Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Ratings show shift to green buildings
Recent increase in Green Star SA certifications highlights move to sustainable practices
JUNE proved a bumper month for green building certifications with a total of six new buildings receiving Green Star SA ratings from the Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA).
This surge further substantiates that the green building movement is rapidly gaining ground in South Africa as developers and progress i ve businesses i ncreasingly embrace sustainable building practices, says GBCSA chief executive Brian Wilkinson.
These ratings take the number of Green Star rated buildings in South Africa to 36, and include some significant developments, for example, the Department of Environmental Affairs head office, which scored a 6 Star Green Star SA rating – the highest rating and a first for a building owned by the national government.
Hyundai’s new head office in Bedfordview, Joburg, is another development to receive a green star rating. Wilkinson says it is the first green building rating in SA for this sector, and signifies buy-in and commitment to sustainable practices from this large motor corporation.
The Hyundai building achieved a 4 Star Green Star SA Design rating. It consists of two floors of A-grade office space and one basement level, and will accommodate 200 full-time employees.
Another notable rating is that of the 9 000m Chevron project core building in Century City, Cape Town, which got a 5 Star Green Star SA Design rating. Wilkinson says this is an indication of the shift in mindset towards green business practices from one of the leading refiners and marketers of petroleum products in the country.
The Portside building in Bree Street, Cape Town, achieved a 5 Star Green Star SA Design rating. It is a joint venture between Old Mutual and FNB, jointly designed by dhk Architects and Louis Karol Architects, and is set to become a landmark on the Foreshore. The 32-storey building has more than 52 000m² of office space and 1 200m² of retail and banking space.
The Lakeside Office Park in Centurion, Pretoria – a redevelopment of the Meerlus building – scored a 4 Star Green Star SA Design rating, and recently won the SA Property Owners Association innovative excellence award for green and industrial property development.
The office park is opposite the Centurion Gautrain Station, with easy access to the national roads network. The building is the first of three to be developed in the Lakeside Office Park, and has more than 5 000m of lettable space for tenants who want to be close to major transport nodes and other amenities.
Finally for this month, the Ned- bank Menlyn Maine-Falcon Building in the Menlyn Maine precinct in Pretoria achieved a 5 Star Green Star SA “As Built” rating.
“The Menlyn Maine precinct is envisaged as a live, work, play neighbourhood where the buildings and urban planning design strongly sub- scribe to environmentally sustainable principles.
“All buildings in the precinct will be required to achieve at least a 4 Star Green Star rating. It is the first project in Africa to be registered with the Clinton Climate Initiative, a stringent rating mecha- nism evaluating the carbon neutrality of a project,” Wilkinson says.
“The GBCSA is very encouraged to see this spike in the number of buildings achieving Green Star SA ratings. We are confident that the green building movement in South Africa will continue this upward trend and that we will increasingly see green building practices becoming the norm. The industry is embracing this absolutely necessary shift towards sustainable practices and it is exciting to be part of this change.”
Visit www.gbcsa.org.za.