Sustainable Construction: Value of Certification

Abstract

— The study and implementation of measures to promote sustainability for the future development of society development requires the definition of limits on the uncontrolled consumption of natural resources that are a result of human activities. The construction sector has an enormous effect on the environment due to its massive resource consumption; therefore the development of a process to increase sustainability in this sector is paramount. In this sense the systems that assess sustainable construction play a key role. The emergence of voluntary evaluation and certification systems of construction enables the assessment of sustainability of buildings – their construction and operation. The evaluation and certification systems are in constant evolution, expanding their scope of application. Some countries are developing systems of sustainable construction evaluation adjusted to the local context. Through the study of different systems of evaluation and certification and their contents it was possible to identify and select the key factors that support the development of a system that is geared towards application at the regional level thus accomplishing the value of certification systems of sustainable construction.