Green Building Design for
Sustainable Urban Habitats
28 June ‘12
Dr. N. Sai Bhaskar Reddy Sustainable Habitat Management for
20-11-2012
Chief Executive Officer [CEO], Clean Development
GEOECOLOGY ENERGY ORGANISATION [GEO] 20 – 22 Nov 2012
CCCEA, Dr. MCR Human Resource Development
http://e-geo.org Institute of AP, Hyderabad
Since the Industrial • incalculable technological achievements
Revolution the
• population growth
world has
• corresponding increases in resource use
witnessed
global Resource ozone
pollution landfills toxic waste deforestation
warming depletion depletion
All these efforts are straining the limits of the Earth’s “carrying
capacity”— its ability to provide the resources required to sustain
life while retaining the capacity to regenerate and remain viable.
Sustainability
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Development that meets the needs of the present
without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs
(The Brundtland Commission,1987)
Total neolithic* human
material consumption
Breath 5.1
6 0.8
Excreta
+0
Solid waste 0.1
Unit: tonnes/cap-yr
Total modern* human
material consumption
Offgas 19
89 61
Sewage
+6
Solid waste 3
Unit: tonnes/cap-yr
Materialization Dematerialization
Pollution, rapidly increasing GHG Environmental awareness, political
Environmental degradation (burden)
emissions, health problems, widespread action, policy formulation and
habitat destruction, permanent damage implementation, national and global
to natural capital sustainable development commitments.
Economic growth
The Kuznets Curve (adopted, notably by the World Bank)
Global Climate Change and Urbanization Part I
1900
15% urban
2000
~50% urban
Approaches to energy efficient housing
• Vernacular approach to design (passive architecture, local
materials, use of local labor): Low income/low cost housing and
mass housing programmes of the government; certain pockets in
India (Kerala and Auroville)
• Adoption of Energy conservation building code in envelope
design, labelled appliances for households; particularly applicable
to middle and high income group housing
• Green rated housing : Energy and resource efficiency looked at
holistically in addition to indoor environmental quality and societal
issues
Use of low embodied energy technologies for housing
Works of Charles Correa : Architectural expressions with
dominance of natural climate control measures
Orientation and shading as per
solar geometry
Excellent ventilation
Courtyard design and use of
mature tree for shading Design for daytime and nighttime use
Sustainability and the Construction
Industry
'Sustainability' is becoming a central concern for us all out of
wider recognition that rising populations and economic
development are threatening the degradation of the
earth's resources.
The construction, maintenance and use of buildings impacts
substantially on our environment and is currently
contributing significantly to irreversible changes in the
world's climate, atmosphere and ecosystem.
Buildings are by far the greatest producers of harmful gases
such as CO2 and this 'eco-footprint' can only increase with
the large population growth predicted to occur by 2050 and
the industrialization of the developing world.
How the Construction Industry can move
towards Sustainable Development
– Energy: reducing energy consumption, being
more energy efficient and using renewable
energy and 'alternative technology'.
– Materials: Choosing, using, re-using and
recycling materials during
design, manufacture, construction and
maintenance to reduce resource requirements.
– Waste: Producing less waste and recycling more.
– Pollution: Producing less toxicity, water, noise
and spatial pollution.
Aspects of building material adoptio
Natural
Social
Economical
Political
Cultural
Historical
Environmental
Building Industry- Facts
Population Vegetation
Climate Air Quality
Construction
Watersheds Transportation
1/6 of the world’s 1/4 of world’s 2/5 of world’s
freshwater withdrawals wood harvest material & energy flows
Environmental and Economic Impacts of
Buildings
Fresh Water Withdrawals 16
Timber Harvest 25
Raw Materials Consumption 30
Global CO2 Emissions 35
Global Energy Use 40
Municipal Solid Waste to Landfills 40
50
Ozone depleting CFCs in Use
0 10 20 30 40 50
Percentage
Compiled from:Worldwatch Paper #124
Application of Sustainability
Pre-Design On-Site Design Construction O&M
Material Selection
Environmentally
Building Program Site Analysis Maintenance Plans
& Assessment Conscious
Project Budget Indoor Quality
Site Development Construction
Team Selection Energy Efficiency
& Layout Preservation of
Partnering Passive Solar Resource Efficienc
Watershed Features &
Project Schedule Design Renovation
Management & Vegetation
Laws, Codes Materials & Housekeeping &
Conservation Waste Mgmt
& Standards Specification Custodial Practices
Site Material IAQ Issues
Research Indoor Air
& Equipment Source Control
Site Selection Quality
Practices
How does the Construction Industry
consume Energy?
