In an effort to move towards Zero Energy buildings, Chinese Taipei has implemented a Green Building Promotion Program which awards with a "Certified Green Building Label" if they meet certain standards. This approach considers building envelopes, integrated renewable energy, insulation materials, air leakage, emission reduction, air conditioning, hot water, pumps, facility lighting, automation and control systems, ESCO, energy performance certification, and legislation.
The 9 Indices of the Green Building Evaluation System include:
- Biodiversity
- Greenery
- Soil water content
- Daily energy savings
- C02 emission reduction
- Waste reduction
- Indoor environment
- Water resource
- Sewage and garbage improvement
The green building of Taiwan is developed based on Taiwan’s subtropical climate characteristics with high temperature and high humidity that can sufficiently meet the need in ecology, energy saving, waste reduction, and health. The EEWH green building labeling system was established in September 1999 as the second certification system in the world right after the US LEED. The original system comprised of seven evaluation indicators: greenery (vegetation planting), water infiltration and retention, daily energy conservation, water conservation, CO₂ emission reduction, construction waste reduction, and sewage and waste disposal facility improvement. In 2003, two indicators were introduced in the system, including biodiversity and indoor environment quality. The current nine-indicator evaluation was thus finalized, known as the EEWH system (listed in Table 1). Furthermore, a scoring and rating system was launched in 2007 for enhancing green building design quality and motivating builders/owners to pursue better performance and innovative techniques. The rating system defines five classes of green building design, including Certified, Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Diamond. Following the international development trend of green building certification, it has also proven to be an effective strategy to encourage better green building design in Taiwan. Meanwhile, the green building can be redefined as a building with Ecology, Energy Saving, Waste Reduction, as well as Health.
This strategy has yielded an estimated savings between 2000-2008 of:
Energy: 647.8 GWh
CO2 Reduction: 426.2 kt