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HCP TERM PAPER

ENERGY RATING SYSTEMS IN HOUSING

SUBMITTED BY: Janani T., Maitreyi Y., ShubhiSonal, Tushar H., Somreeta Das.

Abstract: The world energy crisis is a rising matter of concern. Various countries have formulated

energy rating systems for buildings to evaluate their impact on our environment. This term paper

attempts to analyze some of the major energy rating systems and understand their implications

on the housing scenario.

Keywords: rating, energy efficiency, certifications, climate change, energy crisis

A. Introduction

A rating system is a benchmark/label that signifies the efficiency of usage of energy in a

system and how the energy consumption could be minimized yet optimized outputs be

obtained from them…

A dwelling can be rated before or after it is built. The rating, in general, depends on:

The layout of the home

The construction of its roof, walls, windows and floor

The orientation of windows and shading to the sun's path and local breezes

How well these suit the local climate.

Energy consumption by hot water systems, lights or household appliances is not part of

the rating because those fittings are usually replaced several times during the life of the

building.

B. Energy Rating and its significance

Energy Rating is highly applicable to buildings as

they are the largest contributors of carbon

emissions by generating 39% of the total carbon

emissions.

Energy efficiency is not only about reducing green

house gas emissions, it is also about social equity,

equipping people to manage their energy needs

whilst producing carbon pollutions at the least

rate.

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Rating a green building informs tenants and the public about the environmental

benefits of a property, and discloses the additional innovation and effort the owner has

invested to achieve a high performance building.

Geographic locations of Green Building Councils

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A chronological order of the rating systems and their origin.

The earlier ones were basic guidelines defining the concept of ―energy efficiency‖

however, the later ones (that came after the Earth Summit and those after the Kyoto

Protocol and Copenhagen Accord) portrayed subsequent refinement in terms of

efficiency calculation and formulation of rating as per that. Also every energy summit

witnessed a pronounced peak in the awareness level of the nations. There were

attempts made to upgrade and maintain the systems adequately with respect to the

changing trends of sustainability and its definition.

3.Origin of the concept

The need for the energy rating system arisen not merely from the fact that natural

resources are limited, which are instrumental in the production of energy that is readily

available for consumption.

It might have arisen from many other factors such as:

Colossal increase in ―green house effect‖ & the resultant global climate

changes.

World political scenario and energy consumption based on developmental

index of a country.

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4. Climate change: a matter of concern:

Climate changing and global warming have been a serious matter of concern and worry

to the international community. These concerns were reflected in the Kyoto protocol and it

was a major step in trying to control this phenomenon.

Major concerns:

Rise in earth temperature by0 .3-0.6 degrees centigrade in the last century

Rise in sea level by 15 to 25 cms

India is ranked as the 2nd most vulnerable country to climate change by the Maple

craft climate change vulnerability index (2010)

India has witnessed an average temperature rise of 1.7 degrees centigrade from

1970. A rise by 1degree reduces the wheat growing season by one week.

The report submitted by Indian network for climate change assessment also points

out that sea level is rising by 1.3mm per year and a 1m rise can displace 7 million

people.i

TIMELINE OF EFFORTS REGARDING CLIMATE CHANGE CONCERNS

1968 - Club of Rome formed

1972 - Club of Rome published ―the limits to growth‖

1972 - Stockholm Conference on man and environment

1979 - First World Climate Conference

1987 -Brundtland commission- concept of sustainable development

1987 -Montreal Protocol signed in Montreal

1988 - The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) established

1990 - Second World Climate Conference

1992 - EARTH SUMMIT: Framework Convention on Climate Change (FCCC)

signed at the UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio

1995 - The First Session of the Conference of the Parties to the FCCC (ratifying

States) in Berlin [Berlin Mandate established]

1996 - The Second Session of the Conference of Parties (COP2) in Geneva

1997 - Meetings of the Ad hoc Group on the Berlin Mandate (AGBM)

1997 - The Third Session of the Conference of Parties (COP3) in Kyoto. THE Kyoto

agreement aimed at bringing back the emission during 2008-2012 to 1990

levels

2000 - Conference held in Hague to resolve the Kyoto protocol details. Conflict

over carbon sinks between European and US experts.

2002 - Rio +10 conference held to review the situation

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5. Kyoto protocol

The Kyoto Protocol is an international agreement linked to the United Nations

Framework Convention on Climate Change. The major feature of the Kyoto Protocol

is that it sets binding targets for 37 industrialized countries and the European

community for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions .These amount to an

average of five per cent against 1990 levels over the five-year period 2008-2012. ii

The Kyoto Protocol is generally seen as an important first step towards a truly global

emission reduction regime that will stabilize GHG emissions, and provides the

essential architecture for any future international agreement on climate change.

6. Copenhagen Accord

A brief summary:

Endorses the continuation of the Kyoto Protocol.

Underlines that climate change is one of the greatest challenges of our time and

emphasizes a "strong political will to urgently combat climate change in

accordance with the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and

respective capabilities"

Emission declaration :

To date, countries representing over 80% of global emissions have engaged with

the Copenhagen Accord.

31 January 2010 was an initial deadline set under the Accord for countries to

submit emissions reductions targets, however UNFCCC Secretary Yvo De Boer

later clarified that this was a "soft deadline."

Countries continue to submit pledges past this deadline. A selection of reduction

targets is shown below. All are for the year 2020.

Compared to 1990:

EU: 20% - 30%

Japan: 25%

Russia: 15% - 25%

Ukraine: 20%

Compared to 2000:

Australia: 5% - 25%

Compared to 2005:

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Canada: 17%

US: 17%

Compared to business as usual:

Brazil: 36.1% - 38.9%

Indonesia: 26%

Mexico: 30%

South Africa: 34%

South Korea: 30%

Carbon intensity compared to 2005:

China: 40% - 45%

India: 20% - 25%

China also promised to increase the share of non-fossil fuels in primary energy

consumption to around 15% by 2020, and increase forest coverage by 40 million

hectares and forest stock volume by 1.3 billion cubic meters by 2020 from the 2005

levels.

Possible Drawbacks:

The accord itself is not legally binding.

No decision was taken on whether to agree a legally binding successor or

complement to the Kyoto Protocol.

The accord sets no real targets to achieve in emissions reductions.

The accord was drafted by only five countries.

The deadline for assessment of the accord was drafted as 6 years, by 2015.

The mobilisation of 100 billion dollars per year to developing countries will not be

fully in place until 2020.

There is no guarantee or information on where the climate funds will come from.

There is no agreement on how much individual countries would contribute to or

benefit from any funds.

COP delegates only "took note" of the Accord rather than adopting it.

The head of the G77 has said it will only secure the economic security of a few

nations.

There is not an international approach to technology.

Forgets fundamental sectoral mitigation, such as transportation.

It shows biases in silent ways such as the promotion of incentives on low gas-

emitting countries.

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With this agenda in mind, the 1st step would be to analyze how emissions could be reduced

and overall energy consumption patterns be regulated. A glance at the usage of energy

by different sectors shows that homes are a major consumer of energy.

7. Energy usage by different sectors

The Indian construction industry is the second largest employer of workforce and a major

contributor to our GDP.. This sector accounts for

more than 50% of natural resource consumption and

around 40% of energy consumption worldwide.

Some statistics which reinforce this alarming fact are:

In France 17 % of the carbon dioxide

emissions come from the construction industry

In Germany, 30 % of Carbon dioxide comes

from the construction Industry

In UK, 50 % of Carbon dioxide comes from the

construction Industry

Also, a study conducted at the

University of Limerick suggested

that houses are getting bigger,

hence directly indicating that their

energy consumption will also be

higher.