• Consider the 'embodied' energy in every brick in every
structure. Every brick has used energy at every stage in its
production and use.
• Energy is consumed when:
– Extracting raw materials.
– Producing materials (Manufacturing process).
– Transporting materials.
– Transporting workforce.
– Building structures.
– Using and powering structures.
– Maintaining structures and demolishing structures.
Materials
• Around 50% of all global resources go into the construction
industry, with a specific example being that 70% of all timber
is used for building.
• It is therefore very important that a sustainable approach to
choosing and using materials is adopted.
• The environmental and economic benefits of sustainability are
inherently linked when considering building materials, due to
the long-term financial advantages of recycling, using recycled
products and sourcing heavy materials locally.
• Life-Cycle Assessment, Eco-Labelling and Embodied Energy
Audits all of which can help choosing materials and assess the
balance between short-term costs and long-term
environmental, social and financial benefits.
How to Choose and Use Materials in a
more Sustainable way
• Considerations to take into account when re-evaluating the way in which materials
are used in construction:
– What reserves are left of our materials, and how can their complete
successive depletion be prevented?
– What are the pollution impacts of the manufacturing process involved with
creating new materials?
– How can existing materials be recycled (roof tiles, bricks, timber, etc.) and can
they be designed and used in a way more conducive to re-use?
– How much energy is consumed in the transport of materials? (try sourcing
heavy, bulky materials locally and lightweight materials globally).
– Can more prefabricated components be used? (reduces waste and dust on
site).
– How can more low maintenance materials be used in order to reduce further
energy and resource use in the future of the building?
Indian vernacular architecture
Is the informal, functional architecture of structures, often in
rural areas, of India, built of local materials and designed to
meet the needs of the local people. The builders of these
structures are unschooled in formal architectural design and
their work reflects the rich diversity of India's climate, locally
available building materials, and the intricate variations in local
social customs and craftsmanship. It has been estimated that
worldwide close to 90% of all building is vernacular, meaning
that it is for daily use for ordinary, local people and built by local
craftsmen.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_vernacular_architecture
Building indoor environment covers the
environmental aspects in the
design, analysis, and operation of energy-
efficient, healthy, and comfortable buildings.
Fields of specialization include
thermal indoor air
architecture, HVAC design,
comfort, quality (IAQ),
control
lighting, acoustics,
systems
Indoor environment
Environmental Condition(s) Symptoms
• Ergonomic Conditions • Headache
• Noise and Vibration • Fatigue
• Poor Concentration
• Dizziness
• Tiredness
• Headache with nausea
• Ringing in ears
• Pounding heart
• Relative Humidity • Dry throat
• Shortness of breath or bronchial asthma
• Irritation and infection of respiratory tract
• Relative Humidity • Nasal problems (stuffiness, irritation)
• High Temperatures
• Warm Air • Skin problems (dryness, irritation, rashes)
• Low Relative Humidity
• Excessive Air Movement
• Artificial Light • Eye problems (burning, dry gritty eye)
Most people
spend at least
half of their
lives indoors.
Poor indoor air Indoor air can
INDOOR
quality can be be more harmful
AIR
more harmful than outdoor
CONCERNS
for children . air.
Poor indoor air
quality can
cause
respiratory
problems.
