VERDE, a methodology and tool for a sustainable building assessment

Abstract

Sustainable Building has grown out of a synthesis of the environmentally-oriented Green Building movement and the broader SD movement. The green movement itself grew out of 1970’s concerns about Energy Conservation, which subsequently morphed into Energy Efficiency, as fuel prices declined during the 1980’s. During the 1980’s, energy issues receded somewhat into the background of general discussion, but concerns arose about the impact that building operations and the production of their constituent materials have on the natural environment. During the same decade, the issue of poor indoor air quality and inadequate ventilation in sealed buildings (“sick building syndrome”) became a very public concern. A consensus has gradually evolved concerning the type of issues that should be included within a green type of analysis. Since 2000 the number of environmental assessment methodologies around the world has been increasing rapidly. BREEAM (BRE Environmental Assessment Method) was the first system (launched in 1990), to offer an environmental label for buildings. Nevertheless, LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) has been an incontrovertible success as a tool to promote market transformation. There are a number of different schemes around the world, most of which have been based on GBC and iiSBE (International Initiative for a Sustainable Built Environment). A new assessment method based on impact reduction calculation has been developed. The tool call VERDE is applicable to commercial complexes and residential developments. The methodology are presented and discussed in the paper.