Why is it important to build environment friendly buildings - Essay Example

Why is it important to build environment friendly buildings? Environmental health and safety is one of the biggest concerns of the present age, and the significance of this concern is expected to increase manifolds with the passage of time. Buildings happen to be a very important element of environment. Therefore, it is imperative that buildings are made environment friendly so that the environment can be improved as a whole. The term frequently used for environment friendly buildings is green buildings.

The built environment greatly impacts the quality of air and the health and safety of the natural environment, of which humans form a part. Built environment also happens to be one of the most fundamental determinants of the economy of a nation. Rational green building strategies can help the nation improve its performance on both the economic and the environmental grounds. What is quite fortunate about this is that it is possible to integrate the green methods of construction into building anywhere from the design of building to its demolition.

Nonetheless, the sooner the green construction methods are integrated, the better the results will be and the more environment friendly will the building become. Some of the primary advantages of constructing environment friendly buildings are as follows: Green building enhances the biodiversity and protects the ecosystems Green building improves the quality of water and air It reduces pollution of water and air It helps minimize the consumption of natural resources Most importantly, environment friendly buildings are a need of the contemporary age because the issues of global warming and depletion of natural resources are at the forefront.

According to an estimate, buildings consume up to 39 per cent, 12 per cent, and 68 per cent of the total energy, water, and electricity produced in US respectively along with being the source of 38 per cent of the emissions of carbon dioxide (EPA, 2010). “If all buildings in the U.S. met leading green building standards, national energy use and global warming emissions would drop by ten percent” (Greenspace, 2011). Carbon emissions from the built environment are the major contributor of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which in turn, results in an overall increase in the temperature of Earth.

The natural disasters that have occurred frequently in the past decade or two can fundamentally be attributed to the global warming. Moreover, there is dire need to make the cities sustainable owing to the readily depleting natural resources. This can be achieved by making environment friendly buildings that would consume lesser natural resources and would be energy efficient. “Energy efficiency is something that people most often equate with this term and that is certainly an important part of eco-friendly homes, but there is more to being eco-friendly than just saving energy, a whole lot more” (Camp, n.d.).

Environment friendly buildings are cost effective, consume significantly lesser quantities of natural resources than other buildings do, and the quality of atmosphere both within and outside the building is good. Therefore, it is important to build environment friendly buildings. References: Camp, G n.d., What Makes a Home Eco-Friendly? viewed, 8 May, 2011, . Environmental Protection Agency 2010, Why Build Green? viewed, 8 May, 2011, . Greenspace 2011, Why Build Green, viewed, 8 May, 2011, .