The “green” master know-how

Answers to these questions were provided by participants of the annual summary Green and Sustainable Real Estate Conference, organized by IM Events. The event was held at Moscow’s Sheraton Hotel.

Opening the forum was James Drinkwater, senior advisor for strategic planning at the Worldwide council for environmental construction. His report “Changes in the sphere of ‘Green’ construction in Europe” was devoted not only to ecological but also to political aspects. In particular, in the UK the reduction of costs thanks to environmental norms revision, and vice versa, became a national idea. “The government is in dialogue with companies”, Mr Drinkwater highlighted.

It is quite likely that a similar framework will soon become feasible in Russia. The advisor to the president of the Sochi-2014 org-committee, Dmitry Kolosov, called attention to the fact that the Olympics will leave behind an invaluable legacy, not only in terms of physical properties. “An event of such scale pertains to mega-events, and it’s sensible to apply the term “sustainable development” to the preparations for the Olympics in Sochi, meaning a process of changes, where environmental, social and political aspects enhance one another”, he noted. It is precisely in the construction of athletic facilities that care for the environment can be most clearly expressed, since they’re minimalist, require the use of advanced technologies and don’t harm the environment. Speaking about this was Steve Macy, deputy director of Buro Happold. “Besides the environmental friendliness of the properties themselves, we can conduct edifying work with fans as well, since sports fans easily band together and amplify shared ideas”, the speaker said. Gathering old electronics, distributing food to the impoverished – the environment and social aid frequently come together, and the center can be athletic properties, including those planned in Russia for 2018. To confirm that Russia green construction is becoming a government priority, a presentation was given by Valery Kazeykin, deputy coordinator of the State Duma for developing low-rise residential development Svoy Dom. Green standards will enhance living cnditions and refresh the living environment of Moscow’s residents. More than 80% of Russians, for example, speak in favor of implementing “smart” systems for on-site calculation of energy and water expenditures. We seek to implement these technologies in our new villages”, said Kazeykin.

Part of New Moscow will be Skolkovo – not only an innovations center, but also an environmentally complete village. The director for key partner relations and Skolkovo fund investments, Alexander Malyutin, highlighted that technologies and eco-orientation in the modern world enhance one another: “Precisely the development of technologies makes it possible to perfect methods of ecological construction.” Speaking about this was Alexander Kozharinov, scientific director at NP Zelenye Standarty. Standardization in the area of ecological technologies is becoming the everyday norm, and it isn’t intended, for example, for a certain class of residences, but is necessary for all.