Construction industry is one of the largest

consumers of raw materials and energy and

therefore has a profound effect on environment.
Buildings largely affect the natural environment,
human health and economy.
For example, to heat/cool or power a building, large
amount of energy is consumed, which is obtained
by burning fossil fuels oil, natural gases and coal,
which generate significant amount of Carbon
Dioxide, the most widespread Greenhouse Gas.
GHGs are also released through construction and
demolition. Debris that degrades in landfills
generates methane. Moreover, the extraction and
manufacturing of building materials may also
generate GHG emissions.

Buildings around the world

Use 32% of the worlds resources in construction,
Are responsible for around 40% of global energy use,
And generate up to 30% of global GHG emissions.
So, to deal with these adverse impacts of a building,
Green Building Construction concept is gaining
importance.

Green Building
Construction is the
practice of creating
structures using processes
that are environmentally
responsible and resource
efficient throughout its
lifecycle i.e. design,
construction, operation,
maintenance, renovation
and deconstruction of a
building.

Green Buildings reduce the adverse effect

of the built environment on human health
and natural environment by:
Efficiently using/conserving/restoring
energy, water and other resources,
Protecting occupant health and improving
productivity,
Reducing waste, pollution, heat effect and
environmental degradation,
Optimizing life cycle economic performance,
And enhancing and protecting biodiversity
and ecosystems.

For a building to be green, it has to be

efficient in the following areas:
1. Sustainable energy use,
2. Sustainable building materials and
3. Waste management.

Energy efficiency can be attained through

following:
A.Heating, ventilation and cooling
system efficiency:
i. Well insulated building - Insulation reduces
unwanted heat loss or gain and decreases the
energy demands of heating and cooling
systems.

ii.. Passive solar building design In passive solar

building design, windows, walls, and floors
are made to collect, store, and distribute solar
energy in the form of heat in the winter and
reject solar heat in the summer. This is called
passive solar design or climatic design
because, unlike active solar heating systems,
it doesn't involve the use of mechanical and
electrical devices. It further includes:
Adequately sizing windows to face the
midday sun in the winter, and be shaded in
the summer. Windows are placed to
maximize the input of heat-creating light
while minimizing the loss of heat through
glass.
Placement of room-types, internal doors &
walls, & equipment in the house.
Using solar shading devices during
summers to reduce cooling needs.
In hot climate, solar gain can be reduced by
adequate shading from the sun, light
colored roofing, spectrally selective (heatreflective) paints and coatings and various
types of insulation for the rest of the
envelope

B.

Renewable energy generation: Various

devices like solar panels, wind turbines,
solar water heaters, heat pumps etc can be
used for collecting energy from renewable
sources.

Wind turbines installed on a Green

building

Solar panels installed on a Green

building

A green building shall use the

products that are non-toxic, reusable,
renewable and recyclable wherever
possible.
Some examples of sustainable
building materials include recycled
denim , sustainably harvested wood,
Linoleum, sheep wool, concrete (high
and ultra high performance roman
self-healing concrete), panels made
from paper flakes, baked earth,
rammed earth, clay, flax linen, sisal,
sea grass, cork, expanded clay
grains, coconut, wood fiber plates,
calcium sand stone, locally obtained
stone and rock, bamboo, and nontoxic low-VOC(volatile organic
compounds) glues and paints.
Steel is considered to be a very good
sustainable material in view of its
reusability, recyclability and
sustainability. It does not have
adverse effects on environment.

During the construction phase, one goal should

be to reduce the amount of material going to
landfills. When buildings reach the end of their
useful life, they are typically demolished and
hauled to landfills. Deconstruction is a method
of harvesting what is commonly considered
"waste" and reclaiming it into useful building
material. Extending the useful life of a structure
also reduces waste. Sustainable building
materials such as wood and steel from the old
building can be used again in new building.

Initially, a green building may seem

expensive, as compared to a conventional
building. However, actually there is money
saved over its life because of its low
operational and maintenance costs. Most
green buildings may cost an extra <2% but
are likely to yield up to 10 times as much
over the entire life of the building.

Taipei 101, the tallest and

largest green building, Japan

U.S. EPA Kansas City Science

and Technology Center

ITC Green Center,

Gurgaon

WIPRO Green
Building, Gurgaon

Buildings are a major source of CO2

emissions, and contribute about 1/3rd of the
same. For sustainability, construction of
GREEN or sustainable buildings is becoming
more important. As per a study, green
buildings can save up to 35% of carbon
emissions, 40% of water, 50 % of energy and
70 % of solid waste during its lifetime. So, it
is high time we start having well designed,
constructed, operated and maintained Green
Buildings to have these benefits.

1. www.wikipedia.org
2. GSA Public Buildings Service Assessing Green
Building Performance
3. Howe, J.C. (2010). Overview of green buildings.
National Wetlands Newsletter, 33(1)
4. Pushkar, S., Becker, R., & Katz, A.(2005). A
methodology for design of environmentally
optimal buildings by variable grouping.