Green Building Programs Forecast to Skyrocket

Space covered by green building certification programs will increase from 6 billion square feet worldwide in 2010 to 53 billion square feet by 2020, a new market forecast says.

About 80% of green-certified building space will be in the commercial building sector by 2020, up from 73% today, reports Pike Research, of Boulder, Colo.

For commercial space, most green certifications will go to existing buildings, rather than new construction. In contrast, most of the residential focus will be on green certification of new properties, the company forecasts.

“Green building techniques are increasingly becoming the standard within the architecture and construction industries,” says research analyst Eric Bloom. “There are three major drivers behind green building certifications: environmental responsibility, reducing operating expenses through energy efficiency, and regulatory requirements that mandate energy efficiency and certifications.”

Green building certification programs are becoming increasingly important tools to verify that a building meets a set of “green” criteria, including energy efficiency, sustainable materials selection, site location and indoor environmental quality. In addition to their environmental benefits, certified green buildings can sometimes command higher property values and rents, and green building certification can distinguish certain properties in highly competitive real estate markets, Pike notes.

In addition to the well-known Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program in the United States and the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) program in the United Kingdom, there are more than 20 established green building councils around the world, with more than 40 other national-scale groups seeking similar status in the next few years.

While LEEDand BREEAM will continue to dominate the North American and European green building markets, respectively, Pike Research anticipates that newly developed programs in China and India will represent about 30% of all certified green new construction by 2020.

Pike Research’s study, “Green Building Certification Programs,” analyzes the current market and regulatory conditions related to green building certification programs and provides forecasts for the growth of this industry.

The report includes an examination of green building drivers, barriers, and likely shifts in the underlying construction market. It also features profiles of major industry players, including detailed descriptions of dozens of green building certification programs around the world. An Executive Summary of the report is available for free download at www.navigantresearch.com/.

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