Beneficios económicos de la certificación LEED. Edificio centro Ático: caso de estudio

What is it about?

This article discusses the economic benefits of the implementation of the sustainable building LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification in the Centro Ático building located in Bogotá, Colombia. Initially, the consumption of water and electricity are determined, as well as the costs of construction and operation of the building under its original design (built without regard to the parameters set by LEED). Then, strategies to allow the Centro Ático building to obtain the LEED GOLD New Construction V3 2009 certification are proposed and the economic increases associated with them are calculated. Also, the new consumption of water and electricity, when these strategies are applied (modified design), and their operating costs are calculated. Finally, indicators of economic goodness of investment are determined using a cash flow analysis.

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Why is it important?

Even though the sustainable construction is starting to become an important part of companies that are part of this sector in Colombia, the data of the implementation systems such as LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) are not encouraging. According to reports by DANE, between the years 2009 and 2013 there were approximately 49.1 billion m2 of construction; as a comparison, only 118 projects were registered in the LEED directory for that same period. The situation explained above carries an evident need to create an incentive in Colombia for the application of sustainable rating systems, not just for the growth in economic terms for the country but also because they make an outstanding contribution caring for the environment.

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