Scope of Present Study

The intents of this study are to analyze the indicators for both EEWH and LEED in order to let Taiwan Green Building Evaluation System become more internationalized and popular. First, this study compares the similar and unique indicators of these two assessment systems to examine the defect of EEWH. Then, this study focuses on the analysis of EAC formula parameters in order to find improvement method and strategy.

EEWH has different ECM and efficiency criteria, but it just serves as a qualified benchmark and cannot be understand the real benefit of ECM.

The intent of EEWH is to encourage the establishment of Green Building so it has many weighted measures. In other words, EEWH is a broad assessment system and cannot quantify the proportion of energy saving.

In contrast with EEWH, it adopts energy simulation tool to fully analyze the energy use in LEED. Through the comparison between the baseline building performance, according to ASHARE Standard 90.1, and the proposed building performance, the designer can analyze the real benefit of ECM and understand the resultant effects by using different

parameters.

From above description, Taipei Wan-Hua sports center is selected to use EEWH and LEED assessment systems, respectively, to evaluate and analyze the building energy use, and then analyze defects of EEWH in practice. Eventually, several improvements for EEWH are suggested. The research flowchart is illustrated in Fig. 1.1.

CHAPTER 2

COMPARISON BETWEEN EEWH AND LEED

2.1 Comparison of Executive Agency

The comparison of executive agency is tabulated in Table 2.1.

Table 2.1 Comparison of Executive Agency

System EEWH LEED

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Established Way Government Guidance Private Initiative

Application

Incentives Method Medals Awarded Supporting Incentives

Medals Awarded No Any Incentives Implement

Structure

From the Government to the Private Enterprise

From the Private Enterprise to the Government

Agencies TABC USGBC

In order to promote the design and development of Green Building in Taiwan, it established EEWH assessment system in 2001. Construction and Planning Agency, Ministry of the Interior (CPAMI), appointed Taiwan Architecture and Building Center (TABC) to review and certify Green Building Certification. At the beginning, the application was

completely voluntary, but it was ineffective in the end. For this reason, government decided to take the lead to set an example. In Taiwan, the government requests all public buildings, whose costs are more than 50 million NT dollars, to obtain the Green Building candidate certificate before it starts to build. Hundreds of buildings have possessed candidate certificate since June 2005. The government policy also attracts private buildings to voluntarily apply certification. Therefore, the executive track of Green Building in Taiwan now is from the Government to the private sector. However, it has many restrictions for public buildings to apply Green Building because of the intervention of government.

In contrast with EEWH led by the government, LEED assessment system in American is completely formulated by the private sector and handled by U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) now. USGBC is a private corporation, which is not controlled by the government. It only handles with the buildings which have been built and does not have time restriction to accomplish assessment works. Besides, USGBC entrusts the assessment work to professional Commissioning Company. The benchmark is high because LEED does not force the building to apply the certification. Therefore, the buildings, which pass LEED certification and no matter what score they obtain, are perfect Green Building works.

Overall, Green Building in Taiwan is a negative prevention attitude, but LEED actively encourages good design. The executive track of LEED, opposite to EEWH, is from the private sector to government. To promote Green Building market trend by the power of private sector and then attract the government’s vision to follow.

2.2 Comparison of Assessment Procedure

The comparison of assessment procedure is listed in Table 2.2.

Table 2.2 Comparison of Assessment Procedure

EEWH System LEED System

The assessment procedure of EEWH is divided into Green Building candidate certificate and Green Building mark. The generation of candidate certificate is because public building needs to acquire Green Building mark before it is permitted to build. In other words, candidate certificate is regarded as a quasi-mark of Green Building and the real mark should be obtained after the construction is completed.

First, the design team applies for assessment when necessary documents are collected and then hand over to TABC which will notify design team if documents have any lack. The Green Building committee member firstly certifies the case and then holds a meeting to review it. If all committee members unanimously adopt this result, TABC will hold

presentation ceremony. The assessment time must be short enough to prevent the impact to project time limit. Therefore, the total review time for applying Green Building candidate certificate is about one month.

