India pips US & China in number of LEED zero green building projects

Mumbai, June 19 (KNN) India has outpaced the United States of America and China to become the top country with LEED Zero green building projects, as per US Green Building Council (USGBC) and Green Business Certification Inc (GBCI).

The United States and China have the second and third most LEED Zero certifications, with 47 (30%) and 15 (10%) certifications respectively.

LEED Zero recognises projects that have reached net zero or net positive status in the categories of carbon, energy, water, or waste. Net zero refers to a state in which the greenhouse gases going into the atmosphere are balanced by removal from the atmosphere. The term net zero is important because – for CO2 at least – this is the state at which global warming stops.

Out of 150 LEED Zero certified projects, India has 45% or 73 such projects, with Haryana and Tamil Nadu leading the race in certifications, according to the GBCI’s findings.

India’s DLF group is the leader globally in total LEED Zero certifications with 45 certifications for its projects, followed by Kolkata-headquartered ITC Group with 15 certifications.

Some Leed zero projects include ITC Grand Central, ITC Maratha, Mumbai, Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail’s manufacturing facility in Bengaluru, Tamarai Tech Park in Chennai, Goldman Sachs building in Bengaluru, Danfoss Industries campus in Chennai, ITC Hotels across India and their data centre in Bengaluru, and Nucleus Office Parks’ One Trade Tower in Bengaluru.

The LEED Zero projects include office spaces, hospitality facilities, retail malls, industrial manufacturing projects and data centres.

Nearly one-third of all carbon emissions in India come from the building and construction sector.  (KNN Bureau)