Awareness about environmentally sustainable buildings is growing as investors realise the importance of being responsible in the way they develop properties.

Going green is in vogue but in South Africa, there are very few genuinely green buildings. Llewellyn van Wyk, principal researcher at the Built Environment Unit at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, says: “Only 7% of new buildings are green. From that perspective, South Africa is not doing very well.” But there is movement afoot to improve the situation.

A section added to the National Building Regulations in November 2011 means that anyone planning new commercial or residential developments or alterations will need to ensure their plans meet new energy-efficient goals, such as using efficient methods of water heating.

And Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs Edna Molewa announced in December that a government building energy-efficiency programme, led by the Department of Public Works, would initiate energy and emissions audits of all government buildings and facilities. “Ambitious goals for energy efficiency will be set for all new government buildings,” Molewa said.

“Government is saying that they recognise the [green building] space and they’re on board,” says Brian Wilkinson, CEO of the Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA). This means that policy-wise, the government is levelling the playing field, says Dr Daniel Irurah, senior lecturer in sustainability and the built environment at the Wits School of Architecture and Planning.

And more and more commercial developers are turning to consultants to guide developers in constructing sustainable green buildings, according to Wilkinson.
There is more to green buildings than solar panels. Green buildings are energy efficient, resource efficient and environmentally responsible in their design, construction and operational practices, according to the standards of the GBCSA.

Francois Retief, technical coordinator of GBCSA, says although new regulations may seem a burden for developers, what they need to understand is that green buildings reduce operational costs by saving energy and water, reducing utility costs and improving productivity in the workplace through improving the quality of the indoor environment.
The council’s Green Star SA, based on the Australian green star, is the only local rating system. Developers seek its approval on a voluntary basis. Buildings that meet certain criteria can be awarded between four and six stars.

The GBCSA is a full member of the World Green Building Council, but its system is not regulated by the government, and is not legislated. It is, however, considered by the government to be ‘best practice’ for design.

The council has rated 13 projects and given accreditation to 371 professionals since it was formed four years ago, Retief says. “Our standards are on par with international rating systems, and our market is responding very well.”

But South Africa is a developing country with particular climate issues, faced with food challenges and resource and energy scarcity, and Van Wyk says it needs to develop a rating system that is home-grown and not derived from other systems.

“Government is looking to work with partners to introduce a uniquely South African green rating tool,” says Wilkinson.

South Africa’s first six star-rated building, the Vodafone Innovation Centre in Midrand, uses solar technology to generate electricity. “It generates twice the amount of energy than it needs,” Wilkinson says. The system feeds excess energy back into the Vodacom Campus grid, which stores it for use in periods when no energy is being generated. “This is a great example of novel technological innovation,” he says.

The five star-rated Aurecon office building in Century City, Cape Town, has a roof garden, which reduces the heat absorption of the building. The building has implemented other sustainable features, such as a grey-water treatment system, says Wilkinson.

The four star-rated Menlyn Maine Falcon Building, Nedbank’s new regional head office, is designed for daylight penetration, energy conservation and water efficiency.
“These green South African commercial buildings can stand proud in comparison to international green buildings,” Wilkinson says.

Irurah says people should want to build green buildings because they are cost effective, and they are the most effective in terms of overall business strategy and returns. “Developers understand green because they understand the scarcity of water,” he says. “They can understand the escalation of prices of electricity, and they can see the vulnerability and risks ahead.

“Any property developer who doesn’t develop four-star buildings is not future-proofing their buildings and is exposing them to potentially high building utility costs.”
There is an increasing awareness of the need for investors to be responsible in the way they develop their properties, says Wilkinson.

The Green Star SA rating tool also exists to prevent buildings being paraded as green when they are not – a practice known as ‘green washing’. “A lot of companies put green labels on buildings when they are not actually green,” Retief says.

Green building is not just about technological advancement, and has a lot to do with socio-economic issues, says Irurah. “Some people think green building is just about energy, and it is a part of it, but it’s a lot more than just combating carbon emissions.

“People look for green buildings with understandable icons or symbols such as PV panels and solar water-heaters. There are a lot of green buildings that go up that will not have these symbols,” says Irurah. “People need to change their minds about what they expect a green building to look like.”

Going green can also mean the redevelopment of an existing building, saving on resources, he says.

One such project is the eKhaya Neighbourhood Improvement Programme, which converted decaying buildings in Hillbrow into inhabitable, economically and socially sustainable buildings. The project received a commendation at the South African Institute of Architects (SAIA) and AfriSam Awards for sustainable architecture.

“Those buildings could have been demolished and created waste, but instead it saved on the need for cement, bricks and steel,” Irurah says.

Wilkinson says awareness about environmentally sustainable buildings is growing. “Green properties are becoming mainstream.” 

Retief hopes that by the end of 2012, the council will be able to certify at least another 10 buildings.

“We now have a better understanding of the built environment’s role in climate change. Now we need to develop reactions. We need to demonstrate that green building works,” Van Wyk says.