In contrast to Taiwan Green Building, whose review time is hasty, the assessment of LEED has no time restriction at all for a project because it handles the building which had been built. For the beginning of design, USGBC suggests applicant to register the case first and let committee member understand the progress of the project. After completion, designer or owner collects necessary documents and then applies for LEED certification. USGBC just reviews documents but entrusts the assessment work to professional Commissioning Company.

Such Company possesses various types of professionals because LEED system has six indicators. According to the characteristics, USGBC entrusts the assessment work to different companies. The preliminary assessment time is one month and it has additional one month for design team to re-supply documents. The assessment review will be finished within three months. If owner accepts the result, USGBC will hold presentation ceremony. If owner does not accept the result, he/she can request another review but needs to pay additional cost.

2.3 Qualitative Comparison of Indicators

The contents of EEWH and LEED are different in some standards owing to the local climate and national conditions, however, the most of them are similar. In this study, it compares the indicators that both assessment systems have mentioned and then compares the ones that

rather special or unique. The sequence of comparison is based on the structure of EEWH system. The comparison of indicators is listed in Table 2.3.

Table 2.3 Comparison of Similar Indicators

EEWH LEED Related Method

Biodiversity CO2 Concentration Sensor

CO2 Emission

Storage & Collection of Recyclables

Centralized and Classification of Garbage

2.3.1 Comparison of Similar Indicators 2.3.1.1 Biodiversity Indicator

The assessment of Biodiversity Indicator is divided into five parts.

One is Plant Diversity which encourages the use of original plant or of plant which can lure birds and butterflies. In LEED system, Water Efficient Landscaping Indicator also encourages the uses of original plant and drought-enduring plant which can save water.

In another part of Biodiversity Indicator, Soil Ecology indicates that in order to protect soil during construction, workers must centralize soil and sprinkle on it. This part is the same as Construction Activity Pollution Prevention Indicator, which regulated by LEED.

2.3.1.2 Greenery Indicator

In order to maintain the original natural environment, this indicator encourages designer to maintain a site’s original ecology and reduce artificial destruction. Site Development Indicator of LEED has the same viewpoint. For this reason, it encourages designer to maintain natural of open space and reduce the range of artificial destruction. However, this indicator mainly aims at a site, located in the country. If a site is located in the city, it is hard to reach this purpose because there are no such environmental conditions.

On the other hand, LEED encourages designer to plant trees in order to reduce Heat Island Effect, it is the same purpose as Greenery Indicator in EEWH which encourages designer to plant arbor. Although Water Efficient Landscaping Indicator in LEED does not encourage designer to plant a lot of area, but it is the same as EEWH which encourages designer to select original plant.

2.3.1.3 Soil Water Content Indicator

This indicator is divided into Direct Infiltration and Storage Infiltration. Storage Infiltration design method is the same as Stormwater Design Indicator in LEED which adopts detention pond and storage open space. In Direct Infiltration, it has the effect on reducing flood peak and runoff amount. Besides, this indicator sets up kinds of green space, grass ditch and permeable pavement which have the effect on reducing Heat Island Effect. It is the same idea with Heat Island Effect Reduction Indicator in LEED.

2.3.1.4 Energy Saving Indicator

In Energy Saving Indicator, it makes efforts to reduce building energy consumption in both EEWH and LEED assessment systems. For this reason, these two assessment systems both require building energy consumption to be lower than baseline and then designer can obtain rewards. However, the reduction ranges are different because of climate conditions. In LEED, it can reduce 42 percent of energy use, whereas it can only reduce 20 percent of energy use in EEWH. From viewpoint of LEED, Energy Saving Indicator belongs to integral energy use assessment, adding different energy consumption to assess it. However, EEWH is divided into Envelope, HVAC System and Lighting System, which are assessed respectively. Furthermore, LEED adds several kinds of energy, such as electric power, fuel gas and oil, and takes integral assessment, but EEWH only assesses electric power because it is the main type of energy used in Taiwan.

Both EEWH and LEED systems encourage renewable energy in

efficiency of renewable energy is low in Taiwan, and it is hard to substitute the existing building energy consumption for 5 to 20 percent.

Thus the universality of renewable energy in Taiwan is still in a preliminary phase.

The different method of HVAC energy saving is encouraged by EEWH. Although a starting point of LEED is based on installing CO2

concentration sensor, whose purpose is on considering occupants’

comfort, but it still has effect on energy saving. These two assessment systems have reward for installing energy monitor system.

