A prominent young architect in Davao believes that green architecture, also known as green design, favors building owners because such a practice will enable them to save heavily on cost of maintenance.
Agatha Ellen Salanatin-Valencia, one-time Davao chapter president of the United Architects of the Philippines and a leader in the Rotary International movement, told Edge Davao that green architecture is an approach to building that minimizes harmful effects on human health and the environment.
She said green architecture may have many of the following characteristics:
Ventilation systems designed for efficient heating and cooling
Energy-efficient lighting and appliances
Water-saving plumbing fixtures
Landscapes planned to maximize passive solar energy
Minimal harm to the natural habitat
Alternate power sources such as solar power or wind power
Non-synthetic, non-toxic materials
Locally-obtained woods and stone
Responsibly-harvested woods
Adaptive reuse of older buildings
Use of recycled architectural salvage and
Efficient use of space
“I don’t think that the practice of green architecture is a trend,” Angga Valencia said, adding that “architects are aware that they must always keep in mind the practical ideas on their approach or design techniques that will have some of these features mentioned, but not all.”
Valencia said the highest goal of green architecture is to be fully sustainable, “that is probably why construction cost of ‘green’ buildings requires a hefty investment as construction materials recommended for sustainable design is quite expensive.”
The “green” architect or designer attempts to safeguard air, water, and earth by choosing eco-friendly building materials and construction practices, she said.
“It is not profit that fuels the need for this advocacy, but the realization that building owners will eventually save on their maintenance costs in the future,” she said.
Meanwhile, Speaker Prospero C. Nograles led the House of Representatives in approving House Resolution 1545 “adopting the policy of green building in all operation and maintenance practices, future renovation, expansion, and building projects in the House of Representatives.”
“Climate change is a global challenge we must meet head on. I salute the initiative of principal author Rep. Anna York P. Bondoc, MD. and, among others, the full support of Rep. Roilo Golez, chairperson Belma Cabilao and the members of the House committee on ecology, for this timely legislative action,” Nograles said.
“Green building spouses the (a) reduction of operating costs by increasing productivity and using less energy, water and other resources, (b) improvement of public and occupant health due to improved indoor air quality, and (c) decrease of waste, pollution and environment decay,” declares the House Resolution delivered to the President.
HR 1545 stressed that “the policy of green building promotes sustainability in how a building or a complex is set designed, constructed, operated and maintained by employing the use of environmentally responsible materials, sustainable architectural techniques and other green building practices for the purpose of reducing the building impacts on environment and human health.”
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