|
Career Campus
closer to the industry's pulse.. |
|
Career Campus
commitment to find solutions.. |
|
Career Campus
pathway to SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY.. |
|
Career Campus
enlightening Industry Education..... |
|
Career Campus
promoting academic destinations.. |
|
Career Campus
the ALUMNI CONNECTOR.. |
|
Career Campus
& World Student Exchange Programs.. |
|
|
| |
|
Tribute:HH
Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, Father of the Nation |
| |
|
The Green Building Movement in UAE
and its development
The Drive for the GB Initiative
The Green Building Movement is a relatively recent
phenomenon which is gaining momentum worldwide. It
started in the USA in 1994 by Mr. David Gottfried the
founder of the U.S. Green Building Council and was
announced at the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC)
in 1998 at the kick-off of the Japan Green Building
Council in Nagoya, Japan. The WorldGBC held its founding
meeting in November of 1999 in San Francisco, California
USA, with 7 countries in attendance including Green
Building councils of U.S., Australia, Canada, India,
Mexico and Spain.
The Concept of Green Building
Green Buildings mean incorporating excellent practices
that result in environmental protection, energy
efficiency, water conservation, usage of renewable
energy and clean / recycled products. For example, by
using a compact fluorescent lamp instead of an
incandescent light bulb we can save 500 pound of pile of
coal. According to the U.S. Green Building Council a
‘Green Building’ has six major added values notably:
increasing energy performance by 25% or more; decreasing
absenteeism by 15% compared to conventional buildings;
reducing building-related illness; increasing occupants
productivity; improving health condition; and prolonging
lifecycle of buildings, said Dr. Aboulnaga, Professor in
Architecture and Sustainable Design, and Chairman of the
Green Building Core Group.
Why Green Buildings?
The global environmental problems are increasingly
threatening water and air quality and the ecosystems
which inhabitants depend on in their daily life. The
construction industry ought to be transformed from a
conventional (wasteful, harmful, and unhealthier) to a
Sustainable or High–performance Green Building that
produce less pollutants and consequently protects the
environment.
So many reasons why we should go green? Everyday, the
world uses some 320 billion Kilowatt-hour of energy, an
equivalent of 22 bulbs burning nonstop for every person
on the planet. Lacking global changes, energy
consumption from Fossil fuels has already generated CO2
in 2002 of 2.6 billion tons per year and it is expected
to increase in 2030 to 4.2 billion tons per year
(source: energy scientist Dan Kammen). Herman Scheer, a
member of the German parliament and a genial energy
leader says “if you have a big problem, you must give a
big answer”. Thus, we have to think big when it comes to
the protection of our planet, says Mohsen Aboulnaga.
The drive for the Green Building Initiative in the
UAE
Recent statistics published by Ministry of Economy & Commerce showed
that Dubai power consumption in 2004 alone was 16,363 Gigawatts-hour of
which 70% was utilized in commercial and residential buildings
(Source : Gulf News, June 10, 2005). Recent statistics
--------------------------- |
|
|
Prof. Mohsen Aboulnaga
The drive for the Green Building Initiative in the
UAE
-------------
published by Ministry of Economy & Commerce showed that Dubai power
consumption in 2004 alone was 16,363 Gigawatts-hour of which 70% was
utilized in commercial and residential buildings (Source: Gulf News,
June 10, 2005). With the skyrocketing construction boom this figure will
be increased or may be doubled in the next 5 years thus; clean and
renewable energy should be incorporated in buildings to reduce the
dependence on the grid and consequently decrease CO2 emission. Hence,
High-performance Green Building is the solution to energy efficient
buildings, conservation of water, provide healthy indoor environment and
improve productivity of occupants. In a more close aspect green Building
concept is important at it provide Indoor Environmental Quality (EIQ)
notably indoor Air Quality (IAQ). The U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) has estimated that the US spends in direct medical cost
attributable to IAQ. Considering the intensive volume of cooling load
the Gulf and particularly in the UAE due to Air-conditioning use to keep
buildings cool IAQ become a vital issue to ensure that healthy
environments are kept are highest levels.
One of the recent major developments in Europe to protect the
environment through dependence on clean and alternative energy as a
source of generating power is the building of a 200-foot blade built in
Denmark for a turbine 600 feet tall. This 5 megawatt titan, prototype
for turbines to be erected off the cost of Germany, will average enough
power for 5,000 homes.
Another excellent example is seen in Leipzig - Germany where 33,500
solar array photovoltaic panels were built, one of the world largest
arrays ever. This will generate 5 megawatt of power enough for 1,800
homes without the dependence on the grid (Source: National
Geographic Magazine, August 2005).<Abu
Dhabi N. Exhibitions Co> |