Environment-friendly structures save energy, architect says

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Philippines – If there are stimulus packages to deal with the global financial crisis, green buildings, green homes and green malls would likely deal with what we call the “inconvenient truth" – global warming. Imagine a house or a mall with a roof that collects rainwater and stores it in a small reservoir for recycling; instead of big fluorescent bulbs to light the whole mall, there is sunlight through passive solar, active solar, and photovoltaic techniques; and imagine a building that saves 30 to 70 percent of energy use without using splitters? “Green buildings are environment friendly because they increase efficiency of resource use like energy, water and other materials through better designs," said architect Nestor Arabejo, international liaison of the Philippine Green Building Council and principal of Ecotektonika. Arabejo was one of the resource speakers of the Green Retail Agenda with the theme, “Shaping the Future" held on April 6 at Cinema 5, SM City Pampanga. Arabejo said the perceived advantage of the green buildings include: 8-9 percent cheaper in operating cost, 7.5 percent increase in building value, 6.6 percent improvement in return on investment, 3.5 percent increase in occupancy and 3 percent increase in rent. He presented the concept of ecoKubo, a design that won the second prize of the Pinakamagandang Bahay sa Balat ng Lupa 2008 with 35 entries in the student category and 44 entries in the professional category. The ecoKubo’s gross floor area is 40 percent totally enclosed with walls while 60 percent of the house has one or two walls open to the outside for views, natural daylight and ventilation. Arabejo said the traditional “bahay kubo" uses a space outside the “kubo" to receive guests while the ecoKubo follows this tradition by having a space for social activity outdoors. The modest project design, with an estimated P750,000 budget, uses a rice straw bale system, a bamboo reinforced concrete system, bamboo screens and bamboo slats flooring for all the social areas. “It also aims to achieve net-zero water and net-zero energy efficiencies. EcoKubo was designed to follow the varied life patterns of the dwellers, from the entrance ramp for handicap accessibility to the adaptable sleeping areas," said Aberoja on his blog. EcoKubo’s main sustainable design objective is for the house to be a vital part of the site’s ecosystem, he added. Best practices Aside from planning to build ecoMalls, SM City Pampanga Assistant Mall Manager John Lo said that all SM malls have started implementing energy saving and environment-friendly practices. “We already have waterless urinals, lavatories with less water usage. We initiated various activities that promote environmental awareness and we joined in the Earth Hour last March 28," Lo said. He also mentioned the recycling market activities held in all SM malls nationwide. In her presentation, The Body Shop marketing head Marcela Mae Pabellano said that their products are environment-friendly and 100 percent “vegetarian," which means they don’t use animal ingredients. “We are against animal testing so we don’t test our products on animals." In all their 2,500 stores worldwide, Pabellano said the bags they use are made of recycled materials while their organically-grown cotton bag is produced without the use of harmful pesticides. “Our green credentials: why waste something when you can re-use, refill, and recycle it," said Pabellano quoting their founder, the late Dame Anita Roddick. - GMANews.TV