The Pedra Branca new city-neighborhood project, located in the municipality of Palhoça, in Florianópolis, was the case studied during the workshop “Green Building Concept Methodology” (Second Part), promoted by the Development Promotion Institute (IPD), in partnership with Unindus and the Sustentax Group, with the participation of American architect and green building specialist, Huston Eubank.
In the audience, representatives from the whole civil construction production chain, who got organized into groups to think up ideas to be used in the Pedra Branca development, according to the IDP (Integrated Design Project) concept presented by Eubank in the morning, during the first part of the workshop. The groups worked together to find efficient solutions and proposals for improving the use of water, energy, ventilation, materials, and resources, and the population density vs. sustainability ratio.
After the groups presented their suggestions, the representative from the Pedra Branca project, architect Nelson Teixeira, admitted that 30% of the groups’ suggestions were brand new ideas, that had never been thought of before; 50% had already been put into operation; and 20% were in the process of being implemented. The outcome was evaluated by Huston Eubank as very important, particularly considering that the groups had only 30 minutes to come up with the proposals.
Some of the general suggestions presented included Led-lit building façades; wind-generated energy in small units; solar panels complemented by heat pumps for heating water; hydraulic elevators for buildings with up to three floors; natural ventilation to reduce gas emissions produced by heating and cooling equipment; cold ceilings, for natural cooling; emphasis on spaces for public use; heterogeneous density, according to urban use and function; use of rain water from roofs; and use of porous materials in less sophisticated pavements, for simple filtration.
Entrepreneur Roberto Pimenta, from Top Imóveis, a real estate company based in Curitiba, intends to start building green, and one of his buildings is already undergoing certification by Sustentax. He believes that even costing more, about 2 to 5%, thanks to the scarcity of materials complying with the new requirements, green buildings are the consumers’ choice for both renting and buying. This adds force to the worldwide research conducted by BBC TV, in April, 2007, which singled out Brazil as one of the nations most concerned about the impact of climatic change. Another survey conducted by IBOPE, in September 2007, pointed out that 52% of Brazilians are willing to buy products and services produced according to the environmental responsibility concept, even if more expensive.
Roberto believes that when the whole chain is involved in green building, the initial costs will drop. As for rental units, he sees immediate gains, because green buildings provide their occupants with improved quality of life and lower condominium rates.
The trend is that, from now on, in addition to quality products and services coupled with good prices and good support, consumers will be paying more attention to this new unique feature – buildings in total harmony with the environment and the community around them.
Sustainable Building Committee – For Huston Eubank, the Sustainable Building Committee, created by IPD, last April, has an important role to play and, in order to steer things even faster, it must work in harmony with other Brazilian Committees and Councils aiming at this same goal. In his opinion, Germany is the most developed country in green building, and he attributes that to a federal law that requires that, by 2010, 30% of all energy must be renewable – a goal that has already been achieved, by the way. He also mentions the state of California, in the US, as another positive example of energy optimization – the generation of new sources of energy in that state has been stable for several years, thanks to a steady drop in consumption.
Journalist: Maria das Graças Portugal
6/25/2008
