Green buildings in spotlight as COP 17 looms

The Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA) has urged local industry, business and the government to work together to embrace greening the built environment to help mitigate the impact of climate change.

The council is upping the ante on promoting “green building”, taking advantage of South Africa’s hosting of the United Nations’ COP 17 climate change meeting in Durban, to be held on November 28 to December 9. The GBCSA will have a visual and active presence at COP 17.

“With the international community poised to arrive in South Africa for the COP 17 climate change talks in Durban, we must showcase green building and thereby set an example for the rest of the world,” said Bruce Kerswill, executive chairman of the GBCSA.

“Worldwide, buildings are responsible for about a third of all carbon emissions… Consider that this translates into one in every three tons of carbon released into the atmosphere being from buildings – so the built environment has a major role to play in mitigating climate change.

“At the previous climate talks in Cancun, Mexico (COP 16) in 2010, South Africa committed to reducing our carbon emissions by 34 percent by 2020 and 42 percent by 2025.

“Given that we are heavily reliant on coal for our electricity, one of the fastest and easiest ways to reduce our emissions is through the greening of our built environment, such as our homes, offices and shops.

“In fact, global experts have recognised the potential reductions in emissions from the built environment through green buildings as a ‘low-hanging fruit’ of carbon emission mitigation – a relatively quick and easy way to turn things around, with readily available tools and technologies.”

The GBCSA was working hard to develop and provide the tools to facilitate necessary change in the built environment.

“We are also focusing on knowledge sharing and training of professionals in the property industry that can help take green building forward,” Kerswill said.

“Since the launch of the Green Star SA rating tools for buildings, the GBCSA has awarded ratings to five buildings in South Africa.”

The latest of these was the new Aurecon office building in Cape Town, which was the first in the country to achieve a 5-Star Green Star SA rating.

“We have also had applications for ratings from more than 30 other developments countrywide – showing South Africa is ready for a shift to green building and that the change is well under way.”

The Green Star SA tools have been designed for use by owners, developers and consultants – architects, engineers, quantity surveyors, project managers, and building contractors – to influence the design of buildings.

The tool enables these industry roleplayers to minimise the environmental impacts of their developments and to receive recognition against an objective standard for their efforts.

“Critically, 25 percent of the credits available in the Green Star SA system address energy efficiency and carbon emissions. With a 4-star Green Star SA building reducing energy consumption by at least 30 percent, use of these rating tools has an immediate impact on reducing energy usage and carbon emissions,” said Kerswill.

“With the world on our doorstep watching to see what South Africa is doing in preparation for COP 17, and to meet our reduction commitments, the GBCSA is striving to turn policy targets into practice.

“The council wants to provide a common link between all the players in the commercial property industry and the public building sector.”

The council is also developing rating tools for the many types of government-owned buildings.

The Construction Industry Development Board, which is an agency of the Department of Public Works, is contributing to the funding of the latest rating tool.

The Green Star SA Public Building Rating Tool is set for pilot release later this month at the GBCSA Convention and Exhibition at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

“The GBCSA is changing the way South Africa is built and we are calling on others to join the council in showing the world, in the build-up to COP 17, that South Africa is going green,” said Kerswill.

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