Building Environmental Assessment Scheme Research Articles

Green Building Techniques: Under The Umbrella of the Climate Framework Agreement

Various green building rating systems have been devised to assess the sustainability levels of buildings, offering a standardized approach to evaluate their environmental impact. However, adapting these existing methods to diverse regions requires addressing additional considerations, such as distinct climatic conditions and regional variations. This study delves into a comprehensive exploration of widely utilized environmental building assessment methodologies, including BREEAM, LEED, SB-Tool, CASBEE, GRIHA, and Eco-housing. A new building environmental assessment scheme tailored to the global landscape is needed due to limitations of existing assessment schemes. A framework based on principal component analysis is introduced to develop this new scheme. PCA applied to a dataset of many responses on building sustainability revealed nine key components, including site selection, environmental impact, building resources and re-use, building services and management, innovative construction techniques, environmental health and safety, mechanical systems, indoor air quality, and economic considerations. A framework for sustainable building development in world is proposed. The study provides insights for designers and developers in developing countries, offering a roadmap for achieving green development. The framework prioritizes key components for a nuanced evaluation of sustainability in building projects, contributing to the global discourse on environmentally responsible construction practices.

Strategies for green building rating in India: A comparison of LEED and GRIHA criteria

The establishment of a green grading system to evaluate buildings is becoming increasingly critical due to an increased focus on sustainable growth in the construction sector. The rating method established criteria for green measures in the construction and use of structures in order to create them more environmentally friendly and sustainable. In India, “Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) and Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment (GRIHA)” are the most typical building environmental assessment schemes now in use. For the purpose of this article, LEED and GRIHA rating systems are compared and their scopes, performances requirements, and scales of energy efficiency are discussed. This research aims to clarify the LEED and GRIHA assessment criteria that need to be taken into account when comparing the two systems. This Comparative research may be used to compile a generic checklist for any small-scale green construction project's inspection and certification.

EcoHestia: A Comprehensive Building Environmental Assessment Scheme, Based on Life Cycle Assessment

The sustainability assessment of building materials presents a major challenge the building physics community must approach, in order to establish justified sustainable solutions for the built environment. This study introduces EcoHestia, a comprehensive environmental building assessment tool, whose operation is based on a standardized, transparent, verifiable and internationally recognized approach life cycle approach (ISO 14040 series). The methodology as well as the rationale of EcoHestia is presented in detail. The major parameters which are considered, and the required assumptions for the development and establishment of the proposed building materials sustainability scheme are introduced and discussed in detail. A case study concerning the sustainability assessment of two buildings with the use of EcoHestia is presented and discussed.

Identification of green building attributes for the development of an assessment tool: a case study in India

ABSTRACTGreen building rating systems have been developed to measure the level of sustainability of buildings. Existing methods can be applied to different regions by addressing additional aspects such as varied climatic conditions and regional variations. This paper investigated the most widely used environmental building assessment methods, namely BREEAM, LEED, SB-Tool, CASBEE, LEED-India, GRIHA and Eco-housing. Comparative studies revealed that the existing assessment schemes had some limitations when applied to an Indian built environment. This necessitates the development of a new building environmental assessment scheme. An attempt is made to develop a framework to evaluate sustainability of buildings in India by applying principal component analysis (PCA). The PCA of 82 valid responses on the attributes measuring sustainability of buildings has extracted nine components: (1) site selection; (2) environment; (3) building resources and re-use; (4) building services and management; (5) innovative construction techniques, (6) environmental health and safety, (7) mechanical systems; (8) indoor air quality; (9) economy. Further, a framework suggested in this study can be applied for countries having similar climatic conditions. Findings of this paper can be helpful to designers and developers to achieve green development in developing countries.