2.3.1.5 CO2 Emission Reduction Indicator

Both EEWH and LEED assessment systems encourage the use of renewable materials in building. LEED divides it into four parts, which are Materials Reuse, Recycled Content, Regional Materials and Rapidly Renewable Materials. To recycle building materials and products can reduce construction waste and demand for virgin materials. For this reason, it can reduce CO₂ emission associated with the extraction and processing of virgin resources. On the other hand, to increase demand for building materials and products, which are extracted and manufactured within the region, can reduce the environmental impacts and CO₂ emission resulting from transportation.

EEWH mainly promotes renewable materials which mix with concrete because the main content of building materials in Taiwan is almost concrete. In the part of Recycled Content, EEWH does not consider the recycle of metals because it has 80 percent recycle rate in Taiwan. Although it also has high recycle rate in American, LEED considers the recycle of metals. On the other hand, EEWH promotes the

use of blast furnace concrete because it has preferential calculation for the concrete, which adds ashes of a stove.

2.3.1.6 Waste Reduction Indicator

Both EEWH and LEED assessment systems pay attention to Construction Waste Management. The waste soil is not counted in LEED because it does not have many cases which dig the basement in American.

In other words, the waste soil, which is cleared up for the purpose of construction, is not counted in construction waste unless the site contains trash and debris initially.

In the last item of EEWH, it encourages to prevent pollution from the generation during construction. Although it is simple pollution prevention and public health, but the meaning is the same as that of LEED.

2.3.1.7 Indoor Environment Indicator

Indoor Environment Indicator is divided into Sound Environment, Lighting Environment, Ventilation Environment and Indoor Materials.

LEED has the same regulations except the Sound Environment. In the part of Ventilation Environment, EEWH includes Mechanical and Natural Ventilation. EEWH requires the same Minimum IAQ Performance and Ventilation Effectiveness as those of LEED. EEWH only uses windows’

area and seal tightness to assess ventilation, whereas LEED uses experimental assessment method or computer simulation which is according to ASHRAE Standard.

In the part of Lighting Environment, it divided into Artificial and Natural Lighting. In LEED, Artificial Lighting is classified as

consumption. In the part of Natural Lighting, it is related to Controllability of Systems and Daylight & Views indicators, which are regulated by LEED.

In the part of Indoor Materials, it overlaps with CO2 Emission Reduction Indicator. LEED divides Green Materials, also promoted by Taiwan, into four parts: Materials Reuse, Recycled Content, Regional Materials and Rapidly Renewable Materials. These products enter the market for years and their prices now can be accepted by the public.

However, there has no material testing certification agency in Taiwan, therefore, it only can import Green Materials from abroad that leads to higher price. For this reason, the concept of Indoor Materials is still in the very preliminary stage in Taiwan.

2.3.1.8 Water Resource Indicator

EEWH pays much more attention to the use of water-saving devices that is the same as the regulation of Water Use Reduction in LEED.

Besides, EEWH requests facilities, which have large water consumptions, to install the rainwater and recycled wastewater capture devices. For the large development of green land, EEWH also requests designer to install high efficiency sprinkler system. LEED has the same regulation in Water Efficient Landscaping Indicator.

2.3.1.9 Sewage and Garbage Improvement Indicator

In this indicator, it is divided into Sewage and Garbage parts. LEED focuses on the centralized handling and classification of garbage, but it does not emphasize the importance of beautification surroundings.

Besides, LEED does not emphasize sewage treatment device either because American homes usually have laundry room.

2.3.2 Comparison of Unique Indicators

In this study, it finds that EEWH and LEED have their own unique indicators, which are not included in both assessment systems simultaneously. The reasons are that different areas have different climate conditions, and some standards of EEWH are regulated by other laws, such as Environment Protection Code. The unique indicators in EEWH and LEED are listed in Table 2.4 and Table 2.5, respectively.

