Singapore Celebrates 1000th BCA Green Mark Building Project

Singapore has reached a new milestone in its green building journey - the 1000^th green building since the Building and Construction Authority’s (BCA) Green Mark Scheme was introduced in 2005. The 1000^th placing goes to Pasir Ris Sports and Recreation Centre (SRC), which has achieved the BCA Green Mark GoldPlus, the second highest rating under the green building rating scheme.

To mark this special milestone, about 500 residents from Pasir Ris-Punggol Group Representation Constituency (GRC) participated in a ‘Walk the Green Talk’ event this morning. Led by Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) Teo Chee Hean, who was accompanied by other Members of Parliament from Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC and Punggol East SMC, the walk began at Pasir Ris Elias Community Club and ended with a memorable award ceremony at Pasir Ris SRC. DPM Teo, together with Singapore Sports Council’s (SSC) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mr Lim Teck Yin, received the Green Mark Award from Mr Quek See Tiat, Chairman of BCA and Dr John Keung, CEO of BCA.

Commenting on the achievement, DPM Teo Chee Hean said, “Pasir Ris residents and grassroots leaders were actively involved in shaping the design of the Pasir Ris Sports and Recreation Centre, and I am delighted that the Centre is now the 1000^th Green Mark building project. This is a significant milestone in the building and construction industry’s efforts to incorporate green design and practices in new and existing buildings in Singapore. This will also help to mitigate climate change as the building sector contributes 16 per cent of Singapore's total carbon emissions. Indeed, the BCA Green Mark scheme is an integral part of our national efforts to reduce emissions, contribute to global climate change mitigation efforts, and create a sustainable living environment for our future generations.”

Pasir Ris SRC is the first-of-its-kind eco-friendly SRC designed with green features to complement the natural surroundings of the adjoining Pasir Ris Town Park. An interactive public display system located at the foyer of the SRC allows visitors to learn more about the Centre’s green initiatives, as well as keep track of the building’s energy consumption. The building is fitted with water and energy efficient features such as LED lighting and incorporates passive design to enhance daylighting and natural ventilation in common areas. In addition, louvers acting as sunshading screens are installed on the building’s façade to prevent heat gain into the building. These wooden louvers were recycled from timber seats at the old National Stadium and given a new lease of life.

As a Green Mark GoldPlus certified building, the SRC is 25 per cent more energy efficient than an average building without green features. The Centre also boasts an impressive 170kWp photovoltaic system on its rooftop, which is expected to generate about 207,380 kWh of electricity each year to support up to 12 per cent of its annual energy consumption. This is equivalent to the amount of energy used to power up 45 four-room HDB flats and will help the Centre save about $57,000^[1] annually. Another interesting feature that patrons to the gym could look out for is a human powered exercise bicycle that allows the user to generate electricity while shedding some pounds. The electricity generated from the bicycle could be stored to power up the television in the gym for more than 8 hours.

“We are delighted to receive the Green Mark accolade as it recognises the deliberate effort that we have taken to create a user-friendly and eco-friendly Pasir Ris SRC. The ‘sports in a park’ concept with green designs and environmentally friendly features, as well as the seamless connection to the neighbouring park and water body, will not only increase the awareness of environmental sustainability among Singaporeans, but also create a conducive place for families to bond and enjoy sports,” said Mr Lim Teck Yin, CEO of SSC. “Our Vision 2030 recommendations called for greater access and more innovative placemaking for sport in Singapore. Pasir Ris SRC is a fine example of our direction for future development of sports facilities.”

Dr Keung, CEO of BCA added, “We are glad that more and more building owners and developers are coming forward to ‘green’ their buildings, even beyond the minimum mandatory standards, as they are becoming more aware of the benefits of providing an eco-friendly environment for the occupants. Moving forward, we also want to reach out to building occupants or the consumers, to encourage them to ‘walk the green talk’ and follow the government’s lead in creating the demand for more environmentally friendly buildings in the near future. In fact, our latest Green Mark schemes, which assess office interiors, schools and restaurants, are part of BCA's plan to place more emphasis on users' behaviour and cultivate them to play a greater role in Singapore's green building movement. ”

Since 2005, the number of Green Mark building projects in Singapore has increased exponentially from only 17 in the first year to 1,000 today. Singapore is well on target to ‘green’ at least 80 per cent of all its buildings by 2030. At present, about 13 per cent of the buildings in Singapore have achieved the BCA Green Mark standard, translating to a gross floor area of 29 million m2.

The BCA Green Mark scheme is supported by a host of incentives, including the $100 million Green Mark Incentive Scheme for Existing Buildings (GMIS-EB), the Green Mark Gross Floor Area (GM-GFA) Incentive Scheme and the latest Building Retrofit Energy Efficiency Financing (BREEF) scheme.

Source: Building and Construction Authority

^[1] Based on estimated tariff rate of $0.276/kWh