China 165
allow the project to market itself as a green building. Operation label is final certification that is granted after controlling the energy performance of the building for
one year (Geng et al., 2012). The Three Star System involves six indicators such
as land saving and the outdoor environment, energy saving and energy utilisation,
water saving and water resource utilisation, material saving and material resource
utilisation, the indoor environment quality, and operating management. These
indicators are intended to provide a strong signal for construction companies/
developers to consider the energy and resource saving potential of their current
designs. Eventually all construction companies/developers will reach minimum
energy and resource efficiency requirements and may even exceed the standards to
improve their competitive edge in a market that is becoming increasingly conscious of environmental impact and energy savings.
Furthermore, there is significant potential for the development of prefabricated buildings and promotion of green building materials as innovative solutions to meet the green building goal, which would increase ‘passive’
ultra- low-energy- use buildings. These measures have been strengthened in
several policies such as the Action Plan for Urban Adaptation to Climate
Change (issued by MOHURD in 2013), the Technical Guidelines for Passive
Ultra- low Energy Use in Green Buildings (issued by MOHURD in 2015) and
the 13th Five- Year Plan for Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction Programmer (issued in 2017). Since the majority of prefabricated buildings are
largely manufactured in controlled settings, the process reduces environmental
impact during the construction phase and results in savings (compared to traditional construction methods) in water consumption of around 50%, mortar consumption of 60%, wooden materials of 80%, and energy consumption of 20%.
Although the cost of a prefabricated building is around ¥1000 per square metre
higher than the cost of a normal building, they are still expected to account for
15% of new buildings until 2020 (MOHURD, 2017) as set out in the 13th FiveYear Building Plan’s targets. Costs of prefabricated buildings in the short to
medium term (2–5 years) are expected to decrease, through economies of scale
and technological learning. In the future, the share of prefabricated buildings is
expected to continue rising due to other advantages, such as reduced construction noise and dust in neighbourhoods and better- quality control of construction materials. These challenges are specifically linked to new builds, while the
existing building stock faces a different set of challenges and should consider the
needs of current occupants.
Retrofits of existing buildings
The low- carbon pathway for existing buildings is also based on the Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction Programme and the 13th Five- Year Plan for
Building Energy Efficiency and Green Building Development. These programmes foresee that China will by 2020 complete the energy- efficient renovation of over 500 million square metres of existing residential buildings and the
energy- saving reconstruction of 100 million square metres of public buildings.
allow the project to market itself as a green building. Operation label is final certification that is granted after controlling the energy performance of the building for
one year (Geng et al., 2012). The Three Star System involves six indicators such
as land saving and the outdoor environment, energy saving and energy utilisation,
water saving and water resource utilisation, material saving and material resource
utilisation, the indoor environment quality, and operating management. These
indicators are intended to provide a strong signal for construction companies/
developers to consider the energy and resource saving potential of their current
designs. Eventually all construction companies/developers will reach minimum
energy and resource efficiency requirements and may even exceed the standards to
improve their competitive edge in a market that is becoming increasingly conscious of environmental impact and energy savings.
Furthermore, there is significant potential for the development of prefabricated buildings and promotion of green building materials as innovative solutions to meet the green building goal, which would increase ‘passive’
ultra- low-energy- use buildings. These measures have been strengthened in
several policies such as the Action Plan for Urban Adaptation to Climate
Change (issued by MOHURD in 2013), the Technical Guidelines for Passive
Ultra- low Energy Use in Green Buildings (issued by MOHURD in 2015) and
the 13th Five- Year Plan for Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction Programmer (issued in 2017). Since the majority of prefabricated buildings are
largely manufactured in controlled settings, the process reduces environmental
impact during the construction phase and results in savings (compared to traditional construction methods) in water consumption of around 50%, mortar consumption of 60%, wooden materials of 80%, and energy consumption of 20%.
Although the cost of a prefabricated building is around ¥1000 per square metre
higher than the cost of a normal building, they are still expected to account for
15% of new buildings until 2020 (MOHURD, 2017) as set out in the 13th FiveYear Building Plan’s targets. Costs of prefabricated buildings in the short to
medium term (2–5 years) are expected to decrease, through economies of scale
and technological learning. In the future, the share of prefabricated buildings is
expected to continue rising due to other advantages, such as reduced construction noise and dust in neighbourhoods and better- quality control of construction materials. These challenges are specifically linked to new builds, while the
existing building stock faces a different set of challenges and should consider the
needs of current occupants.
Retrofits of existing buildings
The low- carbon pathway for existing buildings is also based on the Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction Programme and the 13th Five- Year Plan for
Building Energy Efficiency and Green Building Development. These programmes foresee that China will by 2020 complete the energy- efficient renovation of over 500 million square metres of existing residential buildings and the
energy- saving reconstruction of 100 million square metres of public buildings.