With this perspective, home energy

rating systems become a very

useful tool for evaluating and

regulating the energy consumption

and energy efficiency

performance of homes.

The primary purpose of a home

energy rating would be to make available to future tenants or buyers information on the

energy needs of the desired home. In addition to constituting an advantage for the buyer

or tenant concerned about his home‘s energy performance, the appreciation that would

result from better information on energy performance would be a major incentive for doing

work to improve home energy efficiency, particularly in the case of rental property

owners, who currently have practically no interest in improving the energy performance of

their rental units when tenants are the ones paying the energy costs.iii

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8. Major rating systems around the world:

8.1 Benefits of using rating systems:

ROLE OF ENERGY RATING SYSTEMS IN HOUSING

Energy rating systems are an important tool to measure the energy efficiency or

sustainability of a building by quantifying its negative and positive impact on the

environment. They facilitate the comparison of all kinds of products be it electrical

appliances or homes.

The Rating systems play an important role in housing sector for the reason that they

allow the users to make an informed choice about the kind of home they want to buy

or rent from the available horde of choices in the market. This leads us to the next

question as to why our homes need to be energy efficient as this is basically the main

cause for us applying the rating system that compares the energy efficiency and

sustainability of the homes. Also the extra credentials and benefits a rated home can

fetch in place of a non- rated home need to be understood to realize the full potential

of these systems.

PERSPECTIVES OF BENEFITS:-

Housing market involves a lot of stakeholders who are directly or indirectly benefitted by

the product in concern i.e. the house and have their own perspectives for reaping

benefits from the house. The major stakeholders can be viewed as

1. Owners

2. Tenants

3. Investors &

4. Property managers

OWNERS: - Their expectations are majorly concerned with

Minimizing operational costs and maximizing investment costs

Maximized performance of the building

Expedite and uncomplicated paperwork in case of new renovations and

constructions

Tax benefits

Added benefits

TENANTS:- Tenants not being the permanent residents of the house in concern have

more issues related to their liveability than the long run economic concern of the house.

Their needs are:-

Minimum utility and operational costs

A comfortable environment that improves productivity of the inhabitants

An improved quality of living

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INVESTORS:- Investors are majorly concerned with the profit and think of a home as a

potential investment. They yearn for returns and are concerned more with the value of

the house in the market. Their expectations are:

Long term value that does not have a high operational and performance risk

Authenticity or credibility that promotes the reliance on the product

PROPERTY MANAGERS:- They are intermediate parties who are involved with just the

management of the homes. Their motives are partly profit oriented and partly

consumer-benefit oriented. They have the following expectations:

Easy to manage homes with increased comfort, high performance and reduced

operating costs

Minimum complaints from the consumers

Marketability of the house

The benefits realized by energy rated homes may be classified into the following broad

categories:-

1. Structural incentives

2. Financial incentives

3. Personal incentives

4. Other incentives

5. Awareness and education among the people

STRUCTURAL INCENTIVES:-

These include physical benefits that are given by the authorities for building sustainable

homes. They include:-

Expedite paperwork and permitting process: This allows the processing of the

plans and similar such requirements to be faster and in some cases may be

exempted from the fee of processing.

E.g.:- ―Costa Mesa, CA: The city improved an incentive program which includes

expedited permitting processes for green buildings, which includes LEED certified

buildings‖

Density and height bonuses: Increasing the Floor Area Ratio for green buildings

improves the participation of private developers for constructing green buildings

as they get to earn more profit. Special tie ups may be there between the local

bodies and the municipalities for such exemptions.

Height bonuses also aid in increasing the FAR and are mostly used in urban infill

projects where space is less. But making a green building in such kind of projects

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increases the FAR inviting long term dividends for the developers and more

number of saleable units

e.g.:- “Arlington County, VA: The County’s Green Building Incentive Program, allows

commercial projects and private developments earning LEED certification to develop

sites at a higher density than conventional projects with bonuses varying depending on

the level of LEED certification”

FINANCIAL INCENTIVES:-

They cover incentives that are monetary in nature i.e. which are related to the

economizing the whole process of energy efficiency which is measured by the rating

systems. They can be of the following types:-

Tax Credits and Abatements: Tax deductions in terms of property tax and income

tax exemptions are covered under this sector.

E.g. ―State of New York: The New York State Green Building Tax Credit

Program provides an income tax incentive to commercial developments

incorporating specific green strategies informed by LEED”

Fee Reductions or Waivers: Exemptions in paying processing charges and

reduction of fees in general are incentives to create a green buildings.

E.g. ―Gainesville, Fl: In addition to an expedited permitting process, private

contractors who use LEED can receive a 50% reduction in the cost of building

permit fees”

Grants: Grants are petitions that a house owner or developer needs to submit to

the issuing authority for subsidy in the construction/ procurement costs or a

requisition seeking funds for the project.

E.g.: “Pasadena, CA: Pasadena Water and Power’s Pasadena LEED Certification

Program offers $15,000 grants for applicants who achieve LEED Certified ($20,000

for Silver, $25,000 for Gold and $30,000 for Platinum).”

Revolving Loan Funds:- This facilitates reduced interest rates and large funds to

projects which are oriented towards sustainability. Most of these funds are

designed in such a way that the instalment is lesser than the operational cost

savings from the building.

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E.g. ―Milwaukee, WI: The Milwaukee Energy Efficiency (Me2) program offers financing of

home energy retrofits for building owners and occupants with immediate savings and no

upfront costs. Using both public funds and private capital, Me2 offers longer-term

repayment for retrofits through simple additions to municipal services or utility bills at less

than the value of energy saved. Repayment schedules are attached to the home in the

event of change of owner.”

PERSONAL INCENTIVES:

These include the qualitative aspects of liveability of the house like the lighting,

ventilation, power consumption, indoor climate and other aspects of physical comfort.

The QUANTITATIVE aspects are

Reduced operational costs that is a result of low energy consumption

Incentives in manufactured products that are rated

The QUALITATIVE aspects are

Increased comfort levels within the premises

Increased productivity

Less dependence on nonrenewable sources of energy thus reducing the impact

of the built form on its environment.

OTHER INCENTIVES:-

These are allied incentives that may boost participation of developers and builders to

raise green buildings.

Technical assistance: Assistance from the government or any organization helps

in imparting the knowhow of green buildings to developers

E.g. “State of Minnesota: Established a law requiring utilities provide technical

assistance for commercial or residential projects that incorporate green building

principle”

Marketing assistance: the fact that a organization or a third party is certifying the

work of a builder adds credibility, value, authenticity and increases the

marketability of the building. The government may also partake in increasing

marketability of such buildings by advertisements and press releases.

E.g. ―Oakland, CA: Promotes the use of green building strategies in private sector

development by offering free technical assistance, green building guidelines

and public promotion for qualified projects.”

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TABLE : Summary of incentives with respect to the stake holders

INCENTIVES OWNER TENANT INVESTOR/

DEVELOPER

PROPERTY

MANAGER

STRUCTURAL INCENTIVES

Expedite paperwork and

permitting process

√ - √ -

Density and height bonuses √ - √ -

FINANCIAL INCENTIVES

Tax Credits and Abatements √ - √ -

Fee Reductions or Waivers √ - √ -

Grants √ - √ -

Revolving loan funds √ - √ √

PERSONAL INCENTIVES

QUANTITATIVE √ √ - √

QUALITATIVE √ √ - -

OTHER INCENTIVES

Technical assistance √ - √ √

Marketing assistance - - √ √

AWARENESS AND EDUCATION AMONG THE PEOPLE:

Rating systems are a blessing as they increase the awareness amongst the people

about the importance and significance of energy efficient buildings. They popularize

the concept of energy efficiency and give the people an incentive to develop such

buildings.

