Green Building Practices
Last updated January 25, 2010
Green building, in simple terms, can be defined as a range of building techniques and building material sourcing methods that when combined will offer you a home, or workplace that has less of an impact on the environment than traditional building methods. The general concept behind green building is a holistic one, and that is that buildings should have as close to a zero impact on the environment as possible.
Green building usually involves or employs the following codes, practices and methodologies:
Energy Efficiency. Ensuring that energy is conserved in the building by means of insulation and use of building material(s) that have excellent insulation capabilities, along with machines and appliances that have a very high energy efficiency rating.
Water Quality Protection. Ensuring that the building does not have a dynamic impact on the water supply. This may be accomplished by using rainwater collection techniques, waste composting and in some cases waste water recycling. Also know as greywater recycling, this a accomplished by separating toilet wastewater from the cleaner wastewater used in baths and sinks which can be treated and subsequently used for irrigation, car washing or numerous other uses.
Conserving Natural Resources. The involves the use of recycled building materials such as brick, stone and wood, and supplementing these with plastic, engineered or recovered wood products such as MDF. The use fiber cement products for exterior finishes which are long lasting and provide excellent insulation, as well as the use of solar energy to power the building.
Indoor Air Quality. This is achieved and maintained by using non-toxic building and decorative materials such as paints, and using natural fiber flooring such as wool or sisal carpeting together with greater use of natural ventilation systems.
Designers of green buildings can create amazing, unique and low-impact structures through ingenuity and careful architecture, along with the use of recycled building materials.
This a just a very brief introduction to the world of green building. Read this article to learn more about the history of green building.