Green Building Standards and Sustainability in Iran: History
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Taraneh Delavar
,
Ali Amiri
,
Eerika Borgentorp
,
Seppo Junnila

The concept of green buildings (GBs) is a recent response to addressing the problems that stem from the building sector. The World Green Building Council (WGBC) defines a green building as “a building that reduces or eliminates negative impacts, in its design, construction or operation and can have positive impacts on the climate and natural environment”. Green buildings use environmentally friendly materials and ensure the optimal use of natural resources, such as water and energy, and minimum waste production. Researchers have analyzed various aspects of GBs, such as technological innovation, energy savings, risk management, influencing factors for development, policy incentives and regulations, and economic benefits.

  • green construction
  • Analytic Network Process (ANP)
  • sustainable development
  • multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM)

1. Green Building Standards

The requirement of a complete “ecosystem” for each country has led to the creation of rating systems, the training of design and construction professionals, the development of green products and systems, the growth of green building consulting firms, and the creation of a business case for investors [1]. Therefore, various environmental assessment indicators for green buildings have emerged in recent years. Increasing global awareness of the environmental impacts of buildings has caused a fundamental change in the way the construction industry approaches projects and has provided an imperative for action. As government agencies and private developers increase the demand for green buildings, building professionals and businesses must either adapt or be left behind. Most buildings show a low level of environmental performance, but green buildings clearly show that they can achieve a high level of environmental performance when builders incorporate sustainable practices into their projects [2].
Various terms and meanings are associated with green buildings, and buildings that have obtained one or more certifications through green building rating systems are considered green [3]. In general, green building rating tools are classified into specific rating tools that focus on a single environmental effect and rating tools that address many different environmental effects simultaneously [4]. The set of credit criteria identified by each green building rating tool has a significant impact on building performance assessment [5].
Mandatory and voluntary certificates have been instituted across numerous countries worldwide, a phenomenon that includes various developing nations. Remarkably, over 50% of Asian countries have embraced labeling initiatives, reflecting their broad recognition and application [6]. A parallel trend is evident in South America, where an impressive 90% of countries have enacted labeling programs, underscoring the widespread adoption of this approach to foster consumer awareness and sustainable practices. An emblematic illustration of the efficacy of voluntary labeling initiatives is offered by the U.S. Energy Star Program, a prosperous endeavor in this domain [6].
Rating systems based on building sustainability indicators have been developed, such as England’s Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) in 1990, followed by France’s High Quality Environmental Standard (HQE) in 1996, the 1998 Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) in the United States, and Japan’s Comprehensive Assessment System for Built Environment Efficiency (CASBEE) in 2001. The Green Building Council of Australia was established in 2002 and the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB) in 2007. However, obtaining green building certification does not automatically guarantee the comprehensive fulfillment of all sustainable development objectives [7]. Some certifications, such as BREEAM, primarily assess the environmental effectiveness of both new and pre-existing architectural designs, whereas the LEED concept of a green building has gained recognition across different nations and urban centers worldwide [8][9]. Table 1 provides the evolution of the green building and the emergence of green building standards over the years, as adopted from the studies of Ade and Rehm (2019) [4] and Sartori et al., (2021) [10].
Table 1. The historical evolution of the green building.
1990 BREEAM 1 opened a new office
1993 The American Green Building Council (GBC) formed
1995 Energy Star 2 formed for homes
1996 HQE (High Quality Environmental Standard) created
1998 LEED 1.0/Spain GBC formed/BREEM
2000 LEED2.0/Green Globes (Canada) debuted
2001 Japan CASBE Rating system created/Indian GBC formed
2002 Canada GBC and Word BGC formed
2003 First Green Star rating tool, GBC Australia formed
2004 LEED introduced for existing buildings; innovation criteria formed
2005 Singapore Green Mark rating tool launched
2007 German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB) formed
2008 Registration of 1 million buildings and houses in BREEM
2009 Sweden Green Building Council (SGBC) established
2010 BEAM PLUS V,1.0 by the Hong Kong Business Environment Council launched
2014 International WELL Building Standard launched
2016 Fitwel launched for universal use 3
2022 75+ GB councils representing over 46,000 organizations [11]
1—Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method: The method and standard of building quality evaluation is from the point of view of sustainability and energy consumption. This method or standard is the most widely used and longest-running developed method, which is recognized and used by 50 countries. This method was first developed by the United Kingdom. 2—Energy Star: This is an international standard for how energy is consumed by electronic devices and other commercial products. 3—Developed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The General Services Administration (GSA) has joined LEED.