Hence the role of rating systems in housing may be summarized as follows:-

Help in availing incentives that are related to green buildings

Tag of authenticity

Lay down standards and schemes which are benchmarks for measures

Quantitative and qualitative measure of energy efficiency

Create awareness amongst the people about energy efficiency

ISSUES OF RATING SYSTEMS:-

Though rating systems have quite efficiently established themselves as a milestone in

the energy efficiency of housing they still have some draw backs which need to be

rectified for its better functioning. Some liabilities of the rating systems are:-

Rating index:-every rating system has different ways of allocating points to

particular criteria. Thus it makes it impossible to compare between a top rating of

one system and another.

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Rating systems are not accurate in many cases owing to lack of quality control

Sometimes the energy rating systems though may be good enough to earn a

star rating might in reality be a very costly affair. Thus the rating systems must take

considerations from feasibility point of view on a large scale

The rating systems must be accessible to the people, but unfortunately availing

the facility is costly and requires a lot of paperwork that is unfavourable.

Rating systems must not be commercialized and should focus more on genuine

rating of buildings

Standards and norm must be upgraded every year so that the latest innovations

and technologies are kept up to date

8.2 Rating systems:

A. LEED:

The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating

System, developed by The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), provides a suite of

standards for environmentally sustainable construction.

Features of LEED India

The LEED India Green Building Rating System is a voluntary, consensus – based,

market-driven building rating system based on existing proven technology. It

evaluates environmental performance from a whole building perspective over a

building‘s life cycle, providing a definitive standard for what constitutes a ―green

building‖.

The rating system is organized into five environmental categories: Sustainable

Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy & Atmosphere, Materials & Resources and Indoor

Environmental Quality.

LEED Certification: Point Rating

Different LEED versions have varied scoring systems based on a set of required

"prerequisites" and a variety of "credits" in the six major categories listed below.

• Sustainable Sites: Restore the Natural Environment

• Water Efficiency: Reduce the burden on Municipal Water supply

• Energy and Atmosphere: Reduce the effect on the environment by using

Equipment Efficiently

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• Materials and Resources: Reducing the effect on the environment by careful

selection of materials.

• Indoor Quality: Protecting the atmosphere; Low-Emitting materials

• Innovative Design: Education the importance of a Sustainable Environment

In LEED v2.2 for new construction and major renovations for commercial buildings

there are 69 possible points and buildings can qualify for four levels of

certification:

• Certified - 26-32 points

• Silver - 33-38 points

• Gold - 39-51 points

• Platinum - 52-69 points

The Cost of LEED rated Green Building

Concept of Green building is not much older, which causes lack of industry experience,

understanding and agreement on the added costs to build a new Green

Building. Some sources have claimed that there is no additional cost, and other

estimates range to over 10% of the base building cost. The information about additional

costs is discussed below.

Design Fees

Design Team requires more efforts and time for a Green Building than a normal code

obedient building.At least one of the team members (most probably mechanical

engineer) has to perform software simulations to keep an eye on energy efficiency of

the building. One extra line item that will appear on the project budget is the LEED

facilitator, an added role to coordinate the design process and help the Owner make

informed decisions to resolve conflicting priorities. The LEED facilitator is also responsible

for maintaining and expediting the substantial record-keeping task involved in all LEED

projects.

A LEED consultant will base their fees on the number of hours expected to complete the

project. A very low quote may mean that the consultant has underestimated the time

needed to complete the job. A very high quote could mean they don‘t have systems

and processes in place to execute the job efficiently or they‘ve added a contingency

to allow for a lack of green experience on the design team.

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LEED Facilitator:

• Rates are US$65/hr. to US$150/hr. depending on team member used. Total cost of

LEED Facilitation: LEED Certified $110,540; LEED Silver $111,840; LEED Gold $127,240.

(US General Services Administration, Oct 2004, Document GS-11P-99-MAD-0565,

pp.6, 403-406)

• Range of 0.5% to 0.9% of total project cost, with 0.7% as best estimate. (Northbridge

Environmental Consultants, April 2003)

• $60,000 for LEED documentation. (The Brendle Group, 2004)

Construction Cost

By their nature, green buildings must not be ―over-designed‖. Because redundancy

and oversizing leads to material waste and energy waste, the design team strives to

make sure that systems and equipment are sized carefully to meet the

requirements. This tends to drive down the cost of green buildings.

• LEED Certified 0 to 2.5% on project cost; LEED Silver 0 to 3.3%, LEED Gold 0.3 to 5.0%,

LEED Platinum 4.5 to 8.5%. (Kema Green Building Consultants, 2004)

• Overall cost increase of 1.0%to 10.3%. (David Langdon, July 2004.)

• Overall cost increase of 1% to 6%. (National Conference on Building Commissioning,

May 2007, p.4.)

Extra costs can be controlled at the design stage by following some basic principles.

1. Nail down and document the functional requirements of the building early.

Make room for early input from the mechanical, electrical, and LEED

consultants even before the site plan is prepared.

2. Make sure everyone on the design team understands their responsibilities with

respect to the LEED process and is committed to an Integrated Design Process.

3. Very systematic and professional management at the design stage as well as

the construction stage. Online collaboration tools are an excellent aid.

4. Keep the mechanical / electrical systems as simple as possible. Avoid complex

technologies that have little chance of being operated correctly once the

building is occupied.

5. Keep the owner engaged and informed, understanding the nature and impact

of decisions being made to achieve competing goals.

Buildings at the higher end of the cost scale will be those that didn‘t follow these

fundamentals of green building design.

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Advantages

LEED certified buildings use key resources more efficiently.

LEED certified buildings are healthier work and living environments, contributing

to higher productivity and improved employee health and comfort.

LEED strategy improves air and water quality, reduces solid waste.

These benefits are reaped by anyone who comes into contact with the project

which includes owners, occupants and society as a whole.

Disadvantages

LEED principles may not be well understood by the design professionals

undertaking the project leading to more time for research.

Ahigher-than-orthodox standard of service from the construction team could

possibly lead to misunderstandings between the design team, construction

team, and client, resulting in delays.

There may be a lack of abundant availability of manufactured building

components which meet LEED standards.

Pursuing LEED certification for a project is an added cost in itself as well.

These high initial constructional costs can be effectively mitigated by the savings

incurred over time due to the lower-than-industry-standard operational costs

which are typical of a LEED certified building.

LEED CERTIFIED BUILDINGS IN INDIA

LEED - Platinum Rated

CII-Sohrabji Godrej Green Business Centre, 63% Energy Savings

Wipro Technologies (Gurgaon), 40% Energy Savings

ITC Green Centre (Gurgaon), 45% Energy Savings

LEED - Gold Rated

NEG-Micon India (Pvt) Ltd (Chennai)

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B. BASIX, New Southwales, Australia

BASIX is one of the most robust sustainable planning measures in Australia, delivering

equitable and effective water and greenhouse gas reductions. iv

Mode of access:

It is an online program that is

accessible to anyone. The user (usually

the building designer) enters data

relating to the house or unit design -

such as location, size, building

materials etc - into the BASIX tool.

BASIX analyses this data and

determines how it scores against the

Energy and Water targets. The design

must pass specific targets (which vary

according to location and building

type) before the user can print the

BASIX Certificate.

BASIX is flexible and easy to use, allowing users to determine how they will meet targets

from a wide range of options such as rainwater tanks, water-saving fixtures, improved

insulation, passive solar orientation, natural lighting and native plants for gardens.

