A trial program for the environmental certification of residences was announced on September 19 in Shanghai, according to a report in the People's Daily.

According to the report, the chief of the Environmental Development Center of State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) announced in Shanghai that the trial program had kicked off with the "King Wai City Oasis" development in Shanghai leading the way.

"King Wai City Oasis," developed by China King Wai Land Limited Co., is located in Baoshan, Shanghai, next to Shanghai University. The one-million-square-meter development has an ecological lake, Taopu corridor, ecological park, and open-air theatre among other interesting features. In the eastern section of the development, a man-made slope and a boulevard of trees provide a 1.2-kilometer long green barrier.

Cheng Zifeng, deputy director of the SEPA Environmental Development Center, said that Shanghai citizens have become more environmentally conscious over the years. The construction of the traditional house presents many problems for sustainable development.

Therefore, the local government, working with enterprises and consumers, has developed a system to guide and standardize housing construction in a more environmentally friendly way, using resources such as energy, land, water and materials effectively and efficiently.

The basic tenet of the eco-house is construction and design that protect the ecological environment, save resources, and create a healthy and comfortable residential environment.

Cheng also said: "Building eco-friendly is the long-term goal of China's housing industry."

In order to better lead the planning, designing and construction of eco-houses and to better exploit innovation and sustainable development technologies, SEPA issued a set of criteria in 2004.

A great deal of investigation and research went into the set of criteria. Experts who worked on the plan included those from the Environmental Development Center of SEPA, the School of Architecture of Tsinghua University, the Institute of Physics of China Academy of Building Research, the College of Architecture and Civil Engineering of Beijing University of Technology, and All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce.

Li Lihua, a staff member with the Environment Certification Center of SEPA, revealed that developing eco-houses is not new. Developed countries including the United States, Germany, Britain, Australia, Canada, France, and Japan have all issued guidelines to building eco-houses.

Certification specifics for China will most likely be issued before the end of the year.

(China.org.cn by Zhou Jing, September 28, 2005)