Higher Green Mark standards for new buildings from December

Joanne Chan Channel NewsAsia 5 Aug 10;

SINGAPORE : Higher Green Mark standards will apply to new buildings in Singapore from December.

The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) said the move will guide the industry towards more sustainable and energy efficient practices in building design, construction and maintenance.

An award made of recycled glass was conferred to BCA by international think tank Aspen Institute for its efforts in promoting "green" practices in Singapore's buildings.

And the use of recycled materials is one area of sustainable construction practices that's encouraged under the revised Green Mark criteria.

Other revisions include requiring air-conditioning systems that are more energy efficient, and incorporating natural ventilation into the design.

To meet the minimum certification level, new buildings or those undergoing major retrofitting will need an energy efficiency standard that is 28 per cent higher than 2005 levels. This is also a 10 per cent point jump over the current standard.

BCA had consulted the industry over the last year in its review, and concerns about high costs and the lack of expertise were raised.

"We've been having quite a lot of training programmes, even those at the Masters level, to build up this green collar professional capability in the industry," said Dr John Keung, CEO of BCA. - CNA /ls

Green Mark standard for new buildings to be raised
Minimum energy efficiency standard will be 28 per cent higher
Jessica Cheam Straits Times 6 Aug 10;

SINGAPORE'S regulators are raising the energy efficiency bar for new buildings from December as they step up the drive for a leaner and greener economy.

The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) announced yesterday that all new buildings will soon have to comply with a more demanding Green Mark standard that calls for an additional 10 per cent of energy savings on top of those required by the current standard.

Under the latest revision, the minimum energy efficiency standard will be 28 per cent higher than that set out in the first building code released in 2005 when the Green Mark - which measures a building's environmental performance - was originally launched.

The standards for higher Green Mark levels - Gold, GoldPlus and Platinum - will also be raised accordingly.

BCA chief executive John Keung said at a briefing yesterday that other changes to the new standard will require building owners to install more energy-efficient air-conditioning systems, along with monitoring devices to track their performance.

For the first time, the rating system will take into account the use of recycled materials such as recycled concrete aggregate, and will encourage the use of so-called 'passive design' to integrate natural ventilation into a building.

Mr Keung said the higher standards will help Singapore achieve its goal of cutting its carbon emissions by 7 per cent to 11 per cent below business-as-usual levels by 2020 - a target set by a national sustainability blueprint in April last year.

'The added emphasis on energy-efficient building systems will gradually guide our industry towards more environmentally sustainable practices,' he added.

Singapore Green Building Council president Lee Chuan Seng said the move will keep Singapore at the forefront of the green building design and construction arena, adding that 'if we don't improve standards, we'll be left behind'.

Under BCA's green building masterplan, 80 per cent of all Singapore buildings should have the Green Mark by 2030. All new buildings were mandated to achieve the minimum Green Mark standard in April 2008.

A $600 million incentive fund was provided by the Government to spur building owners to green their assets.

To date, Singapore has 450 properties with Green Mark certification, representing 8 per cent of the Republic's total built-up floor area.

Last week, BCA's green building drive won it international recognition.

It was awarded the Energy and Environment Award (Government) by the Aspen Institute, a Colorado, US-based international non-profit organisation.

This was the first time the award was given to an organisation outside North America. Board chairman Bill Dirks of the Aspen Institute's awards said that BCA had demonstrated leadership 'at the national level in this very critical area of renewable energy standards and green buildings'.

'We saw a clear outstanding example of disruptive innovation, creative and breakthrough solutions in Singapore's entry, which could be reproduced around the globe to tackle large-scale energy and environment issues,' he said.

BCA said details of the latest revision to the Green Mark will be unveiled to industry later this month, with briefing sessions held before implementation.