CHENNAI: Buildings in Tamil Nadu are slowly going green and this has earned the State third rank for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) by US Green Building Council (USGBC), the world’s most widely used green building rating system.
Gopalakrishnan Padmanabhan, Managing Director, Southeast Asia and Middle East, USGBC and Green Business Certification (GBCI), told Express that the State is ranked third among the top 10 Indian states as most of the commercial buildings in Tamil Nadu are going green. LEED is an international symbol of sustainability excellence that signifies a building is lowering carbon emissions, conserving resources and cutting costs, while prioritizing sustainable practices and creating a healthier environment.
As per the figure released by USGBC, Tamil Nadu has 157 LEED certified projects with Certified Gross Square Footage (GSF) in millions, which is 58,809,553. It ranks behind Maharashtra which has 334 LEED certified projects followed by Karnataka (232 projects).
All the three states were on par earlier but now Maharashtra and Karnataka have edged Tamil Nadu and this is attributed to the lack of vibrancy in commercial space. “Maharashtra is more vibrant in commercial space as lot of investment is coming in,” says Padmanabhan.
Interestingly, Tamil Nadu has a lot of projects in the pipeline, following the recently concluded second edition of Global Investors Meet. But Padmanabhan says that LEED certification is given only once the projects are completed. He said that green buildings in Tamil Nadu are still at the nascent stage and stressed the need for a green building policy for the State. Padmanabhan, who is helping many states come out with a Green building policy, says that once a policy is in place, developers could be incentivised to go green.”
The policy could ensure responsible development wherein the structures will use less energy and water, reduce air pollution, provide cleaner air indoors and save money for businesses and families. “They will also generate fewer emissions — not only during the construction stage but also after they are occupied and throughout the entire life cycle of a building,” he said.