[G516]Green And Sustainable Design

So many people are talking about building green. Why? Each day, it seems we learn more and more about how we negatively affect our environment-- and our whole planet. Nobody likes to believe that their home and their lifestyle does real damage to the planet. After all, we just want to support our families and have a high quality of life, right?
But our homes do harm the planet. Because of this, it’s important for homeowners and builders to be knowledgeable about building green (or “sustainable design").
Building green refers to the concept of designing and constructing long-term sustainable buildings that have the lowest possible negative impact on the environment. To do this, green builders must be efficient in the use of resources and use fewer environmentally harmful processes and building materials than traditional builders. How well does green building work? Data from USGBC suggests that green buildings require 35% less energy, use far less non-renewable materials, and send less waste to rot in landfills. Almost as important, building green makes for both safer and healthier offices and homes.
What are the Main Considerations when Building Green?
When building green, the mail goal is to maintain a high quality of life while lowering the impact a home has on the environment. Sustainable designers generally consider the following design features when building green:
Efficient Energy Use. Energy is the key “green concern". As they’re being built, green buildings should use processes and products which require less energy. A green building should also have a high energy efficiency in the long term, integrating design features like comprehensive insulation and “passive solar design," which supplies thermal protection to a home.
When building green, many designers also include a renewable independent energy source to power (or partially power) the home. Renewable energy (such as solar energy) significantly lowers a building’s impact on the environment.
General Design. The size, site, and shape of a home have a large effect on its energy efficiency. Simple home shapes (with less outside surface area) are the most common used in building green.¬¬
Another common technique used in building green is Optimum Value Engineering, or OVE. This framing method reduces the quantity of wood used to build a home, and it also leaves more room inside the walls for insulation.
Environmentally Friendly Materials. When building green, builders use materials which are both non toxic and produced using recycled or sustainable materials. These materials should need less energy to process than traditional building materials.
Quality of Materials. Simply put, quality products last longer, and so need to be replaced less often. This both reduces waste and lowers the environmental impact of creating replacement materials.