Now that sustainability has become front page news and a potential source of income, everyone is scrambling to go green.

So how do we tell whether someone is genuine, or simply doing a quick ‘greenwash’ to look good? How do we spot a building that is truly green?

There is no doubt a few premises are being tarted up to look green, but when you scratch the surface, very little has been changed.

It reminds me of a story Bob Jones once told during the boom times of the 80s when old villas in prime Auckland locations such as Herne Bay started to gain significant value. Speculators would put building paper over rusted out down pipes, hire plants and set up landscaped gardens for open homes, and when the place was sold, all these refinements disappeared.

There are undoubtedly a few unscrupulous commercial property owners who will cut corners to look green. For instance, to win points for green building ratings they might stick a few bike racks in the basement as a cheap option rather than install an environmentally good air conditioning system.

Like the ‘leaky building’ issue, all is not what it seems when it comes to claims about being a green building.

There is no doubt the demand to make buildings more easy on the environment is something that is here to stay. And younger generations of up and coming professionals are expecting employers to be more sustainable. Going the extra mile to make a building green, and fit it out with materials and equipment that reduces impacts on the environment, is increasingly a significant plus with staff and customers.

But be sure to work with professionals who know how to scrape beneath the apparent green surface!

This entry was posted on Monday 19th May 2008 and is filed under Sustainability. Both comments and pings are currently closed.