estidama
Hence, there has been a growing recognition by Abu Dhabi and Dubai to create a UAE-centric rating system that reflects the local green scene. This has resulted in the formation of Estidama (Arabic for sustainability), a programme designed specifically for the hot climate and arid environment of the Middle East in Abu Dhabi and the Dubai Green Building Code (the latter will be formally implemented in 2014, according to reports).
Estidama's Pearl Rating System, a framework for sustainable design, construction and operation, has found many followers. "Before Estidama, Masdar City had already developed its own set of sustainability standards to guide the design of the project. With its introduction, our standards have evolved further to ensure that our current standards complement Estidama. Furthermore, Masdar has participated in its pilot projects to test the standards prior to their release. Having said that, the new Estidama standards are the best for this region," says Alan Frost, Director, Masdar.
"We are also in the process of working with them and the Urban Planning Council in Abu Dhabi to develop mixed-use community ratings for the whole country and, eventually, the region," he adds.
Riad Bsaibes, COO at design-build solutions firm Amana, adds, "Estidama puts more points into water and power efficiency to make it more accurate for sustainability needs in this part of the world. We are seeing more and more projects by the Abu Dhabi government that are being designed to either comply with Estidama or Leed — a top-downward push from the government to the architects and consultants." He says that USGBC has statistics to show construction costs go up by only 2 to 5 per cent in green projects. "But when you look at the life-cycle costs of the building over 20 years, you get far better returns in the long run — in terms of energy efficiency and a healthier living environment for the occupants. We invest in training and have 20 Leed professionals on board," he says, pushing for projects to go green.
The green wave
Others are promptly following suit. "A large section of our design team is Leed-accredited and we are also investing in employees to become some of the first professionals in the UAE to sit for the Estidama Pearl Qualified Professional (PQP) certification exams," says Mohamed Al Assam, Founder, Chairman and Managing Director of Dewan, a regional architectural and engineering design firm that has worked on several hotels in the UAE.
The UAE green scene has also got a big momentum since the establishment of the Emirates Green Building Council (EGBC) in 2006 as an independent forum to help shape policies for built environment and promote sustainable practices in the UAE.
"We have grown from 48 to 300 members this year. We are being consulted more and more by bodies such as the Emirates Authority for Standardization and Metrology (ESMA)," says Jeff Willis, Vice-Chairman of EGBC and Associate Director at Arup, a global multidisciplinary practice whose portfolio includes the Sydney Opera House, the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the Aldar building in Abu Dhabi.
"We also take part in ESMA consultations with industry in areas such as the generation of a standard for building materials." He adds that the new rating systems in Abu Dhabi are aimed at improving the standard of current practices, not at setting impossible targets. "Naturally, the higher the rating, the more difficult it becomes to achieve them, but the bigger the benefits to a project," says Wills.
Pearls of wisdom
Estidama's Pearl Rating system has also capitalised on some of the weaknesses of the local construction industry and turned them into potentials, says Karim Elgendy in an exclusive to GN Focus.
An architect and a sustainability consultant at SOM in London, he is also the founder of Carboun, an initiative promoting sustainability in the Middle East through research, education and outreach.
"The lack of a complex regulatory environment, for example, has allowed the Pearl Rating System to be incorporated into revised development and building codes. This ensures that all buildings in the emirate will have to incorporate a minimum degree of sustainability (one pearl and two pearls for government buildings)."
In addition, he says, the Pearl Rating System appears more progressive than Leed and Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (Breeam), a voluntary environmental assessment for green buildings established in the UK by the Building Research Establishment.
"In setting its highest level of certification (five pearls) comparatively higher than Leed Platinum or Breeam Outstanding, and in enforcing the use of the new concept of Integrated Design Process on all projects," says Elgendy.
So is there a sea change in the offing?
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Green rating for sport — a first in the region
The Gulf Organisation for Research Development (GO for RD) andthe Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) recently signed a memorandum of understanding to establish environmentally sustainable sporting venues using the Qatar Sustainability Assessment System (QSAS) standards.
According to Shaikh Saud Bin Abdul Rahman Al Thani, Secretary-General of QOC, "This agreement will allow for the assessment and evaluation of sustainability of pre-existing sporting venues, as well as setting a foundation for all future facilities to be built in Qatar."
QSAS integrates best practices from 40 assessment systems forresidential towers, villas and projects such as football stadiums.
Architect Karim Elgendy noted that the QSAS for sports will become a first of its kind. "While other rating systems such as Leed and Breeam have contemplated developing specific systems for sports facilities, none have been successfully developed to date," he says.
— S.N.
