58-08-Assanee-Integrated-Project

What is Green Building?

Many may consider a green building as a building that comes with green walls and solar panels to beautify and protect the environment. It is way more than that. Green building is a multi-disciplinary subject and has a profound impact on us.

Generally speaking, green building is a practice of reducing the environmental impact of buildings and enhancing the health and wellbeing of building occupants by:

Planning throughout the life-cycle of a building or a community, from masterplanning and siting to design, construction, operation, maintenance, renovation, and demolition with a focus on the impact to both the environment and people.
Optimising efficient use of energy, water, and other resources to avoid overconsumption and adopting the use of renewable energy and eco-friendly materials to minimise carbon footprint and emission.
Reducing the production of waste and preventing pollution of areas like water, air, noise and land.
Enhancing indoor environmental quality through natural ventilation and lighting as well as good indoor air quality by design and other means.

Hong Kong Context

One of the world’s most iconic cities, Hong Kong is famous for its unique subtropical built environment of high-rise, high density urban areas, juxtaposed with a large expanse of hilly and mountainous terrain. For many decades it has been one of the world’s most densely populated places, with the majority of its more than 7.4 million residents living and working in urban skyscrapers.

Today, as industrial manufacturing is no longer a major economic activity in Hong Kong, the major source of electricity consumption is buildings like housing estates, offices and malls. Building-related activities account for some 90% of Hong Kong’s total electricity consumption, compared to a global average of 40%. In turn, this high level of energy consumption by buildings accounts for 60% of the city’s greenhouse gas emissions. It is obvious, therefore, that green buildings play a crucial role in achieving energy savings in Hong Kong, as well as the global target set by the Paris Agreement.