Use:

Every development application for a new home must be submitted to Council with a

BASIX Certificate. BASIX uses information such as site location, house size, type of

building materials and fittings for hot water, cooling and heating. It is important to

realise that the commitments made during the BASIX process are shown on the final

certificate and must be marked on the plans, and adhered to during the building

process. Any changes made to the house design means another BASIX assessment

must be completed and a new BASIX Certificate submitted to Council.

Key features:

BASIX sets clear sustainable housing targets.

BASIX provides much greater market certainty for sustainable industries, such as

manufacturers of solar hot water systems, rainwater tanks, insulation, performance

glass and storm water systems.

BASIX provides new home owners with better quality homes that are more suited to

their environment and less expensive to run.

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BASIX is subject to ongoing monitoring: since implementation, the Department has

conducted a monitoring program of 100 BASIX-compliant home designs that are

now in the development approval and construction process.

C. BREEAM:

BREEAM stands for the Building Research Establishment‘s Environmental Assessment

Method which is one of the most widely used energy efficient rating systems in the

world for assessing buildings of all typologies. It has become a model for many other

rating systems that have evolved from it and has immense credibility attached to it.

Credits are awarded in ten categories according to performance. These credits are

then totalled to give a final score that is graded on a scale of Pass, Good, Very Good,

Excellent and Outstanding. However the processes of the BREEAM are supervised by an

independent sustainability board which is a representative of all the stakeholders of the

construction industry which include designers, developers, financiers, and regulators

AIMS OF BREEAM:-

To understand the impacts of buildings on the environment and find assess

methods to mitigate them

To recognise buildings according to their environmental benefits

To provide a credible, environmental label for buildings

To stimulate demand for sustainable buildings

OBJECTIVES OF BREEAM:-

To provide market recognition to low environmental impact buildings

To ensure best environmental practice is incorporated in buildings

To set criteria and standards surpassing those required by regulations and

challenge the market to provide innovative solutions that minimise the

environmental impact of buildings

To raise the awareness of owners, occupants, designers and operators of the

benefits of buildings with a reduced impact on the environment

To allow organisations to demonstrate progress towards corporate environmental

objectives

AUTHENTICITY OF BREEAM:-

1. Quality standards: - The quality of the rating system is overlooked by the

Sustainability board as mentioned before. It overlooks the scheme documents,

standards and the BRE global networking services that helps meet the requirement

of the stake holders. In short the Board represents the decisions of the stakeholders.

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The Sustainability board is however not the apex body of the whole system. It

reports to the BRE Governing body which is a independent body that takes

decisions with respect to the BRE Global's schemes and activities.

Some of the responsibilities taken by the Sustainability board include:-

Creating awareness on the importance of new standards and certification

schemes

Proving the need for certification

Advises on the schemes, standards and modification of the same if required

Promoting public participation with uniform importance to all

Look into the grievances of the consumers and rectify the same

2. Technical integrity:- The technical committee responsible for the BREEAM

standards are highly qualified and give their expert advice on all the schemes and

issues introduced by BRE Global.

The assessment of the buildings also technically sound which are aimed at

recognising the energy efficient and environmental performance of the buildings.

Some of the criteria are:-

The assessment criteria must be genuine and must take into account the

significance of energy efficiency in buildings

Ratings must be done as per the scientific evidence

The rating must exceed the general expectations and the normal standards

prescribed by the norms and standards

Focus onto the financial feasibility of the projects

3. Commercial reliability: - The organisations licensed by the BRE Global Assessors

take the responsibility of assessments of buildings. They ensure

Healthy standards and competent products for assessment services

Mingling with the industries that may use these rating systems

Upgrade their quality and standards regularly as per the BRE Global Assessors

requirements

BREEAM SCHEME DOCUMENTS:-

The Scheme document is a technical user guide or manual that can be used to assess

the buildings. However it is not meant to be used by unqualified i.e. unapproved by the

BRE Global Assessors. But it still provides a good understanding as to the assessment

pattern and the requirements needed for a rating.

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The document covers many categories of buildings and there is a separate scheme

document for every typology of building:-

BREEAM Courts

BREEAM Education

BREEAM Industrial

BREEAM Healthcare

BREEAM Offices

BREEAM Retail

BREEAM Prisons

BREEAM Multi-residential

BREEAM Data Centres

The organization of these scheme documents is as follows:-

Issue Information: Issue ID, issue title, number of credits available for meeting the

Performance target and whether the issue forms part of BREEAM‘s minimum standards.

Aim: Formulation of objectives and identification of problems associated with the

buildings and how to mitigate them.

Assessment Criteria: The assessment criteria are case specific and hence the

buildings are assessed with respect to the bench marks.

Schedule of Evidence Required: The assessment is done with respect to some

evidences collected by the assessors. Without evidences or proof of the

performance of the building the credits cannot be awarded.

Additional Information: Other information that may support extra assessment points

or other details that may add to the compliance of the building with some

innovative techniques of energy efficiency.

Assessment criteria in scheme documents in brief:

The assessment criteria in the scheme document are concerned over ten broad topics

that are concerned with the sustainability and energy efficient norms (credit—section

weightage):

Management (10-- 0.12)

Health &Wellbeing (14—0.15)

Energy (21—0.19)

Transport (10—0.08)

Water (6--0.06)

Materials (12—0.125)

Waste (7—0.075)

Land Use and Ecology (10—0.1)

Pollution (12—0.1)

Innovation (10—0.1)

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TABLE 1: BREEAM Categories and issues under them

Management

Commissioning

Construction site impacts

Security

Waste

Construction waste

Recycled aggregates

Recycling facilities

Health and Wellbeing

Daylight

Occupant thermal comfort

Acoustics

Indoor air and water quality

Lighting

Pollution

Refrigerant use and leakage

Flood risk

NOx emissions

Watercourse pollution

External light and noise pollution

Energy

CO2 emissions

Low or zero carbon technologies

Energy sub metering

Energy efficient building systems

Land Use and Ecology

Site selection

Protection of ecological features

Mitigation/enhancement of

ecological value

Transport

Public transport network connectivity

Pedestrian and Cyclist facilities

Access to amenities

Travel plans and information

Materials

Embodied life cycle impact of

materials

Materials re-use

Responsible sourcing

Water

Water consumption

Leak detection

Water re-use and recycling

Innovation

Exemplary performance levels

Use of BREEAM Accredited

Professionals

New technologies and building

processes Source: SD5064_2_1_BREEAM_Multi_Residential_2008

STAGES OF ASSESSMENT:-

The assessments are done in two stages:-

Design Stage – for an interim BREEAM certificate

Post construction Stage – Final BREEAM certificate

DESIGN STAGE:- In this the assessment stage the planning is evaluated. The new

methods which are in the process of being applied is taken into account. However this

stage is before execution and thus does not get the credential to fetch the final

certification.

Post construction stage:- This stage is after the building is built and the respective

evidences for the appropriate assessment criteria is taken into account. This is the final

22

stage of assessment that provides concrete evidence of the energy efficiency of the

building.

There are two parts to the post construction stage:-

A post-construction review of an interim design-stage assessment

A post-construction assessment

The post construction review of an interim design stage assessment refers to the initial

design stage of assessment only but only with conclusive evidence with respect to

certain management criteria, site selection, procurement of materials etc which do get

points and rating for being energy efficient.

The post construction assessment is when the liveable spaces are monitored and then

based on their performance the rating is given. This is the final stage that makes the

building eligible for the certificate.

