Author(s)

A. L. Cabrita & J. R. Alvarez

Abstract

Environmental assessment methods are widely recognised as one of the most efficient strategies to encourage environmental responsibility in the building sector. This recognition is based on more than 20 years of implementation, during which these methods have been adopted by the industry and stakeholders and have stimulated a demand for sustainable construction. BREEAM is the world’s leading environmental certificate with over 201,000 certified buildings. The methodology on which it is based has benefited from the broad experience of the Building Research Establishment and its many years of research. A new BREEAM scheme has been recently launched to address the impact of development projects within the built environment. BREEAM Communities identifies a holistic set of indicators and performance targets that will eventually determine the robustness of the urban project. The selection of targets and benchmarks and the definition of the assessment framework are key issues that are strongly determined by the geographic and social context. The ITG (Instituto Tecnológico de Galicia) is now responsible for the adaptation and future implementation of BREEAM Communities into the Spanish context. The adaptation process will involve extensive consultation with a broad range of experts and stakeholders that will provide feedback in some 40 areas of expertise, thus generating a comprehensive knowledge base about sustainable urbanization. This paper will point out the main issues that are to be considered during this process and how the assessing criteria will interact with the Spanish legal and environmental framework. Keywords: environmental assessment, labelling, certificate, sustainable communities, BREEAM, ITG.

Keywords

environmental assessment, labelling, certificate, sustainable communities, BREEAM, ITG