"Green building skeptics sometimes argue that it's difficult or even impossible to build green without paying a big cost premium. But real-world examples show that you can complete a LEED-certified green building project for an average of 2 percent more in upfront costs, and sometimes even below standard market construction costs. Plus, any extra first costs you pay can be recovered through faster lease-up rates, rental premiums and increased market valuation. And by making experienced green building professionals a part of your team and learning to control costs, you can escape paying any green premium at all as early as your second green building project. A 2004 study by Davis Langdon Adamson, a construction cost-planning and management company, found that the first costs of constructing a sustainable building tend to match or only slightly exceed those of comparable non-green buildings. The study, Costing Green: A Comprehensive Cost Database and Budgeting Methodology, measured the square-foot construction costs of 61 buildings seeking certification under the LEED green building rating system against those of buildings of similar type that did not aim for sustainability. Taking into account a range of construction factors including climate, location, market conditions and local standards, the study found that for many of the green projects, pursuing LEED certification had little or no budgetary impact.
The study's findings also underline that incorporating and integrating green features into a project early is critical to the success of any green building project. "It is the choices made during design which will ultimately determine whether a building can be sustainable, not the budget set," the report concluded."
Source: Natural Resources Defence Council (NRDC) Fact Sheet
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"La construction durable et la création de bâtiments à haute qualité environnementale ont une meilleure rentabilité, estime Emma Ozsen. Elle nous explique les avantages de construire vert."
Thanks to its subtropical climate, the weather in Mauritius is warm all year round, attracting tourists from around the world as a fantastic holiday destination throughout the year. This means however that the amount of energy used for air-conditioning each year is enormous. Offices are another example of very high energy-consuming buildings. The amount of lighting used in typical office buildings, as well as the heat generated from internal electrical appliances and people within the building means that air-conditioning used in a typical office building is very high and so are the operational costs of the building. The New Scientist Magazine issue 2737 talks about the savings possible by using individual air-conditioning vents at desks rather than entire rooms. The research clearly showed that in countries where air-conditioning is required all year round, these systems would pay for themselves in energy savings. Results showed the building energy use was cut by 50 per cent.
