Green buildings offer clean life

Dubai: Maintaining clean air and lower pollution levels could benefit developers of skyscrapers to attract visitors, investors and residents, a tall buildings design expert has said.

"The tallest building in the world would probably not be able to qualify for the highest rank in sustainable developments, but technology exists now to give skyscrapers as low carbon footprint as possible," said David Scott, chairman of the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat and a principal at Arup, an international engineering design firm.

Environmentally friendly standards in designing tall buildings will contribute to keeping panoramic views visible at staggering heights clear, as a smoggy day can quickly make them worthless, said Scott, who was recently in Dubai ahead of the eighth Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat Congress, Tall and Green: Typology for a Sustainable Urban Future which will be held in early March.

Whilst calling Dubai's skyline 'very exciting', Scott emphasised the value of clean air. "In a city it is very fortunate to have clean air. I've been here several times and I've never seen it so clear," he said last Wednesday.

"A 300-metre tall building could achieve platinum LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) but it needs a lot of hard work. These buildings occupy a lot of valuable real estate space and they need to integrate a transport system," said Scott.

"When developers realise it is in their best interest to create clean air and an environment that promotes it, changes will happen in tall buildings. Large financial institutions will force developers to think about energy use," he said.

"Eventually they will need to know how green a building is and what its energy consumption is and get it audited to see if buildings are using less energy. We need to create that competition. Tenants will create a demand for sustainable buildings that uses less energy," Scott told Gulf News.

"Cities like London and New York have a wide urban fabric with buildings made by architects and materials that went in and out of fashion. In today's environment we have different architects and types of materials that can be used efficiently and in an interesting way," he said.

"Looking at Dubai: there are a lot of cool things going on with shaded spaces. The Dubai Municipality building is a good example of a sustainable development with windows protected from the sun," Scott said.

When: Conference to be held in March

The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat Congress will be held from March 3 to 5 in Dubai. For more information visit www.ctbuh.org