Energy assessment of office buildings in China using China building energy codes and LEED 2.2

China building energy codes (CBEC) have been introduced for over two decades but little has been publicized in literature. LEED on the contrary is the most publicized building environmental assessment scheme. To enable better understanding of the compliance standards of CBEC, this paper presents the energy performance assessment results (represented by energy and energy cost savings) of three office buildings in China (one in Beijing and two in Shanghai) using the current versions of CBEC and LEED. The energy and energy cost savings of the three buildings were predicted based on hour-by-hour simulations using the weather data and energy tariffs of Beijing and Shanghai where the three studied buildings are located, and their actual building and system characteristics. The study revealed that LEED in general sets more stringent requirements than CBEC in indoor design conditions, building envelope characteristics and air-conditioning system features. Amongst various building end uses, energy use for air-conditioning was found dominating the assessment results, and the use of energy efficient measures not forming part of the baseline criteria, could lead to 2 to 5% reduction in the overall building energy use. The two schemes were benchmarked against BEAM Plus and their weaknesses were also unveiled.

Tools for Benchmarking and Recognizing Hotels’ Green Effort—Environmental Assessment Methods and Eco-labels

Due to the increasing attention on green hotels, this article aims to investigate environmental assessment methods (EAMs) and eco-labels in China. In this study, three EAMs for the evaluation of hotel environmental performance are included: Green Globe 21 Certification, Hotel Building Environmental Assessment Scheme, and Green Hotel Certification are chosen for reviewing and benchmarking. General features are compared, then key issues are categorized, dissected, and analyzed. These major issues include energy, water, waste, building systems, design, environmental quality, emissions, health, and safety management. The results show that these assessments lack uniformity. In addition, results indicate that benefits from EAMs are uncertain. Queries on the weight and credit formulation are also raised. The study also implies that there is a need to create comprehensive guidelines for hotel operators to select the most suitable assessments for their hotels.

Energy assessment of office buildings in China using LEED 2.2 and BEAM Plus 1.1

LEED and BEAM Plus have been formally launched for more than 10 years. They are the two most recognized building environmental assessment schemes in China. Previous works have been done on benchmarking the energy assessment of the two schemes. However, benchmarking was either based on their earlier versions of which substantial changes have been made, or focused on their assessment issues and metrics without making reference to actual building characteristics. This paper compares the energy performance assessment results of three new office buildings in China (one in Beijing and two in Shanghai) using current versions of LEED and BEAM Plus. The three office buildings were chosen for their similarities in design. The study revealed that despite the variations in different aspects between LEED and BEAM Plus, assessment results of the three studied buildings were comparable. Amongst various building end uses, energy use for air-conditioning was found dominating the assessment results. Comparison results also show that although different tariff systems are adopted in Beijing and Shanghai, the difference will not affect the assessment results as long as same tariff system is used for predicting the energy cost of the baseline and design cases.

A comprehensive review of metrics of building environmental assessment schemes

Buildings are key target of policies that aim at promoting environmentally sustainable development. Amongst policy instruments that address environmental burdens incurred by buildings, labelling and certification schemes are arguably the most cost-effective. Since the first building environmental assessment scheme was launched in the 1990's, similar schemes have emerged in about 30 countries. These are mainly domestic schemes tailored to suit local contexts. Whilst most of these schemes take a voluntary, market driven approach, some have become a part of mandatory building approval requirements, though different certification schemes may co-exist in some regimes. Benchmarking the strengths and characteristics of different schemes has been advocated. In this connection, this paper provides a comprehensive review and comparison of the issues and metrics of five representative assessment schemes, namely, BREEAM, LEED, CASBEE, BEAM Plus and the Chinese scheme ESGB. Comparison of these five schemes shows that BREEAM and LEED are the most comprehensive. A two-phase certification method is adopted in LEED, CASBEE and BEAM Plus, which is considered preferable. Statistical analysis also reveals that there is a moderate degree of agreement amongst the five schemes on weights and ranks of weights allocated to five key assessment aspects. Through comparison, the weighting coefficients adopted by ESGB were found the most representative. Strengths and characteristics of the five schemes have been identified for reference of policy makers in developing their domestic schemes.

