Green building, a term also known as green construction or sustainable building refers to a structure and the use of processes that are environmentally responsible and also efficient when it comes to resources throughout the life cycle of the building process; from siting to the design, construction, the operation, its maintenance, renovations that are made and demolition. Therefore a green building design involves the finding of a balance between building a home and the sustainable environment. It requires a lot of cooperation of the design team, engineers, architects and the client throughout the stages of the project. The practice of green building has expanded and complements the classical building concerns of utility, economy, comfort and durability. Sustainable development refers to the ability of achieving a continuing economy prosperity while at the same time protecting the natural systems within the planet and providing a high quality of life for people (Katz, 2012). Green building is therefore related to sustainable development since it promotes building practices which conserve energy and water resources, and also preservation of open spaces by brownfield development. This paper will look at how green building and sustainable development came about. It will highlight the impact that green building and sustainable development has had on environment and market. Finally it will look at green building and sustainable development on the concepts of energy efficiency and renewable energy, water efficiency and waste and toxic reduction.
The origins of Green building
Companies and individuals have been building green homes for close to thirty years now and within that time this green movement has been growing constantly. The history of green building is seen to date back even further than the 1970s. It was in the middle of the industrial revolution that Henri Becquerel witnessed how solar energy was transformed into electrical energy termed as photovoltaic power. At this time in the 1800s to early 1900s there were a number of solar plants that were built for the utilization of energy from the sun to steam power. In the 1950s, solar energy was used but in a small-scale that paved way for the solar panel solar solution to be put into use twenty years later. During the energy crisis in 1970s there was a movement of the initial concept of green building as research to it being a reality. Designers and builders were looking for a way they could reduce their reliance of buildings and homes using fossil fuels. There was use of solar panels for making homes more environmentally friendly though in small numbers due to their high initial costs (Patsalides, 2011).
From that time developers have constructed solar panels that are less expensive and more efficient hence making solar panels a reality. During this transition period, both designers and consumers were wondering if solar panels are able to make buildings more efficient, reduce the negative impact on the environment, and bring down the energy bills and the steps they could take to build even greener homes. Now, Green building involves much more than the use of solar panels. Apart from the use of the richest source of energy the sun, green builders and designers have examined several issues in order to make sure that building is ecofriendly. There was also the environmental movement in the 1960s and 1970s which led to experiments with the contemporary green building (Patsalides, 2011).
Impact of green building on environment and market
Green building is not only about costs but it also offers economic, environmental and societal benefits. Green building practices are aimed at reducing environmental impact of building. The first rule is that the greenest building is one that does not get built. The second rule is that each building has to be as small as possible. The third rule is to ensure not to contribute to sprawl even if the most environmentally sound and energy efficient methods are being used in the design and construction. Green building brings together an array of practices, skills and techniques...
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