Designing Green Buildings

Living aside the times when human used to live in open with the environment, buildings of homes, offices, market and for many other human activities have been an integral part of ancient to modern civilization with human safety and security. In earlier times (i.e., before modern technological era bestowed with cement and bricks), people used to make buildings with locally and environmentally friendly available raw materials with designs suiting to their day to day needs _ with affordable costs as well as suiting to climate changes from time to time.

Traditional buildings were energy efficient because architecture depended on the use and places. Buildings in the hot and dry regions, had corridors directing the wind to cool naturally. In wet regions, structures using natural light and breeze, were used.

Then the use of cement, metal and bricks in the construction of buildings became a way of life, which created enormous energy demand as well as increase in cost. In the present era of energy consciousness, efforts are again being diverted towards making green buildings as a part of civilization, which may be designed and constructed in such a way that not only make human living comfortable but also prove to be in harmony with the nature _ and also energy efficient.

Green building

Green building is the practice of creating structures and using processes that are environmentally responsible, and resourceefficient throughout a building’s life-cycle from sitting to design, construction, operation, maintenance, renovation and deconstruction. Green building research is being done by national laboratories, private companies, universities and the industry. Further, a green building is one which uses less water, enhances energy efficiency, conserves natural resources, generates less waste and provides healthier spaces for occupants, as compared to a conventional building. This practice expands and complements the classical building design concerns of economy, utility, durability, and comfort. Green building is also known as a sustainable or high performance building.

Green building design and construction provide an opportunity to use resources more efficiently, while creating healthier and more energy-efficient homes and commercial buildings. Successful green buildings leave a lighter footprint on the environment through conservation of resources, while at the same time balancing energy-efficient, cost-effective, low-maintenance products for construction needs. In other words, green-building design involves finding the delicate balance between homebuilding and a sustainable environment.

Green buildings are designed to reduce the overall impact of the built environment on human health and the natural environment by:

• Efficiently using energy, water, and other resources
• Protecting occupants’ health and improving employee productivity
• Reducing waste, pollution & environmental degradation

For example, green buildings may

incorporate sustainable materials in their construction (e.g., reused, recycled-content, or made from renewable resources); create healthy indoor environments with minimal pollutants (e.g., reduced product emissions); and/or feature landscaping that reduces water usage (e.g., by using native plants that survive without extra watering).

Green building design components

Green building brings together a vast array of practices, techniques, and skills to reduce and ultimately eliminate the impacts of buildings on the environment and human health. It often emphasizes taking advantage of renewable resources, e.g., using sunlight through passive solar, active solar, and photovoltaic equipment, and using plants and trees through green roofs, rain gardens, and reduction of rainwater run-off.

Many other techniques are used, such as using low-impact building materials or using packed gravel or permeable concrete instead of conventional concrete or asphalt to enhance replenishment of ground water. While the practices or technologies employed in green building are constantly evolving and may differ from region to region, fundamental principles persist from which the method is derived: siting and structure design efficiency, energy efficiency, water efficiency, materials efficiency, indoor environmental quality enhancement, operations and maintenance optimisation and waste and toxics reduction. The essence of green building is an optimisation of one or more of these principles. Also, with the proper synergistic design, individual green building technologies may work together to produce a greater cumulative effect. On the aesthetic side of green architecture or sustainable design is the philosophy of designing a building that is in harmony with the natural features and resources surrounding the site. There are several key steps in designing sustainable buildings like:

• Energy efficiency and use of renewable energy / Water efficiency
• Environmentally preferable building materials and specifications
• Waste reduction / Toxics reduction
• Indoor air quality enhancement
• Smart growth and sustainable development

Energy efficiency and use of renewable energy: programmes can promote partnerships with homebuilders, office building managers, product manufacturers, and many other organisations to improve the energy efficiency of homes, buildings, and various building components and appliances.

Water efficiency: programmes can promote and enhance the market for waterefficient products and services, and educate home and business owners, and others.

Waste reduction: programs should support projects to reduce, reuse, and recycle waste generated from building construction, renovation, deconstruction, and demolition.

Toxics reduction: programmes should work to provide chemical assessment tools and expertise to inform substitution to safer chemistries and to develop best practices.

Indoor air quality: is a critical component of constructing ‘green’ homes and buildings. Programmes should be designed to protect occupant health, promote comfort and productivity, and enhance the durability of structures.

Smart growth & sustainable development:

• Community action to organise and take action to reduce toxic pollution in its local environment.
• Approach to storm water management that is cost-effective, sustainable, and environmentally friendly.
• Cost-efficient and environmentally friendly solutions for large-scale landscaping that are designed to help preserve natural resources and prevent waste and pollution.
• To offers individuals, communities and institutions the ability to develop and implement sustainable practices.
• To provide tools to develop healthy communities, promote economic development, build strong neighborhoods and helps to make smart transportation choices.
• To provide information on how to reduce the run-off of pollutants from urban environments into our waters, including low-impact development strategies.

Science of green building

Sustainable building takes us back to the physical properties of energy, air, and water. Green building practices, as well the selection of the appropriate building materials, revolve around a few basic principles of science. Science is what sustainable building relies on, principles that once understood can guide at every step of the way, including:

• A house is a system of interrelated parts
• Energy loses some of its potential each time it is converted from one form to another, which explains why passive solar heat is much more efficient than electric heat
• Form follows function when it comes to design, meaning that construction should be tailored to the environment in which the house is built.
• Air leaks in the building envelope represent a significant loss of energy and open the door to moisture damage inside wall and ceiling cavities.
• Controlling the movement of heat, air, and moisture involves every part of the building and everyone on the building team.

Green building best practices

• Look for designs that use energy as close to its sources as possible to minimise conversion losses: passive solar heat, for example, over electrical resistance heating.
• Consider heat transmissions in all its forms _ convection, conduction, and radiation _ in selecting building materials and building practices.
• Create an effective air barrier and make sure everyone on the build team understands his/her role in maintaining it through various stages of construction.
• Include some form of mechanical ventilation in the house and strive for a ‘pressure neutral’ interior as minimum requirement.
• Make sure construction details are able to handle water movement via gravity, diffusion, and capillary action.
• In areas of high noise, consider window upgrades, sound barriers, and alternatives to conventional stick framing.

Green building ideas

Here are some green building ideas that one must consider while designing a green building:

• Build smaller / Cool roofing
• Harness renewable energy
• Rely on recycling
• Use sustainable materials
• Work with the land / Focus on water
• Energise building windows
• Take thermostats to a new level.