Based on Specific Building
Combustion
Furniture Chemical
activity
Building
Food Water
materials
Smoking Outdoor air
activity pollution
Sources of Indoor Pollutants
Condition associated with
complaints of discomfort
including headache; nausea;
dizziness; dermatitis;
eye, nose, throat, and
respiratory irritation;
coughing; difficulty
concentrating; sensitivity to
odors; muscle pain; and
fatigue.
Sick building syndrome
Contamination Contamination
Inadequate
from inside from outside
ventilation 52%
building 16% building 10%
Contamination
Microbial Unknown sources
from building
contamination 5% 13%
fabric 4%
Cause of SBS
Personal factors
(health, psychology, sociology Air temperature Mean radiant temperature
& situational factors)
Air movement / velocity (see Relative humidity (see also
Insulative clothing
wind chill factor) perspiration)
Activity levels.
Thermal Comfort
GRIHA
Natural
Lighting
Heat
Acoustics is the interdisciplinary science that deals
with the study of all mechanical waves in
gases, liquids, and solids
including vibration, sound, ultrasound and infras
ound. A scientist who works in the field of
acoustics is an acoustician while someone
working in the field of acoustics technology may
be called an acoustical engineer. The application
of acoustics can be seen in almost all aspects of
modern society with the most obvious being the
audio and noise control industries.
Acoustics
How to Control/ Eliminate
Indoor Air Pollutants
Don’t Smoke inside Pay attention to Check combustion
the home. housekeeping. appliances.
Control/ eliminate
Test your home for excess
Radon moisture
• Improve home ventilation
Have
Never run your
furnace, flues, ch
car inside an
imney inspected
attached garage
and cleaned
Install a carbon
Never use
monoxide
unvented space
detector
heaters/ gas logs
in your home
Control Moisture In and Around the Home
Repair leaks and drips
Check to be sure clothes dryer vented to outside
Move water from gutters and downspouts away
from house
Use ventilating fan in kitchen and bathroom
No water in crawl space
are fungi that grow in the form of multicellular filaments called hyphae.
MOULDS
HIGH INFLAMMATORY MEDIATORS
FOUND IN NASAL FLUIDS OF PERSONS IN
DAMP BUILDINGS
MITES, BACTERIA, MOLDS, ENDOTOXINS ALL
CONTRIBUTE
MINIMIZED BY HUMIDITY & MOISTURE
CONTROL IN BUILDINGS
RADON
INDOOR AIR POLLUTION: RADON
• In 1990 EPA placed indoor air pollution at the top of the list of
18 sources of cancer risk
• Indoor pollution is rated by risk analysis scientists as high-risk
health problem for humans
• Radon is one of the three most dangerous indoor air
pollutants, along with cigarette smoke and formaldehyde
• Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer, after
smoking
• Nearly 1 in 15 homes in the U.S. has high level of indoor radon
• Homes with high radon level can be fixed
A. Cracks in concrete slabs
B. INDOOR AIR POLLUTION: RADON
Spaces behind brick walls
C. Pores and cracks in concrete
blocks
D. Floor wall joints
E. Exposed soil as in a sump
F. Weeping tile, if drained to open
sump
G. Mortar joints
H. Loose fitting pipe penetrations
I. Open tops of block walls
J. Building materials such as some
rocks
K. Water, from some wells
INDOOR AIR POLLUTION:
Radon Resistant-Construction RADON
Techniques
A. Gas Permeable Layer
B. Plastic Sheeting
C. Sealing and Caulking
D. Vent Pipe
E. Junction Box
Other radon reduction
techniques include
sealing, home/room
pressurization, heat recovery
ventilation and natural
ventilation.
BIOCHAR URINALS
TAPPING NITROGEN FROM URINE
OF ANIMALS AND PEOPLE USING
BIOCHAR
OTHER BIOCHAR
APPLICATIONS
BIOCHAR BRICKS, GREEN BUILDINGS
TRADITIONAL HOUSE
References
• http://icmr.nic.in/bumay01.pdf
• http://www.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/fil
es/who%20guidelines%20for%20indoor%20ai
r%20pollution.pdf
• http://www.slideshare.net/saibhaskar/climate
-change-and-green-buildings
• http://....