PROJECTS THAT ARE ASSESSED BY BREEAM:-

The projects that can be assessed by bream are the following:-

New Construction: New structure that is about to be erected, there

Major refurbishment to existing buildings

New construction to an existing building i.e. an extension of existing building

A combination of new construction and major refurbishment to an existing building

New construction or major refurbishment, which forms part of a larger mixed use

building

New Construction: This is a new structure that is about to be erected and hence the

concept of design assessment is more valid here.

Refurbishment to existing buildings:- This stage also requires planning and meticulous

management so that the existing buildings are not affected. But rating will be credited

to the building as a whole.

New construction to an existing building:- This may be the extension or addition to an

existing building. Assessment is done for the complete building at the end. So suppose

the existing building has a BREEAM rating then the assessment is given finally for the

whole building as the extension may affect the quality of the other building.

Combination of new construction and refurbishment: - This is a combination of the prior

two types of construction.

23

Part of a larger mixed use development: The impact of new developments may

influence the existing structure for which the rating criteria are different as compared to

a detached building.

SCORING:-

Scoring is a process through which a building is rated on the scale of 5 of pass, good,

very good, excellent and outstanding. However to get a rating or a score there must be

compliance with the minimum standard that is set by the BRE Global.

TABLE2: BREEAM 2008 rating benchmarks

BREEAM RATING % SCORE

UNCLASSIFIED <30

PASS

≥30

GOOD ≥45

V GOOD

≥55

EXCELLENT ≥70

OUTSTANDING* ≥85

Source: SD5064_2_1_BREEAM_Multi_Residential_2008

BREEAM CREDITS FOR INNOVATION:-

Innovation here refers to new techniques that may be employed in sustainability which

are not covered under the normal BREEAM ratings. This innovation points help create

new ideas and new techniques that boost the creativity in clients. This gives extra 1%

point weightage. This innovation credit is awarded despite the minimum standard

criteria.

D. CASBEE:

CASBEE (Comprehensive Assessment System for Built Environment Efficiency) was

designed in the year 2001 as a part of a government project. Then it was tested in the

year 2002, after which specialized tools were developed for different building

typologies like New construction, Existing building and refurbishments.

24

The three basic assessment principles of CASBEE are:-

Assessment through lifecycle of the building

Assessment of built environment quality and built environment load

Assessment based on BEE indicator

The rating system can be put to the following uses:-

To check the environmental performance of the building

The CASBEE brand helps in increasing the value of the built space in

environmental terms

It can be used to monitor buildings for its entire life time and to generate

proposals for the same

ASSESSMENT:-

CASBEE assess by two ways, the Quality (Built Environment Quality) and Load (Built

Environment Load).

Quality (Q):- the Built Environment Quality evaluates the amenities with respect

to the users. It is further divided in to three subcategories of 1. Q1-indoor

environment, 2. Q2-Quality of services and 3. Outdoor environment on site

Load (L):-The Built Environment Load evaluates the impact of the built form on

the environment. These are categorised as 1. L1-Energy, 2. L2-Resources and

materials and 3. L3- Off site environment.

Building Environment Efficiency (BEE):- It is the indicator calculated from Q and L given

by:-

Building Environment Quality (BEE)=Q/L

The Graph above indicates that steeper the line better is the efficiency.

SALIENT FEATURES:-

Different criteria for different building typologies and scale i.e. housing scale,

building scale and urban scale

Every assessment is context based and follows context specific assessing criteria

It is a software tool which is assessed by certified professionals

25

E. NatHERS: Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme

NatHERS is an initiative of Commonwealth, State and Territory Governments through the

Ministerial Council on Energy. The role of NatHERS Steering Committee is held by the

Energy Efficiency Working Group (E2WG) of the Ministerial Council on Energy and the

role of NatHERS National Administrator is held by the Department of the Climate

Change and Energy Efficiency on behalf of E2WG.

- NatHERS provides a framework that allows various computer software tools to

rate the potential energy efficiency of Australian homes.

- It defines the minimum set of information that must be used by all software tools.

- NatHERS provides for energy rating assessors to be registered by Assessor

Accrediting Organisations.

Miscellaneous characteristics defining its software correlation:

Building material performance characteristics – that are in compliance with the

Australian or International Standards.

Design interpretation guidelines – which help in design of spaces that follow the comfort

parameters etc.

Weather files- a complete record of the climate and weather of the regions over a time

period

Rating:

Zero stars means the building shell does practically nothing to reduce the

discomfort of hot or cold weather.

A 5 star rating indicates good, but not outstanding, thermal performance.

Occupants of a 10 star home are unlikely to need any artificial cooling or

heating.

Accredited NatHERS software tools

Some of the accredited NatHERS tools are:

AccuRate (Version 1.1.4.1)

AccuRate Sustainability Version 2.0.2.13x

BERS Professional (Version 4.2.110811)

FirstRate 5 v 5.1x

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F. Some other rating systems in Europe:

Rating

System

Country Developed Remarks

DCBA Holland Developed at a time when the country‘s aim

was to reduce the energy consumption in

newer buildings by 25% and water consumption

by 10% and towards significant reduction in

GHG‘s by 2002.

Catogorised buildings into 4 levels of

interventions:

i. Autonomous situation with near zero

environmental impact.

ii. Little environmnetal impact

iii. Conventional Construction with

reduced environmental damage.

iv. Conventional Construction

Beat 2000 Scandinavia Utilizes a software tool known as Building

environmental Assessment Tool which combines

data on values of life-cycle, energy sources and

green house gas emissions.

Gronlund

LCA-tool

software

Finland Provides data on the life-cycle of the buildings

HQE system France Standard for green building, based on

sustainable development

Minergie Switzerland Aims to promote rational use of energy, use of

renewable energy services, reduced pollution,

etc.

RT 2000 France Has to be followed by all new buildings by 2001.

Aims at reducing energy consumption in

buildings by 20%. Highlighted need for

retrofitting old buildings.

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9. Policy tranisitions from Global Level to Grass Root levels.

The above is aschematic chart drawn to understand the translation of policies drawn at

the global level and their penetration to the lower most administrative systems.

The results and implications of global summits such as the Kyoto Protocol and the

Copenhagen Summit influence the policy framework adopted by the MNRE. Energy

Efficiency aspect was included in the 8th five year plan itself (1992-1997) but only as a

measure for saving energy consumption.

It can be observed that after the Kyoto Protocol in 1997, the 9th five year plan (1997-

2002) drafted in India made provisions for a plan which included passing of Energy

Conservation act and setting up of Bureau of Energy Efficiency of which the Energy

Conservation Act was only established in 2001 and under which the BEE was passed

only in march 2002. This reflected directly on formulation of a NBC in 2005 which was

aimed at including certain regulations for all new constructions besides formualtion of

the IGBC and GRIHA- Indian Green rating system.

28

10.Energy Rating and Energy Efficient Buildings in the Indian scenario:

India, with a GDP of 8.9% is regarded as the second fastest growing economy in the

world. This has led to major investments in the urban infrastructure sector. A study

indicates that the amount of energy consumption in the Indian buildings (residential

and commercial) has increased consistently by 8% annually. Thus, the energy

consumption has increased from 14% in 1970 to 33% in 2004-05. Since the building sector

forms a major industry in the energy consumption scenario, it is essential to address

energy efficiency by adopting energy rating systems.

It is observed that the building industry in the Indian context underwent rapid growth

since 1991. The architectural style majorly adopted by the construction industry was

much similarto that of the western culture and did not take into purview the Indian

Climate and the Context. The sudden boom in the construction industry and

particularly that of the retail and commercial has led to the increase in consumption of

energy in the construction industry. The use of materials with high embodied energy,

such as aluminum, steel and the external glazing have all led to the heat gain factor. In

addition, the changing lifestyle calls for use of heating and cooling equipments such as

the Air Conditioners, the room heaters, and other electrical appliances for heating and

cooling. This triggered the need for developing a secure system that ensures energy

efficiency.

