The green revolutionaries

A maze of systems, regulations and accreditation greets contractors who want to prove their sustainable credentials.

RELATED ARTICLES: Sharjah environmental expert blasts LEED standards | Green initiatives need grassroots knowledge in ME | LEED ranks may extend to government infrastructure | FM accounts for 70% of LEEDs ratings says expert

Sustainability has been the most active topic of discussion during a global economic crisis, after the crisis itself.

The map of the Gulf region is dotted with companies, councils, projects and conferences that are looking at the issue of building in an environmentally beneficial way, using materials and processes that account for their carbon output, seek to shift to reusable energy resources where possible and – ultimately – create a longer lasting hotel, villa or power plant.

The region has varied opinions on the subject, based on the maturity of the concept in the particular market and what initiatives have put theory into practice. While some emirates in the UAE are thinking about region-specific assessments and the evolution of relevant regulation, some of its neighbours may still be getting familiar with the benefits, requirements and the costs.

Story continues below

Advertisement

FEATURED COMMENT Please click here to comment on this article

In between, new developments that claim to put sustainability at the core, such as Dubai Pearl and Qatar’s Dohaland, are becoming more plentiful.

After the last few years, in which big projects were vulnerable to stalling, these are admirable ambitions. Masdar, the prospective first zero-carbon city, has for many years topped all plans for environmental dynamism, even if the market is yet to see the result.

Sustainability has been shown to be somewhat intuitive as a concept for the construction market, even if the take-up is uneven. A spot poll on the website of the Qatar Green Buildings Council, 89.4% of respondents said they ‘Strongly Agree’ with the statement: “Green building is important to sustain our culture and our environment.”

Some think the current clamour for discussions about sustainable construction is just an extension of good practice. Peter Cummings, technical director at consultant WSP, says the push towards sustainability is familiar to the standard practices in MEP regarding energy efficiency.

Edward Mayer, of FX Fowle, speaking as a panel member at Construction Week’s recent Building Sustainability conference in Riyadh, said that sustainable processes, recycling and cutting waste are not just about cutting cost or proving credentials, “it is also just about building a better building”.

Uninitiated developers and contractors looking to gain recognition for efforts to be sustainable are faced with a maze of rating systems, acronyms and criteria, which some say has created a barrier to entry.

The most prominent benchmark is the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), a third-party accreditation system devised by the US Green Building Council.

Based on a points system, LEED totals up the individual elements of a building that allow energy savings, water efficiency, CO₂ emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality.