In a vigorous effort to combat climate change in the modern era, new buildings in Bracken Nature Reserve will boast facilities that earned it a five-star Green Rating. The project, scheduled to start soon is planned for completion by July 2025.
Last Monday officials from the the Green Building Council South came out to the site to hand over a certification plaque to Deputy Mayor of Cape Town Eddie Andrews. The historic buildings in the reserve will be redeveloped into a multi-purpose venue made with an industrial-type steel portal frame, brick infill walls and a facade that combines face brick and plaster. Receiving the plaque Andrews said the building’s design features support the City’s goal for all new and existing municipal buildings to be net-zero carbon by 2030.
The buildings will present sustainable features that include motion sensor-controlled lighting; internal vision glazing designed to take advantage of natural daylight; a fresh air ventilation system that will filter fresh air to the buildings using weather louvres and occupancy sensors; a 50 kWp photovoltaic grid-tied system with two 25 kVA inverters; a 3 kW backup element for 200-litre solar geyser; rainwater harvesting; a waste recycling facility and a black water treatment system.
Climate change
Andrews referred to climate change as one of the greatest challenges of our time. “We are already seeing a range of environmental changes around us: the increase in severity and frequency of extreme weather events, rising temperatures, flooding risks and impacts on human health.
The economic consequences of not controlling greenhouse gas emissions will be significant and impact us all,” he said.
According to an information piece from the City, the built environment sector is responsible for nearly half of global greenhouse gas emissions, and is ripe for radical change.
In South Africa the buildings and construction sector, which includes the operations of residential and commercial buildings, in addition to construction, accounts for approximately 7% of South Africa’s direct emissions.
The imperative to decarbonise, the sector faces the dual challenges of ensuring physical resilience, as South Africa is forecast to be one of the region’s most severely impacted by climate change, and addressing severe housing demand, with a shortfall of approximately 2,1 million homes and access to water and sanitation infrastructure.
The 2022 Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction released at the COP26 climate talks in Egypt in 2022 found that construction is among the leading industries contributing to the carbon footprint.
The sector accounted for over 34% of energy demand and around 37% of energy and process-related CO² emissions in 2021.
Reports
The South African sector report for building and construction finds that decarbonising buildings and construction requires a two-fold approach.
To demand reduction through better spatial planning and less use of emissions-intensive materials, notably steel and cement, and a shift away from fossil-fuel based combustion for space and water heating as well as cooking through renewable energy-based electrification.
Without action, it is argued that the sector’s emissions could double by 2050, making it challenging for South Africa to meet its climate targets.
“Through different methods, including today’s event, it is important to promote awareness of the sources of carbon footprint in the construction industry.
“It is important that our actions including research directly address the latest approaches on carbon footprint reduction in construction by the use of alternative additives,” says Andrews.
Of interest, it was reported that the application of alternative materials or techniques can reduce up to 90% of CO² emissions at different stages in the construction and building operations.
Therefore, processes such as green- rating accreditation is critical at the design stage. Andrews said the green certification is a milestone achievement for the City.
“It underlines our commitment to reduce the environmental impact and leading by example in project planning and green building design.
“Well done to the team for coming up with such an innovative redesign,” Andrews said.