11.Inclusion of Energy Efficiency in 5 Year Plans:

The Kyoto Protocol had a major impact on the Indian Energy Sector and the outcomes

that followed were making provision for energy conservation and energy efficiency in

the plans drawn from then on.

The 8th five Year plan made a provision of Rs. 14 billion (USD 0.3 billion) for energy

efficiency to provide targeted energy savings of 5000 MW & 6 million tonnes in

electricity and petroleum sectors respectively. This was the first time energy efficiency

was targeted but had no association with the building industry.

The 9th five-year plan (1997-02) proposed the passing of Energy Conservation act and

setting up of Bureau of Energy Efficiency.

11th Five Year Plan (2007-12):Aims to increasethe energy efficiency by 20%.

12th Five Year Plan:

- Realised that increaing energy efficiency, is the only way to meet the energy

demand without endangering growth and thus, received maximum priority in

the twelfth plan.

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- The Expert group recommends for Low carbon Strategies for inclusive Growth

and the suggested Policy Actions was the need to evolve and institutionalise

Green Building Codes at all levels of government – centre, state and ULB‘s.

- A major challenge for the 12th five year plan is also to integrate green and clean

technology into the existing research, development and innovation. Emphasis is

laid on exploration of traditional knowledge and practices.

A technical group formulated by Karnataka State, mentioned that if efficient

appliances can reduce the demand for power to a certain extent, then the design and

the structure of the building can act as a multiplier in reducing the overall demand. This

highlights the changing approach to energy efficiency in buildings and the rising

importance of buildings to adhere to energy rating systems.

For instance, the Karnataka State has made it mandatory for all new government

buildings in the state to achieve 3 or 4 star GRIHA rating.

The current attempts for achieving energy efficieny in buildings that have been carried

on are due to the initatives of mentioned by the

i. Ministry of Power

ii. Ministry of New and Renewable Sources of Energy,

where they have emphasised on programmes that focus on generating more

energy and use of renewable energy and implementation of passive

techniques in construction of newer buildings.

The first government initiative towards energy efficiency in buildings was taken by the

Indian parliament by passing the Energy Conservation Act, 2001 that led to the

establishment of the Bureau of Energy Efficiency. This led to the formulation of the

Energy Conservation Building Codes (ECBC) as India‘s first effort towards energy

efficiency in buildings.

The ECBC(Energy Conservation Building Code) program‘s objective is to reduce the

baseline energy consumption by supporting adoption and implementation of building

energy codes. These codes consider the account location and occupancy of the

buildings and provide minimum standards that can be followed to reduce the energy

demand of the buildings through design and construction practices while enhancing

the occupant comfort.

The Bureau of Indian standards formulated the National building Code as a unified

guide that has to be followed by municipalities and development authorities in framing

and adoption of building bye Laws. This was done primarily, as the building byelaws in

India are framed under the state governments and thus vary across India. In the revised

30

The state-wise status of activities for the

implementation of ECBC

NBC 2005, provision has been made for the aspects of energy conservation and

sustainable development.

In 2001, for the first time, USGBC‘s LEED rating was applied to the Indian Building Sector.

It was for the first time then, that a building from Hyderabad (CII-IGBC) was rated

platinum outside India.

BEE: Bureau of Energy Efficiency

Mission:

The mission of Bureau of Energy

Efficiency is to "institutionalize"

energy efficiency services, enable

delivery mechanisms in the country

and provide leadership to energy

efficiency in all sectors of the

country. The primary objective

would be to reduce energy

intensity in the economy.

Sectors served by BEE:

Lighting

Building

Appliances

Agriculture

Municipiality

Industries

The rating system and BEE’s role:

The BEE Star Energy Efficiency Labels have been created to standardize the

energy efficiency ratings of different electrical appliances and indicate energy

consumption under standard test conditions.

However for buildings, the Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC) –

launched in 2007 by the Ministry of Power, Govt of India is directly applicable.

The labels for all the sectors are in the form of star ratings. These labels indicate

the energy efficiency levels through the number of stars highlighted in colour on

the label.

The BEE Star Labels include a Star Rating System that ranges from One Star (least

energy efficient, thus least money saved) to Five Stars (most energy efficient, thus

most money saved)

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But, since the majority of Indian buildings are designed differently in comparison to that

of the buildings in developed countries, there is a need to have a rating system that

addresses to the Indian environment and context. The simplest of example is that of air-

conditioning as a a fundamental requirement in buildings and rating systems across the

world, whereas in India buildings are designed to be non-air conditioned. Most of the

internationally devised rating systems are framed to suit the building industry of the

country where they were intially developed.

Inorder to bridge this differences in the international systems and the approach

followed in India, TERI – The Energy and Resources Institute developed a new rating

system - GRIHA (Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment).

This system was formulated to specifically prioritize on national concerns of India such

as extreme resource crunches in the Power and water sectors and a fast eroding

biodiversity as already mentioned. It stressed on the solar passive techniques for

achieving optimization of indoor visual and thermal comfort and relying on

refrigeration based air-conditioning systems only in cases of extreme discomfort.

Thus, India currently has two major rating systems:

- LEED India, run by the Indian Green Building Council, which is more concerened

with the energy efficiency measures in AC buildings and

- Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment (GRIHA), keeping in view of the

Indian agro-climatic conditions and in particular the preponderance of non-AC

buildings, a National Rating System.

11.1 GRIHA (Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment)

It is the National Energy Rating system of India. The system of GRIHA has been

conceptualized by TERI – The Energy and Resources Institute and has been formulated

in collaboration with the Ministry for New and Renewable Energy. The GRIHA is a green

building ‗design evaluation system‘ and is considered to be applicable for all types of

buildings situated in the different parts of the country with different climatic conditions.

The motto of GRIHA is to bridge the gap between the International rating systems and

the Indian context and conditions. The rating system consists of a GRIHA evaluation tool

which provides scope for users to register their projects into the interactive tool and also

participate in the regulation of the progress.

GRIHA as a rating tool was initially developed for those interested in the construction

industry with the aim of building green and sustainable structures. GRIHA evaluates the

environmental performance of a building holistically over its entire life cycle.

32

The stages of the life cycle that have been identified for evaluation are:

1. Pre-construction stage (intra- and inter-site issues like proximity to public

transport, type of soil, kind of land, location of property, the flora and fauna on

the land before construction activity starts, the natural landscape, and land

features).

2. Building planning and construction stages (issues of resource conservation and

reduction in resource demand, resource utilization efficiency, resource

recovery and reuse, and provisions for occupant health and well-being). The

prime resources that are considered in this section are land, water, energy, air,

and green cover.

3. Building operation and maintenance stage (issues of operation and

maintenance of building systems and processes, monitoring and recording of

energy consumption, occupant health and well-being, and also issues that

affect the global and local environment).

All buildings, except for industrial complexes and housing colonies, which are in the

design stage, are eligible for certification under GRIHA. Buildings include offices, retail

spaces, institutional buildings, hotels, hospital buildings, healthcare facilities, residences,

and multi-family high-rise buildings.

The current rating system of GRIHA comprises of 34 criteria under the following four main

sections:

1. Site Selection and Site Planning

The objective of which is to maximize the conservation and utilization of

resources (land, water, natural habitat, fauna, and energy conservation) and

enhance efficiency of the systems and operations.

