"YES , WECAN "

Can we say all green buildings are safe buildings ???? This question has posed by one of my compatriot when I talked about the advantage of green building and sustainable practices . Simple question but intriguing very much ..

May be YES or May be NOT .

Designers and planners shall collaborate with industry specialist whilst choosing the green material or low VOC paints- a conscious approach to see that materials all are satisfying the safety requirements along with the green aspects .For example , does material compromise on their fire /flame retardant capacity while increasing the percentage of recycled material content during the manufacturing ??? Do a check on all type tests they have done and independent testing laboratory certifications prior to accepting the material just because they are green .In short , Green focus should not change our focus towards Safety .

In my opinion , LEED Ver 2.2 has not addressed the areas of safety very comprehensively . Perhaps safety is considered as an implied requirement which every specialist need to consider without fail .Yes , we can not ignore the fact, that making green does not mean compromising on safety .Similarly , LEED Ver 2.2 has not addressed the areas of pollution that can be generated by the stand by generator ,which always be a part of the back up system for the buildings to support all life safety equipments .I wish , LEED 2009 will take care of these small short falls .

A unified guidance will be more advisable with regards to the built up area per number of occupants or residents of the building for eg : sq feet construction can be permitted per number of occupancy .When I've decided to construct a home , thought of applying green building principle , the first question came to my mind was , as per green , what's the max allowable sq feet area should a house required for a family of 4 persons ?? Soon I might get some answers .

Let me borrow president elect Obama's mantra , YES , WE CAN .... to answer this question .

With no doubt , I can say , all green building can be safe building , provided a holistic approach is required during planning ,design ,pre construction , post construction as recommended by LEED rating system .

Why Green ????

The impact of built environment on our planet is enormous as per study and statistics. “The following gives a brief idea about the environmental impact of the building design, construction and operation industry.

Buildings consume more than 30 % of the Annual energy produced.

Buildings consumes more than 60% of the Electricity produced.

For Dubai alone the residential and commercial buildings power consumption is estimated as 73.44% of the electricity as per 2007 Statistics.

Each day Billion Gallons of Potable Water is used solely to flush toilets.

A typical commercial construction projects generates up to 2.5 pounds of Solit Waste Per Square Foot of completed Floor Space.

Majority of this waste can be recycled. For example, recycling one ton of paper prevents the process of 17 Trees and saves 3 Cubic Yards of landfill Space . Recycled aluminum requires only 5 % of the energy required to produce virgin aluminum from bauxite ,its raw material .

Developments shifts land usage away from natural, biologically-diverse habitats to hardscape that is impervious and devoid of bio diversity .The above far reaching influence of the built environment necessitates action to reduce its impact.

Building account for large portion of our natural resources consumption including 40% raw stone, gravel and sand and 25% Virgin Wood .

Energy production is a significant contributor to air pollution. Air pollutants released from energy production includes sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide and carbon dioxide. These are primary contributor to acid rain, smog and global warming.

Conventional fossil –based generation of electricity releases carbon dioxide, which contributes to global climate change . Coal fired electric utilities emit almost one –third of the countries anthrapogenic nitrogen oxide , the key element in smog , and two –thirds the sulfur dioxide , a key element in acid rain .

Natural gas , nuclear fission and hydro electric generators all have adverse environmental impacts as well . Natural gas is a major source of Nitrogen oxide and greenhouse gas emissions. Nuclear power increases the potential for catastrophic accidents and raises significant waste transportation and disposal issues . Hydroelectric generating plants disrupts natural water flows, resulting in disturbance of habitat and depletion of fish populations.

Securing the future of energy is one of the greatest challenges facing mankind today, but overshadowing even this is the spectre of serious and irreversible climate change . Therefore energy security, climate change, sustainable human developments are the most pressing issues of today.Growing scientific evidence has identified that climate change has caused by green gas emissions –mainly those derived from fossil fuel combustion –as a serious threat to sustainable human development, with adverse impact on human health, food security, the environment and the economy.

Green buildings address these issues in two primary ways : by reducing the amount of energy required and by using more benign forms .The better the energy performance , the lower the operating cost .

Green building practices can substantially reduce or eliminate negative environmental impacts .As an added benefit, green building design measures reduce operating costs, enhance building marketability, and increase worker productivity.