November 4, 2019

Sec. Mark A. Villar

Head of Department of Public Works and Highways
DPWH Central Office, South Harbor, Bonifacio Drive, Port Area,
Manila City, Philippines 1018

Dear Sec. Villar:

Over the last few years, companies around the world have been building several large
infrastructures that help boom the economy. Urbanization has brought many
opportunities for growth such as offering new jobs, educational opportunities, and better
living conditions. However, it has also brought problems including excessive emission of
greenhouse gases, wasted energy, large water consumption, and global warming. On
the statistics given by National Geographic, cities only cover 2% of the world’s land area
but these account for 70% of greenhouse gas emissions. While the Philippines, being
one of the fastest urbanizing countries in Southeast Asia, has a minimal contribution on
the global greenhouse gas emission with 0.31% last 2010 and 0.39% in 2015, its
emissions continue to rise as the economy grows. Given this information, the
technologies and policies to make cities environment-friendly should not only exist, but
should be strongly implemented. It is estimated that by 2050, 70% of the population will
live in cities, and most emissions come from cities, that is why our team completely
agree and support the implementation of Green Building towards cities of the
Philippines by building future infrastructures or retrofitting the current buildings based on
green building design.

Green Building, also known as Sustainable or High-Performance Building, is a practice

of building structures that are environmentally responsible as it uses productive energy
and resource-efficient materials. This practice also emphasizes the concerns of
economy, development, durability and comfort. The roots of green building movement
started in 1987 when the UN World Commission on Environment and Development set
the very first definition of sustainable development, which paved the way for the
principles of green building we know today. Green Building has entered the mainstream
in response to activities that cause problems to our environment such as global
warming and climate change.

Green Building offers benefits to our climate and natural environment. It primarily
focuses on preserving natural resources, eliminating negative impacts and creating
positive impacts on our environment by maximizing renewable resources, enabling
recycling, and using materials that are ethical and sustainable. Based on DOE Statistics
Report, 36% of the energy produced is consumed by buildings, and 53-70% of the
building’s consumption is due to cooling of the infrastructure itself. By going green or
adapting the green building design, enhanced ventilation and improved insulation are
achieved, which will result in approximately 25% less energy consumption, decreased
CO2 emissions, and 11% lower water consumption. Therefore, Green Building provides
the opportunity to prevent countries, specifically cities, being locked in a high carbon
economy and poor performance buildings.

Aside from the environmental effects, green building also has benefits in the system of
economy. Primarily, it makes a building efficient in energy and water usage. Electricity,
which circulates in all power resources such as lights, ventilation, water, cooling
systems, and technology, requires large amount of energy. For an infrastructure to
consume less electricity, one must be planned and designed smartly to utilize energy
depending on the nature around it. By this means, it lessens the use of energy while
gaining a more satisfiable workplace for the occupants and a more productive
workforce. The Zuellig Building in Makati City is a 33-storey all-glass building that
prevents extreme solar heat to enter while maximizing natural light. The building also
has a system that controls the ventilation and ensuring the quality of inside air. It has
reduced its overall energy consumption by 15%. Together with this, the building also
saves approximately 29 million liters of water every year as it installed a smart drainage
and rain catchment system. Nuvali One Evotech in Sta. Rosa City is the country’s
largest eco-city development that consumes a lower electricity of 74 kWh/sqm
compared to the standard of Southeast Asia’s 200 kWh/sqm. This is 14% lower energy
costs in consumption of energy by the tenants of the said building. If buildings are
constructed eco-friendly, our country can save up to P35.2 billion in energy/electricity
and water costs by 2030. Although the initial cost for green building investment is quite
expensive, higher savings from reduced energy and water usage can be gained,
providing a long-term payback on investment.

Green building is also more advantageous when it comes to employment than

traditional buildings. In a study conducted by the US Green Building Council, it shows
that in 2014 alone, the US green building industry has supported 2 million workers. The
industry contributed $29.8 billion in US' GDP by 2018, with green construction directly
contributing to the creation of 1.1 million jobs by 2018 with 386,000 jobs coming from
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Program. Creation of jobs and
reducing the maintenance and operating costs of a business will be more evident and
help boost the economy if continuous construction of green projects are made.

On a smaller scale, Green Building brings positive effects on human health. Aside from
regulating the outdoor air quality, it is also necessary to monitor indoor air as people
spend 90% of their time indoors, which affects both a person’s physical and mental
functioning. According to recent studies, the productivity and cognitive function of a
person significantly increases in a green place compared to traditional building. There
are also fewer complaints and illnesses caused by the air quality inside a green
building. Maximizing the natural light throughout the building also helps people regulate
their sleep cycles adding 46 minutes more sleep every night. Several condominiums
and residences were built in accordance with the green building design to help improve
indoor environmental quality. One of which is the Arya Residences located in BGC,
Taguig City, designed to give people a luxurious and comfortable home while being
environmentally responsible and resource-efficient. Arya Residences is the first
residential building in the Philippines with certification of Building for Ecologically
Responsive Design Excellence (BERDE) Rating and LEED Rating System. Building
more residential infrastructures like Arya Residences will not just benefit the
environment, but also engage people to live healthier, happier, and more productive.

Now, we should consider the goals of green building. Green building is conducive to
decrease energy and water consumption, reduce the harmful environment effects while
promoting and enhancing people’s quality of life. Making a green city is a challenging
task, but it would be better to implement this practice rather than facing the
consequences of not sustaining the environment. The program is not a one-man team,
thus both parties – the government and the people - should exert extra effort for the
success of the implementation of the project. The government should lead the project
and the people, including stakeholders, investors, owners, tenants, developers, and
such, should have the awareness of the project, involvement on the implementation,
and willingness to collaborate. In line with that, the government should allocate funds
whenever possible to certain communities that could not afford the program. It is a
must to share power for the project and simultaneously prevent the high carbon
economy and poor performance buildings. Doing such would result to eco-friendly cities,
and an environmentally responsible country.

Our team encourages and requests your good office to agree and support us on the
implementation of green building here in the Philippines. Let us make our country be a
better place for all lives.

Respectfully yours,

JETHRO ADANTE JULIA ORTIZ

MA. BEATRIZ CARANTO KHRISTEL KATE PENOLIAR

MA. VICTORIA LOPEZ CESAR LOUIS RIGOR

RESOURCES:
https://www.lamudi.com.ph/journal/12-sustainable-offices-philippines/

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/urban-expeditions/green-
buildings/benefits-of-green-buildings-human-health-economics-environment/

http://rouabhiateacher.weebly.com/uploads/1/5/9/3/15936890/argument3.pdf

https://www.worldgbc.org/benefits-green-
buildings?fbclid=IwAR1jmNnnqrbIbHAsQa8jQZj60yv_qmf3aqEg_qEqowQSA7m0np8yV
y30uHk

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/11/20/18/greenhouse-gas-emission-in-ph-rising-report

http://aryaresidences.com.ph/newsarchive/sustainability-built-into-luxury