by Nick Kolyohin

JERUSALEM, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Starting March 2022, any new building in Israel will be constructed according to the national green standards.

"We are pioneers and very proud of this," said Ran Avraham, head of the green building unit at the Israeli Ministry of Environmental Protection (MoEP), referring to the new mandatory sustainable construction legislation.

On Aug. 27, the Israeli government issued the binding Israeli sustainable certification SI 5281, which was originally established in 2005 as a voluntary standard.

Over the past seven years, about 20 Israeli cities began to implement sustainable construction requirements as the green standard was periodically updated.

Buildings are a major contributor of pollutant emissions into the air and the largest global consumers of natural resources and energy, MoEP said on its website.

Surveys conducted by Forum 15, an association that represents most of Israel's major cities, show that about 75 percent of emissions within cities stem from energy consumption in buildings.

Transitioning to green building standards could help Israel fulfil its commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions in accordance with the Paris agreement it signed.

Over the next 15 years, buildings in Israel are expected to cut their total emissions by about 25 percent under the mandatory green building standards, Avraham said in an interview with Xinhua.

Israel has about 1.3 million buildings, 450 of which hold green certification. An additional 1,000 are currently being examined, and another 50 comply with the international green rating systems LEED or BREEAM, according to MoEP.

Colin Price, head of the department of environmental studies at Tel Aviv University, said buildings mainly use energy for inside heating and cooling.

Zero-energy buildings need to be appropriately planned with excellent insulation and the ability to generate their own power using on-site renewable energy facilities, such as solar panels on roofs.

Green buildings are also able to recycle part of their water usage on-site. Grey water from sinks, showers, or tubs could be easily re-used, Price told Xinhua.

"A fairly simple filtering system in the building or in home can clean water in order to re-use it for any purpose besides drinking," he said.

Although green building construction is more expensive, the reduced energy and water use will cover the extra costs within five to 10 years, the professor noted.

Using less electricity and water will not only help tackle the climate change, but also save money on bills, which could encourage more people to move to green offices and flats in the future.

According to MoEP's research, green buildings in Israel reduce the consumption of energy by around 25 percent and water by about 40 percent compared with traditional buildings.

Moreover, research sponsored by the ministry has shown that people tend to be more satisfied in green buildings, probably because of a "sustainable atmosphere," increased natural lighting, better air quality, and healthier construction materials. Enditem

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