SUSTAINABILITY
GREEN
retrofits With the recent launch of Emirates Green Building Council’s retrofit guidelines, Lorraine Bangera analyses how buildings could be made more sustainable and how the UAE could save AED1bn
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n June earlier this year, Emirates Green Building Council (EmiratesGBC) launched its Technical Guidelines for Retrofitting Existing Buildings to serve as a guide for UAE industry professionals and building end-users. The guidelines have been created in conformance with the UAE’s sustainability agenda, as part of its National Agenda 2021 and in line with local sustainable strategies such as the Dubai Integrated Energy Strategy and Abu Dhabi Vision 2030. Saeed Al Abbar, chairperson of EmiratesGBC, says the guide was created with the help of the council’s members and was endorsed by the Ministry of Public Works and the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy (DSCE). The guidelines consist of a set of instructions and best practices that will provide building owners, operators and end-users the knowledge
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needed to understand and implement successful retrofit projects. The solutions provided immediate and longterm reductions and/or efficiency in energy and water use, improvements in indoor air quality, and effective waste management, with subsequent lowering of utility and labour costs for building owners. CEO of Etihad Energy Services, Stephane Le Gentil praises the initiative and says this is the first time in the UAE that there are detailed explanations on how buildings can be retrofitted efficiently. He says: “These guidelines give thorough descriptions and are sorted from ‘low cost no cost’ options to high cost options allowing all interested parties to decide what can be done according to the budget they have available.” He also thinks that these guidelines will contribute to make building ret-
rofits more known and effective both for building owners and construction companies and will encourage new companies from the construction sector to enter this new big market. Reducing excessive energy consumption As the green revolution has hit the construction sector in the past five years, Dubai particularly has embraced the change. One example would be the recently implemented Green Building Codes that mandate both public and private developers to comply with stringent green building requirements. One of the key questions, however, has been how to improve the sustainability aspects of existing buildings. Experts admit that through retrofits the region can take a major step towards sustainability and cut back on its carbon footprint.