2. Building Planning and Construction

The objective this section is to maximize resource (water, energy, and materials)

conservation and enhance efficiency of the system and operations

3. Building Operation and Maintenance

The objective being to validate and maintain ‗green‘ performance levels/ adopt

and propagate green practices and concepts.

4. Innovation

Innovation points are available under the rating system for adopting criteria

which enhance the green intent of a project, and the applicant can apply for

the bonus points.

33

Some of the probable points are:

- Alternative transportation

- Environmental education

- Company policy on green supply chain

- Lifecycle cost analysis

- Enhanced accessibility for physically/mentally challenged

- Any other criteria proposed by the client

Scoring

GRIHA is a guiding and performance-oriented system where points are earned for

meeting the design and performance intent of the criteria. Each criterion has a number

of points assigned to it. It means that a project intending to meet the criterion would

qualify for the points.

GRIHA has a 100 point system consisting of some core points, which are mandatory to

be met while the rest are optional points, which can be earned by complying with the

commitment of the criterion for which the point is allocated.

Points scored Rating

50–60 One star

61-70 Two star

71-80 Three star

81-90 Four star

91-100 Five star

GRIHA also provides certain incentives for construction of green buildings examples of

which are;

1. Ghaziabad Development Authority

The Ghaziabad Development Authority announced 5% extra FAR for developers

that are in compliance with a minimum of 3 star rating.

2. The PimpriChinchwad Municipal Corporation announced a rebate in the

property tax for GRIHA rated buildings.

The developers in PimpriChinchwad Municipal Corporation will get the following

discounts on the premium amount of building permission charges, as per the rating

awarded by GRIHA.

34

Discount in premium

Points Scored Rating Discount in Premium

50-60 * 10%

61-70 ** 20%

71-80 *** 30%

81-90 **** 40%

91-100 ***** 50%

For home owners

Once the construction is complete, the developer will hand over the green building to

the flat owners, and henceforth, the flat owners of the green building will get a discount

of 10% on property tax.

3. SBI Green Home Loan

The State Bank of India has announced the following incentives in home loans for

the GRIHA projects.

Product

feature Values for SBI Green Home Loan

Margin

5% less than the margin stipulated for SBI Home Loan, subject to

the condition that the margin does not go below 15% under any

condition

Interest rate

0.25% concession (Instead of 0.10% being offered presently)

Maximum cumulative interest rate concession will be within the

ceiling prescribed from time to time (presently 0.25%).

(Note - Concession shall not be applicable on 8% interest rate

under SBI Happy Home Loan Offer, as well as 8.5% and 9.25% rates

under SBI Special Loan Offer).

35

11.2 LEED in Indian Context?

GRIHA has incorporated most criteria developed by LEED which was adopted by the

Indian green Building Council in 2001along with certain changes that contribute to a

rating system which suits the Indian Context. Besides, Buildings need to obtain a GRIHA

rating as made mandatory by the MNRE for availing financial benefits and subsidies

that are allotted under the green development by the GoI. MNRE also provides rebate

in property tax for buildings with a Green Certification.

The fundamental difference in both the rating systems is a that the since LEED

originated in the US, where basic construction norms and regulations such as

construction worker safety, health & sanitation, minimum visual and thermal comfort

are strictly complied with and without which construction approvals are not granted.

LEED‘s criteria assumes adherence to these basic codes and norms which may not be

mandatory in India.

GRIHA is compliant with the basic codes and norms prescribed by Indian standards

such as the National Building Code (NBC), Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC)

and Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), by selectively enforcing a few of these even

though they may not be required by local development authorities for construction

approvals. This helps in ensuring that basic standards are achieved along with

environmental performance.

1. Also, as discussed earlier, GRIHA has focusses on non-airconditioned buildings, which

are designed in view of the climate and the context of the region such that thermal

comfort is achieved without the use of mechanical interventions. GRIHA‘s criteria

provide more credit to climate responsive architecture and design to minimise energy

use compared to LEED criteria considering the situation of energy consumption in India.

2. GRIHA requires, has a mandatory criterion, where 1 per cent of the total energy

needs for the development to be sourced from solar power. Plus, the quality of ground

water in India is not guaranteed as in other countries such as the U.S. Therefore, GRIHA

mandates the treatment of ground water for drinking and irrigation.

3. LEED does not evaluate acoustical comfort. GRIHA requires adherence to Central

Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and NBC guidelines for acceptable outdoor and indoor

noise levels.

Thus, GRIHA is more comprehensive.

36

Incentives and subsidies by the MNRE:

1. Buildings achieving a minimum of 3-star GRIHA rating will be eligible for

reimbursement of registration fees and cash incentives to their architects and

consultants.

2. Financial support for solar PV installations is also being offered.

3. Offers Rs.50 lakhs to municipal corporations and Rs.25 lakhs to other urban local

bodies that announce rebate in property tax for GRIHA rated buildings and

make it mandatory for new government and public sector buildings to be rated

under GRIHA.

Today, LEED is widely recognized across the globe as the rating system most preferred

for eco-friendly development. Whereas, the incentives from MNRE and its relevance to

the Indian context makes GRIHA a viable option to government, quasi-government

and private corporations with a predominantly Indian customer base.

TERI GRIHA has adopted the ECBC within its framework and thus promises to deliver

buildings in conformance to the ECBC. Along with new buildings, there is also a large

number of existing buildings that need to be renovated or retrofitted from an energy

efficiency point of view, for which the BEE has planned for conducting energy audits of

buildings.

11.3 IGBC

VISION

To enable a sustainable built environment for all and facilitate India to be one of the

global leaders in sustainable built environment by 2025.

IGBC Green Homes Rating System

Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) Green Homes is the first rating programme

developed in India, exclusively for the residential sector. It is based on accepted

energy and environmental principles and strikes a balance between known established

practices and emerging concepts. The system is designed to be comprehensive in

scope, yet simple in operation.

Benefits of Green Homes

A Green Home can have tremendous benefits, both tangible and intangible. The

immediate and most tangible benefit is in the reduction in water and operating energy

costs right from day one, during the entire life cycle of the building.

37

Tangible benefits

Energy savings : 20 - 30 %

Water savings : 30 - 50%

Intangible benefits

Enhanced air quality,

Excellent day lighting,

Health & wellbeing of the occupants,

Conservation of scarce national resources

Enhance marketability for the project.

Eligibility

IGBC Green Homes Rating System is a measurement system designed for rating new

residential buildings which include construction categories such as

Individual homes

High rise residential apartments,

Gated communities

Row houses

Existing residential buildings which retrofit and redesigned in accordance with the IGBC

Green Homes criteria.

IGBC Green Townships Rating System

IGBC continuously works to provide tools that facilitate the adoption of green

building practices in India. The development of 'IGBC Green Townships Rating

System' is another important step in this direction.

The rating system is designed to address large developments and it is mandatory to

include residential development as part of the township. Some typical examples of

large scale developments are integrated townships, satellite cities, gated

communities, campuses with multiple buildings etc.

38

However, it is to be noted that the rating system is not applicable for individual

buildings and land parcels.

Townships

IGBC Green Townships rating system is applicable for large developments &

townships. Townships can be predominantly commercial, industrial or retail but

should necessarily comprise of a residential component. Atleast 25% of the total

built-up area (in sq. m.) within the township should be earmarked for residential use,

for it to qualify for certification.

The 'IGBC Green Townships Rating System' is designed to address the issues of urban

sprawl, automobile dependency, social and environmental disconnect.

Developments are evaluated on the following broad aspects:

Environmental planning & Large Developments

Land Use planning

Resources management

Community development

12. Economics of energy labels on the housing market:

As we appreciate the importance of having a mandatory energyrating system for

homes, it becomes important to analyse and understand what role do market

economics play in this realm.

