Scribd
Upload
113 views3 pages

Net Zero Energy Buildings

The Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) has launched a Net Zero Energy Buildings rating system in collaboration with international organizations to promote reducing energy consumption and costs in buildings. Net zero energy buildings produce as much renewable energy as they consume annually through energy efficient design and technologies like solar panels. India's first net zero energy building, Indira Paryavaran Bhavan in New Delhi, utilizes solar passive design and materials to achieve 40% energy savings. As urbanization increases, adopting net zero energy and green building concepts is important to reduce the environmental impacts of energy usage and waste from the construction industry.

Uploaded by

udhaya shankar
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
113 views3 pages

Net Zero Energy Buildings

The Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) has launched a Net Zero Energy Buildings rating system in collaboration with international organizations to promote reducing energy consumption and costs in buildings. Net zero energy buildings produce as much renewable energy as they consume annually through energy efficient design and technologies like solar panels. India's first net zero energy building, Indira Paryavaran Bhavan in New Delhi, utilizes solar passive design and materials to achieve 40% energy savings. As urbanization increases, adopting net zero energy and green building concepts is important to reduce the environmental impacts of energy usage and waste from the construction industry.

Uploaded by

udhaya shankar
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 3

Net Zero Energy Buildings

drishtiias.com/printpdf/net-zero-energy-buildings

The Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) has come out with Net Zero Energy Buildings
rating system in collaboration with the World Green Building Council and the United
States Agency for International Development (USAID).

IGBC also launched ‘Green Building Rating System for Hill Habitats’ intended for hill
cities, differentiating the sustainability needs of urban development in hills as
compared to cities in the plains.
The theme for Green Building Congress 2018 is ‘Green Built Environment for People
& the Planet’.
IGBC plans to promote the concept of ‘Net Zero’ in India. Under this initiative, the
focus is reducing the annual energy consumption by 40-50% with respect to
national baseline and cut down energy cost by about 30 per cent.
The rating system launched during the IGBC's 16th Green building Congress 2018
seeks to complement the National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency and the
National Solar Mission.

Net Zero Energy Buildings (NZEB)


A net-zero energy building is one that relies on renewable sources to produce as
much energy as it uses, usually as measured over the course of a year.
Homes and other structures that create almost as much energy as they use are
sometimes called near-zero energy buildings.
It is also possible for a building to produce an energy surplus, sending excess back to
the electrical grid.

1/3
Net-zero energy buildings start with energy-conscious design. Many features work
without an energy source. For example:
In cold climates, south-facing buildings with large expanses of windows on that
side can produce heat through passive solar gain.
On the cold north side of the building, smaller windows can angle to wider
openings, permitting more light while limiting heat loss.
In warmer seasons, passive ventilation systems can pull cool air up from the
lower levels and vent it through the building's highest point.
Rooftop systems can collect rainwater to reduce usage of treated water.
Solar panels, heat recovery systems, geothermal heating and wind turbines are
among the other technologies used to achieve net-zero status.

Indira Paryavaran Bhavan

Indira Paryavaran Bhavan in New Delhi is India’s first net zero energy building that
has been constructed with the adoption of solar passive design and energy-efficient
building materials.
It is one of the exemplary projects to be rated under Green Rating for Integrated
Habitat Assessment (GRIHA) and has set standards that can be emulated by upcoming
buildings.
The design allows for 75% of natural daylight to be utilised to reduce energy
consumption.
The entire building has an access friendly design for differently-abled persons.
The building is fully compliant with the requirements of the Energy Conservation
Building Code of India (ECBC).
Total energy savings of about 40% have been achieved through the adoption of
energy efficient system of air-conditioning.
Green materials like fly ash bricks, regional building materials, materials with
high recyclable content, high reflectance terrace tiles and rock wool insulation
of outer walls have been used.

Need for NZEB along with Green Building


Due to increasing urbanisation, it becomes imperative to plan and conceive the
cities as green, right from the initial stages.
While, various amenities like lighting, air conditioning, water heating provide comfort
to building occupants, but also consume enormous amount of energy and add to
pollution.

2/3
Buildings have enormous impact on environment, human health and economy.
The energy used to heat and power our buildings leads to consumption of large
amounts of energy, mainly from burning of fossil fuels, oil, natural gases and coal,
which generate significant amounts of carbon dioxide, the most widespread
greenhouse gas.
Further, building construction industry produces huge amount of demolition waste
and greenhouse gases (35-40%).
Building green is about creating buildings that optimize on the use of local
materials, local ecology and most importantly they are built to reduce power,
water and material requirements.
Such sustainably built green buildings are environmentally responsible and
resource-efficient, right from location selection to the demolition after its life cycle
ends.
According to TERI estimates, if all buildings in Indian urban areas were made to adopt
green building concepts, India could save more than 8,400 megawatts of power, which
is enough to light 550,000 homes a year.

Green Building Certifying Agencies

There are various certifying agencies that help building developers to implement these
principles and get green certification. Some of them are:

LEED-India – Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) is an international


recognized certification system for the green buildings. The LEED-India Green Building
Rating System is an international benchmark for the design, construction and
operation of high performance green buildings (provided by IGBC).
IGBC Ratings – The Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) is a division of the
Confederation of Indian Industry that works closely with the government and aims at
sustainably built environment.
BEE-ECBC – The Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC) was established by the
Indian Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) to set energy efficiency standards for design
and construction of buildings.
TERI GRIHA – The Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment (GRIHA) is a
national rating system for green buildings that is adopted while designing and
evaluating new buildings.

3/3

You might also like