‘Green' buildings can be far more energy efficient

Construction experts said at a workshop held on August 10 in Hanoi aimed to promote energy efficiency and green buildings to reduce energy costs and harmful gas emissions. It was hosted by the International Financial Corporation (IFC) and Ministry of Construction.

According to the World Bank, energy consumption quadrupled in the Vietnam in the past 10 years, leading to an annual 12% increase in carbon dioxide emissions.

Improving energy efficiency in the construction sector would help the Government accomplish its goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 8 to 10% between 2011 and 2020, according to the World Bank.

The Ministry of Construction has paid special attention to making more projects resource-efficient, said Nguyen Cong Thinh, deputy director of the Department of Science, Technology and Environment under the ministry.

The ministry also appreciated IFC's efforts to improve awareness, and provide tools and technical measures for investors and architects to develop more green buildings.

In 2003, energy consumption in the civil sector accounted for 22.4% of the total. It is estimated to have increased 37 or 38% last year.

Energy consumption in buildings increased due to increasing fuel prices and living standards, urbanization and the increasing number of buildings, Thinh said.

False belief

Autif Sayyed, a green building specialist for East Asia and Pacific in IFC, said construction demand was growing in emerging markets. Such markets had enormous potential for saving energy, but it hadn't been tapped yet due to a false belief that green buildings cost much more than conventional ones.

At the workshop, the IFC announced a new green building certification system that empowers developers to reduce the amount of energy and water their buildings use by 20%. It's called Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies (EDGE).

EDGE offers free software that allows designers to choose technical solutions while showing the extra costs to build green and the payback period.

Steven Du, Managing director of SGS Vietnam, said EDGE offers cost-efficient ways to bring green features into commercial and residential buildings.

As the unit checking and granting EDGE certifications, SGS Vietnam is expected to award the certifications to 20% of new constructions projects in the country, equivalent to about 70,000 housing units. This will cut 19,000 metric tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions per year and save 43,500 megawatt-hours of energy use, equivalent to US$8 billion a year by 2021.

While emphasising the need to adopt green building tools like EDGE in Vietnam, participants at the workshop discussed obstacles to making environmentally friendly buildings.

Nguyen Cong Thinh mentioned a lack of preferential mechanisms. Taking action would depend on the developers' willingness.

Vu Linh Quang of Ardor Architect, the consultant for developer Nam Long Investment Corp, said it was necessary to create more concrete instructions for implementing relevant national regulations, as many were not popular with builders.

Data on saving energy, water and materials is limited and equipment used in green building is still expensive.

Nam Long is among the first corporations to receive an EDGE certification in Vietnam for its Bridge View Apartment. The design will cut energy use by 20%, water use by 22% and construction materials by 27% while only adding 2% to construction costs.