2. Sustainability in Iran

Iran is located in the Middle East, next to the countries of Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, and Armenia. The country has valuable natural resources, both renewable and non-renewable, and is surrounded by the Caspian Sea, Persian Gulf, and Oman Sea. It has a population of around 87.92 million and covers an area of 1,648,195 square kilometers. Iran’s climate varies greatly due to its diverse landscapes, with mostly semi-arid conditions. The average yearly rainfall is 228 mm, and temperatures range from 19–38 °C in summer to 10–25 °C in winter [12].
Sustainable development was introduced in Iran in 1994, aiming to align its economic plans and environmental protection goals. To coordinate these efforts, a National Committee for Sustainable Development was established, comprised of representatives from various ministries and organizations [13].
From 1990 to 2021, Iran’s energy consumption increased by a massive 415%, rising from 53 to 377 terawatt hours (TWh) [14]. Over the same period, carbon dioxide emissions also increased by 415%, from 171 to 748 million tons [15]. Looking ahead, it is projected that Iran’s carbon dioxide emissions will further increase to 985 million tons by 2025, with a yearly growth rate of 5% [16].
In recent years, Tehran, the capital city of Iran, has been grappling with several critical problems. These include a rapidly growing population of about 9 million people, as well as significant environmental challenges, such as air, water, and soil pollution, noise pollution, congested traffic, and heavy resource consumption. One reason for these issues is that Tehran is the country’s political capital, which grants its residents more convenient access to a wide array of economic, political, cultural, and educational institutions compared to those living in other cities [17]. While the Iranian government is making efforts to enhance renewable energy resources, energy consumption in Iran continues to rise due to factors such as population growth, lifestyle changes, and economic development [18].
The development of green buildings (GBs) in Iran serves as a solution for defining and assessing sustainability within the country’s sustainable development policies and elements. Thus, the promotion of GBs across the country is of immense importance. In Iran, considering the prevailing climate and energy consumption conditions, certain initiatives have aimed to construct green buildings. However, the absence of tailored green building certificates that specifically address Iran’s climate poses a challenge. As a result, there is no established method for effectively measuring the success rate of these buildings’ performance. Currently, the only way to gauge their effectiveness is by observing their performance over time. In countries such as Iran, which are categorized as developing and are grappling with pressing environmental and climate-related issues, such as water and energy scarcity, as well as environmental pollution, there are additional hurdles to motivate society members to effectively adopt green building practices [19].

This entry is adapted from the peer-reviewed paper 10.3390/buildings13123021

References

  1. Gou, Z. (Ed.) Green Building in Developing Countries: Policy, Strategy and Technology; Springer: Berlin/Heidelberg, Germany, 2020.
  2. Montoya, M. Green Building Fundamentals: Practical Guide to Understanding and Applying Fundamental Sustainable Construction Practices and the LEED System; Prentice Hall: Hoboken, NJ, USA, 2011; p. 174.
  3. Zou, Y. Certifying green buildings in China: LEED vs. 3-star. J. Clean. Prod. 2018, 208, 880–888.
  4. Ade, R.; Rehm, M. The unwritten history of green building rating tools: A personal view from some of the ‘founding fathers’. Build. Res. Inf. 2020, 48, 1–17.
  5. Illankoon, I.C.S.; Tam, V.W.; Le, K.N.; Shen, L. Key credit criteria among international green building rating tools. J. Clean. Prod. 2017, 164, 209–220.
  6. Lazzaroni, M.; Porro, G.B. Preparation, Premedication and Surveillance. Endoscopy 2003, 35, 103–111.
  7. Hamedani, A.Z.; Huber, F. A Comparative Study of DGNB, LEED and BREEAM Certificate Systems in Urban Sustainability; WIT Press: Southampton, UK, 2012; Volume 155, pp. 1743–3541.
  8. Amiri, A.; Ottelin, J.; Sorvari, J.; Junnila, S. Economic and Technical Considerations in Pursuing Green Building Certification: A Case Study from Iran. Sustainability 2020, 12, 719.
  9. Franco, M.A.J.Q.; Pawar, P.; Wu, X. Green building policies in cities: A comparative assessment and analysis. Energy Build. 2020, 231, 110561.
  10. Sartori, T.; Drogemuller, R.; Omrani, S.; Lamari, F. A schematic framework for Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Green Building Rating System (GBRS). J. Build. Eng. 2021, 38, 102180.
  11. Home—World Green Building Council. Available online: https://worldgbc.org/ (accessed on 5 June 2023).
  12. Hosseini, S.E.; Andwari, A.M.; Wahid, M.A.; Bagheri, G. A review on green energy potentials in Iran. Renew. Sustain. Energy Rev. 2013, 27, 533–545.
  13. Darabpour, M.R.; Darabpour, M.; Sardroud, J.M.; Smallwood, J.; Tabarsa, G. Practical Approaches Toward Sustainable Development in Iranian Green Construction. Civ. Eng. J. 2018, 4, 2450–2465.
  14. Panos, E.; Densing, M.; Volkart, K. Access to electricity in the World Energy Council’s global energy scenarios: An outlook for developing regions until 2030. Energy Strategy Rev. 2016, 9, 28–49.
  15. Ritchie, H.; Roser, M.; Rosado, P. CO2 and Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Our World in Data, May 2020. Available online: https://ourworldindata.org/co2-and-greenhouse-gas-emissions (accessed on 23 October 2023).
  16. Rajabi, M.; Sardroud, J.M.; Kheyroddin, A. Green standard model using machine learning: Identifying threats and opportunities facing the implementation of green building in Iran. Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res. 2021, 28, 62796–62808.
  17. Samarghandi, A.; Jafari, A.; Ghiasi, M. An Exhaustive Investigation of Green Building Certification on the Productivity and Mental and Physical Health of Buildings Occupants in Tehran, Iran. Int. J. Civ. Archit. Eng. 2023, 17, 75–79.
  18. Shad, R.; Khorrami, M.; Ghaemi, M. Developing an Iranian green building assessment tool using decision making methods and geographical information system: Case study in Mashhad city. Renew. Sustain. Energy Rev. 2017, 67, 324–340.
  19. Rajaee, M.; Hoseini, S.M.; Malekmohammadi, I. Proposing a socio-psychological model for adopting green building technologies: A case study from Iran. Sustain. Cities Soc. 2018, 45, 657–668.
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