Thursday, October 30, 2008

What Is Sustainable Construction?

Source : The Strait Times, Oct 30, 2008

SUSTAINABLE construction involves building and designing eco-friendly buildings that reduce adverse impact not only on the environment but also on the health of their occupants.

The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) encourages green buildings here with its Green Mark Scheme.

It rates buildings for their environmental performance and provides financial incentives to go green.

The scheme aims to promote sustainability and raise environmental awareness among developers, designers and builders when they begin designing a building as well as during construction.

One example of sustainable construction is the use of products that are made from recycled materials.

Holcim Singapore and the BCA have developed a product called 'Holcim Green' that promotes greener building practices.

This is a form of concrete which uses recycled material such as granite from demolition debris and used copper slag as sand.

Developers who use this form of green concrete, for example, can score extra points in the assessment of their buildings under the Green Mark scheme, said Holcim Singapore chief executive Sujit Ghosh.

The BCA Green Mark is awarded based on five key criteria:

# Energy efficiency

# Water efficiency

# Site/project development and management (building management and operation for existing buildings)

# Good indoor environmental quality and environmental protection

# Innovation

1 comment:

Bygningsentreprise said...

Green building is a great alternative for building constructions because its environment friendly and very thrifty.