Benchmarking energy use of building environmental assessment schemes

BREEAM, LEED, CASBEE, BEAM Plus and Chinese ESGB have been formally launched at different stages in the last twenty years. How well the certified and rated buildings compare with each other is always an interest of building designers and policy-makers. This paper presents a side-by-side comparison of energy use assessments of the five schemes. The comparisons are on the assessment method and criteria, default parameters, trade-offs allowed, performance scales, approved simulation tools, performance indicators and assessment results. Comparison results showed that all the five schemes are based on relative performance. It was also found that despite the variations in default parameters among the five schemes, market positions of certified buildings are comparable. LEED was found to be the most stringent and relatively less flexible in its assessment criteria. Nonetheless, the energy cost budget approach, adopted only by LEED, is able to fulfil emission reduction and cost saving objectives on the condition that a “fuel neutral” approach should be adopted.

Building Environmental Assessment Schemes for Rating of IAQ in Sustainable Buildings

This paper provides a review of the building environmental schemes for rating of indoor air quality which could have an important impact on health and wellbeing of occupants in sustainable homes and buildings. The majority of the building environmental assessment schemes introduced in different countries of the world are based on the BREEAM and LEED model. BREEAM has a major emphasis on energy efficiency whereas ‘‘Indoor Environmental Quality’’ and ‘‘Health and Wellbeing’’ are the most central issues for LEED. The criteria included in BREEAM, LEED and HK BEAM rating systems for assessment of indoor air quality (IAQ) are illustrated. There should be an IAQ management plan for any housing or building development, which should include a certification of the IAQ of the living spaces prior to occupancy and that low emitting materials should be used in the new build. There should also be an ongoing maintenance of the ventilation and HVAC system for the building and this should be part of an IAQ management plan for the building operation and maintenance.

On the study of the credit-weighting scale in a building environmental assessment scheme

A major strength of the voluntary building environmental assessment method is to encourage good environmental practice beyond the current industry practice. For a successful voluntary scheme, the credit scale must be attractive to investors and performance-based criteria should be used. However, most of the current schemes use a combination of prescriptive and performance-based criteria, and credits are allocated using subjective judgement, irrespective of cost and practical implications of attaining improved performances. This is pointed to the need to establish an incentive-crediting scheme, which is oriented towards performance-based scales having credits linked to cost and performance. In formulating the incentive-crediting scheme, the cost effectiveness of different energy-saving level in a base building is investigated under the premise that the investors would pursue a strategy in the most cost-effective manner. This paper presents a conceptual framework for policy makers to formulate an incentive-crediting scale for accrediting criteria within the greenhouse gas objectives of a building environmental assessment scheme in Hong Kong, aiming to attract participation of the profit-maximising investors. Establishment of an incentive-crediting scale starts from developing a carbon dioxide abatement curve for greenhouse gas emission. This is subsequently followed by dividing the maximum energy-saving potential into ten equal energy reduction intervals. The incentive-crediting scheme is formulated on a basis that proportionally more credits would be rewarded for diminishing investment return of consecutive reduction levels in a base building.

Towards a successful voluntary building environmental assessment scheme

Voluntary building assessment schemes have emerged worldwide to help assess the environmental performance of buildings. As building environmental assessment is a rapidly evolving field, the scope and details of such assessment schemes are continuously undergoing updating and refinement. Substantial efforts have been devoted to the design and improvement of the assessment schemes to make them capable of defining an objective building profile. Although most of the existing schemes are voluntary, many fail to encourage participation of the building investors and designers. In order to widen acceptance, the design of the scheme should be oriented towards the manner in which investors make decisions. This paper provides an overview of the vital elements and changes needed, so as to make a voluntary building environmental assessment scheme more attractive and successful, and will include reforms not only in the scope and the credit weighting philosophy but also in its nature.