A Green building is one which uses less water, optimizes energy efficiency, conserves natural resources, generates less waste and provides healthier spaces for occupants, as compared to a conventional building. Transformation of building homes from the old ways to eco-friendly ways is taking place a slow and steady pace.
With the increase in population and lack of living spaces along with the increasing pollution rate has left humans with no other choices than to shift to a place which is far away or to build homes in a eco-friendly way. With the increase in land rates people are switching their minds from villas and bungalows to flats and apartments. There can be a lot of other reasons to choose flats and apartments as they provide a lot of facilities like swimming pool, security, gyms and many other facilities, getting which is more difficult in villas and bungalows. Social get together in apartments and flats is much more easier than in a private villa. So need for a eco-friendly building becomes more essential.
A building is assessed based on its predicted performance over its entire life cycle. The stages identified for evaluation are:
Pre-construction: Intra- and inter-site issues like proximity to public transport, type of soil, kind of land, location, flora and fauna before construction activity starts, natural landscape and features.
Planning and construction: Issues of resource conservation and reduction in resource demand, resource utilization efficiency and recovery, reuse, and provisions for occupant health and well-being. Prime resources considered are land, water, energy, air and green cover.
Operation and maintenance: Of building systems and processes, monitoring and recording of energy consumption, occupants' health and well-being and issues that affect the global and local environment. The builders concentrate on the following things before building such homes.
1. Energy saving
2. Water efficiency
3. CO2 emissions reduction
4. Indoor environmental quality
5. Preservation of resources
6. Sensitivity to the impact of development on natural resources
Nowadays a lot of builders are emerging and among them is NeST Infratech. They recently finished their project on "KERALA'S FIRST GREEN TOWNSHIP" which focuses on building homes surrounded with eco-friendly elements, for example Coconut trees. This novel township comprises of architectural styles that includes Contemporary as well as Traditional Nalukettu Villas and Luxurious Apartments, ranging from 29 lakhs, The World sprawls over an area of 25 acres in the ever bracing surroundings of Alwaye.