How Green Buildings Are a Saving Grace
The construction industry grapples with the substantial challenge of balancing high living standards with ecological sustainability. Buildings must not only provide shelter but also deliver essential physiological comforts. These include visual comfort, which allows occupants to perform daily tasks efficiently, and thermal comfort, which ensures a suitable indoor temperature year-round. These comforts can be provided through natural or artificial means. The key challenge is to achieve these comforts without compromising the sustainability of the building process and the buildings themselves.
According to Construction Week, as green buildings have gained prominence over the years, both developers and consumers are focusing on sustainable green practices. To further throw light on this, India ranked third in the USGBC annual list of top 10 countries and regions in the world for LEED certification in 2023. PK Mishra, VP, planning and procurement, Sattva Group, says, “We adopt fly ash bricks as an alternative to conventional clay bricks. It contributes to the reduction of environmental pollution and minimises the need for landfill disposal of this industrial waste. We use ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE) roofing at podium for exterior cladding, which reduces the temperature by 4o C.”