Table 2.4 Unique Indicators in EEWH

Category Indicator Illustration

Biodiversity

Greenery Plant Arbor

To Green a lot of Area

LEED Pays Attention to Water Efficiency Indoor Environment Sound Environment

Indicator N/A

Table 2.5 Unique Indicators in LEED

Category Indicator Illustration

Site Selection Regulated by Other Related Laws Development Density

Brownfield Redevelopment Urban Renewal Alternative Transportation Parking Area Sustainable

Sites

Light Pollution Reduction Classified to Biodiversity Indicator Fundamental Commissioning

Enhanced Commissioning Project Management

Fundamental Refrigerant Management Environment Protection Code Energy and

Atmosphere

Green Power No Contract

ETS Control HVAC Systems of Smoking Room Construction IAQ Management Plan

Indoor Pollutant Source Control Controllability of Systems IEQ

Thermal Comfort

2.3.2.1 Unique Indicators in LEED 2.3.2.1.1 Sustainable Sites

LEED requests owner to avoid development of inappropriate sites and reduce the environment impact from the location of a building on a site. Designer needs to select a developed area, if the site is located in the city. On the contrary, if the site is located in the country, designer must maintain the original open space and reduce the artificial destruction.

LEED has many criteria to regulate the development in a sensitive area, whereas it is regulated by the other related laws in EEWH. Besides, the Brownfield Redevelopment is encouraged by LEED. It is the same as urban renewal but is hard to execute for building industry in Taiwan.

It has criteria of Alternative Transportation in LEED, the intent is to reduce pollutions and land development impacts from the use of automobiles. There are some advantages, such as installation of Bicycle Storage & Changing Rooms and reduction of Parking Capacity, which EEWH can follow.

LEED also pays attention to the part of Light Pollution Reduction, whose intent is to minimize light trespass from the building and site and reduce development impact on nocturnal environments. Light Pollution is categorized into Biodiversity Indicator in EEWH, but it just has qualitative regulation and needs modification in the future.

2.3.2.1.2 Energy and Atmosphere

In American, it has Commissioning Team, whose feature is similar to project management, to help owner to apply LEED. However, it does not have such company in Taiwan now. In fact, EEWH is still in the preliminary stage in this part. LEED also has criteria of Fundamental

Refrigerant Management to prevent CFC from destroying ozonosphere.

In this regard, it is regulated by environment protection standard in Taiwan. For the development of Green Power, it cannot be executed in Taiwan because there is no corresponding law yet.

2.3.2.1.3 Indoor Environmental Quality

It only requests to set up smoking room in EEWH, but it does not have any regulation for HVAC system of smoking room. The smoke may spreads from smoking room to the other rooms by HVAC system. On the contrary, LEED has criteria of Environment Tobacco Smoke (ETS) Control, whose intent is to minimize the smoke spread to building occupants, indoor environment, and ventilation air distribution systems.

Besides, LEED requests the separated IAQ managements during construction and before occupancy. Construction IAQ management before occupancy is very important because it has effect on the health of occupants. However, it does not have related regulation in EEWH.

In the subject of thermal comfort, LEED pays attention to the controls of temperature and humidity. The intent is to provide a comfortable thermal environment that supports the productivity and well-being of building occupants. On the contrary, it does not consider the thermal comfort in EEWH.

2.3.2.2 Unique Indicators in EEWH 2.3.2.2.1 Biodiversity Indicator

In order to reduce the environment impact and reach the sustainable purpose, EEWH uses ecological network, biological habitat, plant diversity, and soil ecology to assess a site. In comparison with EEWH,

It seems not to concern about natural environment in LEED, but it is not the truth. America has broad land, fine ecological environment, and many places even are original woodlands and not developed yet. Thus, the intent of LEED is to maximize open space and reduce a site disturbance, which is the best way for local ecological environment.

2.3.2.2.2 Greenery Indicator

This indicator basically encourages designer to plant arbors and greens in a lot of area. From another viewpoint, LEED pays attention to water efficiency. It will waste more water if afforests too many or choose inappropriate trees. These two assessment systems start from different viewpoints so lead to opposite assessment indicators.

2.3.2.2.3 Indoor Environment Indicator

LEED does not have the regulation in Sound Environment, but it can apply for Innovation and Design Process Indicator.

2.4 Quantitative Comparison of Indicators

In order to understand the difference between EEWH and LEED, this study displays not only the meanings of indicators but also

In order to understand the difference between EEWH and LEED, this study displays not only the meanings of indicators but also