The Netherlands was one of the first to experience the formal introduction of energy

labels for residential dwellings in January 2008. Various studies were carried out to

explore how the market dynamics work with respect to this new commodity of

energy certification.

In a study conducted by Dirk Brounen and Nils Kok, Maastricht University, Netherlands

the following findings were postulatedv:

Regarding implementation of energy labels:

energy labels are adopted at a declining rate, lead by negative sentiment in the

public media.

More heterogeneousdwellings of moderate size, constructed post-war, and

between 1970 and 1990, are most likely to be labeled, but thermal and other

quality characteristics of the home have no relation to the label adoption rate

The rating is NOT an indicator of superior housing.

labeled dwellings are mostly located in neighbourhoods where density ishigher,

monthly household incomes are lower.

39

results imply that the initial lack of transparency in labeling practices, in

combination with the current legislation regarding energy performance

certification that provides a simple escape clause, hinders a complete uptake of

energy labels in the market.

Regarding effect on the housing market:

homebuyers are willing to pay a premium for homes that have been labeled as

more energy efficient, or ―green‖.

this price premium varies with the label category of the energy performance

certificate and is immune to variations in housing quality.

The energy performance certificate is instrumental in creating transparency in the

energy performance of a dwelling .

40

12.1 Challenges in Universal Implementation:

In a country like India which is grappling with acute housing shortages, the main challenge

lies in providing homes for all. In such a scenario it is but obvious that the objectives need to

be prioritized and achieving 100% energy rating for homes can at present only be a sub

priority. It has been often observed that any energy certification requires considerable

amount of time , money, user initiative and documentation. Adequate awareness needs to

be spread regarding the access options for these rating systems. In most cases, an

individual user may require professional help or advise to follow the guidelines set by the

certification authorities.

Adherence to guidelines during the planning and design stage of the building is much

more easier . architects, engineers and building construction professionals can be the first

level of dissemination of information regarding home energy rating systems.

13. Potential sources of error in rating systems:

Most energy rating systems follow standardized procedures which have their own benefits

and risks. At times, the energy rating awarded to a home may not represent the true

picture. Some of the potential sources of error in the process are:vi

41

1. Occupant behavior:

Occupants‘ behavior is the most significant determinant of actual energy use. It was

suggested by onestudy that 54% of the variation of energy consumption was attributable to

the building envelopes and46% was for occupants‘ behaviorvii

2. Takeback effect

3. Weather changes

4. Energy prices

5. Rater inspection

6. Physical assumptions about recommended features

7. Setting standards: negotiated, life cycle cost, statistical, expert knowledge approach

14. Drawbacks in the implementation of energy efficient measures in indian scenario are:

• Failure in adopting passive techniques or certain energy efficient measures in design

and construction as a compromise for space.

• No control on the construction of energy efficient buildings due to involvement of too

many stakeholders.

• High initial building cost.

• Lack of awareness over the long-term benefits.

• Unavailability of efficient equipments in India and the increase in cost as a result of

export.

• No attractive incentives from the government.

Currently, there are 8 registered projects under GRIHA that are under construction. But,

this system has been developed for the largest upcoming energy consuming segment

of the construction industry, i.e. commercial, institutional and residential buildings (new

construction), and is in the course of developing a similar standard to address the

needs of other building typologies such as existing buildings, industrial buildings, etc.

Now, in consultation with the experts from various related fields in India, the MN&RE is

planning to develop a national rating system for green buildings, which will be a

voluntary system to be adopted by builders and individuals. The MN&RE is trying to

develop an incentive mechanism for the same as well.

In context of the implementation of building energy efficiency policies in India,

i. There is a need of an effective management system/ implementation

infrastructure for new buildings and for upgrades in existing buildings.

42

ii. There is no integrated framework for management and implementation of

energy efficiency.

iii. There is a need for an institutional framework with well-defined authority and

responsibility. The capacity of the state level bodies, which would be

responsible for the final adaptation and implementation of the energy code,

should be strengthened.

15. Conclusions

1. The government has to make implementation of GRIHA compulsory to minimise

building‘s resource consumption, waste generation and maintain the overall

ecological impact.

2. Awareness needs to be generated regarding the incentives and benefits of

following energy rating.

3. Proposal for a new universal rating systems to be formulated which can

overcome the errors and drawbacks of the present rating systems.

Through this paper we have attempted to analyze various energy rating systems, their

benefits and implications on housing. We can safely conclude that energy rating

systems are here to stay and we are on a path towards making this mandatory for all

buildings. As architects and planners it becomes our duty to spread awareness about

these measures and ensure compliance.

43

References:

1. http://www.grihaindia.org/

2. http://www.asiabusinesscouncil.org/docs/BEE/papers/BEE_Policy_India.pdf

3. http://urbanarchitecture.in/2009/10/griha-indias-answer-to-leed.html

4. http://www.scribd.com/doc/55549965/Analysis-of-GRIHA-Certified-Buildings

5. The technical report to the Karnataka State Action Plan on Climate Change

6. Chattopadhyay S, Climate change and the issue of sustainable urbanism, NCHF

bulletin, Sep- Oct-2011

7. http://unfccc.int/kyoto_protocol/items/2830.php

8. For energy efficiency :A home energy rating system, research project final report

presented to industry Canada’s office of consumer affair,

http://uniondesconsommateurs.ca/docu/energie/eeratinghouses.pdf

9. www.basix.nsw.gov.au

10. The economics of energy labels in the housing market,dirkbrounen, nilskok,

program on housing and urban policy, university of california, berkeley,

http://urbanpolicy.berkeley.edu/pdf/bk_energy_labels_nk082410_wcover.pdf

11. Accuracy of home energy rating systems jeff ross stein,building energy analysis

group, bldg 90-2000,environmental energy technology division,lawrenceberkeley

national laboratory,june 1997,

http://energy.lbl.gov/ea/reports/40394/pdf/40394.pdf

12. Towards the development of a home rating scheme for free

13. Running buildings,mariakordjamshidi, steve king and deoprasad,faculty of the

built and environment, University of New South Wales,Australia,

http://people.eng.unimelb.edu.au/lua/010.pdfviii

14. Cost of LEED (www.ee-solutions.com)

15. www.leed.net

16. Official website: http://www.leedshomes.org.uk/

17. Official website: http://www.nathers.org.au/

18. Japan Greenbuild Council (JaGBC), CASBEE brochure.

19. SD5064_2_1_BREEAM_Multi_Residential_2008

iChattopadhyay S, Climate change and the issue of sustainable urbanism, NCHF

bulletin, Sep- Oct-2011 ii http://unfccc.int/kyoto_protocol/items/2830.php

iii for energy efficiency :a home energy rating system, research project final

reportpresented to industry Canada‘s office of consumer affair,

http://uniondesconsommateurs.ca/docu/energie/eeratinghouses.pdf

ivwww.basix.nsw.gov.au

44

v the economics of energy labels in the housing market,dirkbrounen, nilskok, program

on housing and urban policy, university of california, berkeley,

http://urbanpolicy.berkeley.edu/pdf/bk_energy_labels_nk082410_wcover.pdf vi accuracy of home energy rating systems jeff ross stein,building energy analysis group,

bldg 90-2000,environmental energy technology division,lawrenceberkeley national

laboratory,june 1997, http://energy.lbl.gov/ea/reports/40394/pdf/40394.pdf

vii towards the development of a home rating scheme for free

running buildings,mariakordjamshidi, steve king and deoprasad,faculty of the built and

environment, university of new south wales,australia,

http://people.eng.unimelb.edu.au/lua/010.pdf