As a leading continental body advocating for environmental stewardship, the Green Africa Foundation has set up a process for developing national and regional rating tools for certification of products and services that adhere to green best practices.
The first product is the development of the Green Africa Building Standards and Certification Scheme.
Green Africa Building Standards and Certification
Buildings have extensive direct and indirect impact on the environment and occupants. This fact has prompted the creation of Green Africa Building Standards, certification and rating systems aimed at mitigating the impact of buildings on occupants and the natural environment.
Green Building
This is the practice of design, construction and management that significantly reduce or eliminate the negative impact of buildings on the environment and occupants.The concept of Green Buildings envision a new approach to save water,use energy efficiently,utilise material resources in the construction and maintenance of the building .
A “Green” building is designed for environmental sustainability.
Why Green Building?
Constructing and operating buildings can take a terrible toll on the environment.
The energy consumed in manufacturing and transporting building materials, constructing homes and offices, and heating and cooling built structures constitute a huge part of energy use.
Thoughtful design and construction can minimize the impact of buildings on its occupants and the environment.
Green buildings can reduce energy and water consumption by up to 70%. They can also cut land use by 25%.
Green Africa Building Standards
The “Green Africa Buildings Standards” is an application and certification tool that prescribes the categories, characteristics and rating system used to award a ‘’GreenMark’’ certificate to all types and sizes of buildings which incorporate building materials, technologies and practices that are environmentally sustainable.
The Standards specifies categories, characteristics and rating systems and classifications for use in all types of buildings. The overall purpose of this standard is to provide guidelines for infrastructure, renovation and new facilities to respect green best practices.
Characteristics or Categories covered by the Green Africa Building Standards are:
Sustainable Sites and Development
Water Conservation and Efficiency
Energy and Atmosphere
Material and Resources
Indoor Environmental Air Quality
Innovation
Operation and Mantanance
Green Africa Building Certification
All buildings that shall adhere to the requirements specified in this standard shall be eligible for green building certification with the classification categories of bronze, silver, gold, platinum, or diamond. Buidlings must meet the mandatory/ regulatory requirement prior to application for certification. Green Africa Building Certification is a voluntary process.
Green Africa Standards and Certification Expert
The development of Green Africa Building Standards and Certification process is overseen by a pool of experts in building, construction, environmental, occupational health and legal practice drawn from the public, private, academia and civic sectors. The following are some of the organizations represented in the Green Africa Building Standards Certification Board and Technical Committee:
*Kenya Bureau of Standards
*Architectural Association of Kenya,
*Institution of Engineers of Kenya
*Ministry of Environment and Mineral Resources
*Ministry of Public Works
*Ministry of Housing
*Nairobi City Council
*Kenya Industrial Research and Development Institute
*Energy Regulatory Commission
*Ministry of Roads
For more information ,Contact Mr.Nickson Otieno at nickson@greenafricafoundation.org
Related Links:
Green Africa Directory
Emergent Energy
GreenA Consultants
