Green building boom

Global green building expected to double by 2018

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A new study has found that the percentage of companies expecting to have more than 60% of their building projects certified green is anticipated to more than double by 2018, from 18% to 37%.

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Green projects

The anticipated growth will largely be driven by countries that still have developing green markets, with firms from Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, China and India reporting dramatic growth in the percentage of their projects that they expect to certify as green.

The study from Dodge Data & Analytics, on which the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC) was a research partner, features the results of more than 1,000 survey participants from 69 countries – including Green Building Councils and their corporate members.

For the study, a green project was identified as one that is either certified or built to qualify for certification under a recognised green standard, such as LEED, BREEAM, the DGNB System, Green Star and many other tools.

Key findings

Global green building continues to double every three years.
Brazil expects six-fold growth in the percentage of companies that expect to certify the majority of their projects green. Five-fold growth is expected in China and four-fold growth is expected in Saudi Arabia (from 8% to 32%).
Building owners report seeing a median increase of 7% in the value of their green buildings compared with traditional buildings.
The most widely reported benefit globally is lower operating costs.
The top sector for green building growth globally is commercial construction, with nearly half (46%) of all respondents expecting to do a green commercial project in the next three years.
Reducing energy consumption continues to be the top environmental reason for building green (selected as one of the top two reasons by 66% of all respondents), protecting natural resources ranked second globally (37%) and reducing water consumption ranks third (at 31%).

‘This study offers further evidence on the strong business case for green building – the growth of which is now truly a global phenomenon. Green building is playing a critical role in the development of many emerging economies, particularly as their populations grow and create a pressing need for a built environment that is both sustainable and ensures a high quality of life.

‘Green Building Councils and their members around the globe will play a pivotal role in delivering this projected growth, and their leadership and expertise will be vital in realising the multiple social, economic and environmental benefits that green buildings offer.’

Terri Wills, CEO of WorldGBC

Click here to read the full study, World Green Building Trends 2016, Developing Markets Accelerate Global Green Growth.