GREEN building now features prominently on the agenda of commercial building developers.
Since the Green Building Council of SA announced the first green rating system for office buildings, Green Star South Africa, last November, many developers have been scrambling to notch up the first green rating for an office building.
This is good news, because corporate buildings account for 20% of the world's carbon emissions.
The commercial property industry will also experience pressure from government to start developing more environmentally-friendly properties.
But this comes at a cost.
Overseas research shows that, depending on the type of building and where it is positioned, it can cost up to 5% more to build an environmentally-friendly building.
The initial higher costs are recouped over time through higher rentals and lower operating costs, but the big question is whether tenants in South Africa are now prepared to pay a premium to occupy a green building.
We'll have to wait and see.
These six plan to play ball
The office building rating system has eight categories with different weightings according to which building owners can earn points.
These categories are management, interior environmental quality, energy, transport, water, materials, land use and ecology, emissions and an additional category, innovation.
Green Building Council CEO Nicola Douglas says six development projects have been registered for grading in terms of the Green Star SA office-rating instrument.
These are the second phase of Nedbank's office development in Sandton, Absa's Absa Towers West in the Johannesburg CBD, Lincoln on the Lake in KwaZulu-Natal, and the Pegasus, Bartholomew and Falcon buildings in the Menlyn Maine development in Pretoria.
She says though not one of the developments has yet submitted a presentation for formal rating, the council expects the first application at the end of July.
It hopes to have at least one Green Star-rated office building by the time the next green building conference takes place in October.
She says the council is aware of various other developments hoping for a rating that have not formally registered yet.
Meanwhile, 750 people attended the recent one-day Green Star-accredited professional course.
Green loos in KZN
One of the most serious competitors for the first Green Star-rated office building in KwaZulu-Natal is the Lincoln on the Lake mixed-use development in the Parkside area in Umhlanga.
The 6 700m² project is being jointly developed by the listed property company Growthpoint, the Louis Group and Key Developments. When complete, the development will belong to Growthpoint.
Greg de Klerk, who heads Growthpoint's Durban office, says the design and construction of the Lincoln on the Lake development are based on environmental awareness and sustainability.
The lighting of the building will be controlled by sensors that monitor movement and lighting levels. Also, rainwater will be collected and used to flush the toilets, instead of potable water. The building design encourages the use of alternative transport.
A full 5% of the parking terrain is allocated to greener vehicles that use alternative fuels, and a further 5% to motorbikes and scooters. Storage facilities to accommodate bicycles for 6% of the building's workers are also on the cards.
In a further Green development, the Investment Property Databank (IPD) recently announced the first global environmental performance code for South African properties.
This code was developed with the backing of international companies like Barclays, Bureau Veritas and CB Richard Ellis. It sets new standards to monitor the environmental performance of corporate buildings.
Stan Garrun, IPD South Africa's MD, says the code brings internationally recognised best-practice standards to this country. "It's an instrument that will help combat the negative impact of climate change."
He observes that it is generally known that buildings are a major source of environmental pollution, and that organisations require help to measure this impact. The new code will help building owners compare their buildings' environmental performance.
- Fin24