Maxim Shugaev, Deputy Chief Project Engineer of Metropolis, told RBC why the application of the principles of green building directly affects the capitalization of projects.

Green-development (green construction) is a new practice in the construction and operation of facilities, based on certification according to one of the rating systems selected by the developer. These systems are based on the idea of ​​minimizing the impact of the construction process on the environment. In the classical sense, green-development is divided into three broad categories:

1. environmental responsibility of the project and developer;
2. saving resources during the construction and further operation of the building;
3. attention to the cultural and social characteristics of the area where construction is taking place, for example, the use of local building materials.

The principles of green development can be divided into several groups:

1. comfort, quality and environmental friendliness of the external and internal environment of the property;
2. high quality of architectural and planning solutions
3. energy efficiency and reduction of resource consumption: the quality of sanitary protection and waste disposal, the use of alternative and renewable energy, the environmental friendliness of the creation, operation and disposal of the facility and other parameters.

Construction in accordance with the principles of green-development is not just a fashionable trend that allows attracting foreign investors and tenants to an object, but also a real tool for increasing its capitalization. Compliance with the requirements of green principles at the design and construction stages allows in the future during the operation of buildings to significantly reduce the consumption of resources (electricity, water consumption, carbon dioxide emissions, CO2, the amount of solid household waste).

Green interest

The interest in environmental engineering in Russia is growing every year. Domestic customers, investors, developers are beginning to realize the dependence of costs on the constant rise in prices for energy carriers and materials, and are also learning to monetize the future attractiveness of the project.

The greatest interest in green building certification is seen in the commercial real estate segment. The fact is that in most cases office and retail facilities are assigned to one owner, who makes it easier to make fundamental decisions at the design stage and during the further operation of the building.

Residential real estate is more difficult. All operating costs after the completion of construction are assigned to the owners of the apartments. As a result, the developer is not interested in additional investments in green certification at the design and construction stages.

In the b2c segment, buyers are not so well aware of the benefits of green building and are rarely willing to pay extra for it. Improving the environmental friendliness of the project requires additional investments during the construction phase, which increases the final price of the product and makes it less attractive to some customers.

Green standards

In Russia, there are mainly two types of green standards:

BREEAM (UK) is the world's first eco-certification system, which appeared in the early 1990s. It is distinguished by the verification of the documentation for the project and the commissioned object by a certified appraiser. A fairly flexible system, within which you can score the necessary points for one criterion, omitting a number of others.

LEED (USA) - created in the late 1990s on the wave of the success of British developments. Differs in stricter and more comprehensive control over the documentation for the project under construction and built. Has a greater number of mandatory criteria compared to the system above.

Objects that have passed certification are located mainly in large agglomerations, where there is a good demand for quality real estate (Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, Sochi, Novosibirsk). But gradually green standards are spreading beyond them. The practice of their application is beginning to take shape in the regions as well. Moreover, the dynamics are visible in this issue.

Projects built according to green standards appeared in Russia about ten years ago. Today there are already over 20 LEED certified properties. More than 60 have received the BREEAM certificate. The ratio between big cities and regions today is about 3 to 1.

Green goals

Whether the goals laid down in the green standards will be achieved depends on the level of professional knowledge and experience of the project organization in each specific case. Its specialists should be guided by the documents of the existing certification systems. It is also important to be able to identify the most profitable and effective criteria in order to get the right amount of points.

The criteria are divided into two types:

1. mandatory (minimum requirements for objects, non-compliance with which makes it impossible to obtain a certificate);
2. criteria (credits) for which the object gets points.

According to the total number of points, the final rating of the object and the type of certificate are determined. In addition, developers engage consulting companies in environmental engineering and digital modeling of design solutions to carry out design work.

In 2011, Russia began implementing its own voluntary certification system "Green Standards". It was developed on the basis of international analogues with minor differences (features of the climatic conditions of the regions due to the large area of ​​our country). The system fully complies with the current Russian regulatory documents. In addition, such certification is 10–20% cheaper than foreign counterparts. The total cost is made up of two factors: the purpose of the object and its location.

The Russian certification system consists of the following sections:

1. site selection, infrastructure and landscaping;
2. architectural planning and design solutions;
3. water management, stormwater management and pollution prevention;
4. energy saving, energy efficiency;
5. materials and waste;
6. quality and comfort of the living environment;
7. life safety;
8. environmental management.

The average cost of certification is about 6% of the total cost of design and construction of the facility. They pay off in five to ten years. But in the end, compliance with the requirements of green standards, together with the use of modern construction technologies, contributes to an increase in the market value of real estate by 10-20%, depending on their location, type and class.

In addition, having a certificate, a developer can count on attracting large companies, including international ones, as tenants, for which the implementation of green standards is a justification for the quality of the object. The choice in favor of a building certified according to green standards is a modern tendency in the corporate policy of a number of foreign companies.

Read the article in RBC.