Jakarta a step closer to getting green

buildings

Prodita Sabarini
The Jakarta Post

Jakarta | Thu, January 14 2010 | 10:18 am

The Green Building Council Indonesia (GBCI) will launch a framework

for a rating system, in a step toward a standard for newly constructed
buildings to be certified environmentally friendly, an official said.
Rana Yusuf Nasir, GBCI director of ratings and technology, said
Wednesday the framework that will be launched Friday could serve as a
test for property developers planning green buildings before the council
launches its official rating system in March or early April.
By May, certification for green buildings can begin, Rana said at the
sidelines of a discussion on rating systems for green buildings. He
noted, however, that the framework was for newly constructed
buildings. The council will start preparing a rating system for existing
buildings next week.
Rana said the official Greenship rating system for newly constructed
buildings would be decided in a national consensus scheduled for
March or early April, when all stakeholders would take part. The

stakeholders include property developers, universities, associations and

consultants.
Source: Green Building Council Indonesia
GBCI will host a green building seminar this Friday where it will
launch the framework and will also present a green building planning
pilot project: the new public works agency building. The seminar is
expected to be attended by businesses with interests in the building
sector.
The framework for the greenship rating system consists of six
categories. The first category is appropriate site development, which
include the selection of the site, storm water management, access to
public transportation, bicycle lanes, site landscaping, heat island effect
and community connectivity.
The second, energy efficiency and refrigerant, focuses on measures in
reducing energy consumption by using natural lighting, managing
ventilation and infiltration, as well as energy efficiency measures.
The third is water conservation; where the building should have water
efficient landscaping, water recycling, and rainwater harvesting systems
among others.

In the materials resources and cycle category, the council will look to
see whether the building uses environmentally processed products,
regional materials and certified wood.
The last two categories are indoor air health and comfort and building
environment management.
GBCIs Bintang A. Nugroho said the rating system was to prevent
greenwashing, a practice in which companies market products and
services using misleading or false environmental claims.
Rana said the onus was on companies to market their products as
green but that the public should scrutinize those claims.

Source:

Green Building Council Indonesia

He said it was not enough for companies to only plant trees or recycle
their water to claim they were green. He gave the example of several
property developers who claimed they were green because they had
done one or two simple things.
Rana said the greenship certification for newly constructed buildings
would only last three years.
Developers would have to apply for existing building certification
afterward, he said.

Rana said an average increase in investment of 6 to 7 percent was

needed to construct buildings that were in line with green building
standards. However, he estimated the payback period was three years.
Rana said a green building had green performance. Water and
energy efficiency mean reduced operational costs, he said.
Rana said an ideal green building could reduce water and energy usage
by 20 and 30 percent, respectively.
According to UNEP, cities occupy 2 percent of land but consume 75
percent of resources. The building sector consumes 40 percent of
energy, 30 percent of mineral resources and 20 percent of water, the UN
body said.
Bintang said the building sector could contribute to energy reduction.