Emirates Green Building Council joins hands with Dubai Electricity and Water Authority to foster sustainability

APRIL 16, 2013| press release

Green Building Tour and workshop organised at DEWA’s

newly-opened sustainable building

Emirates Green Building Council (EmiratesGBC), an independent forum aimed at conserving the environment by strengthening and promoting green building practices in the UAE, teamed up with Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) to organise a green building tour of DEWA’s new sustainable building, for stakeholders from across the construction industry.

Highlighting the importance of having energy-efficient systems and practices, the tour provided the participants with insights on the sustainability measures implemented by DEWA and the energy savings as a result of these path-breaking steps.  DEWA’s Sustainable Building located in Al Quoz is the largest government building in the world with a Platinum rating for green buildings from Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), the US Green Building Council, securing 98 out of 110 points.

“The new green achievement fits in perfectly with the initiative entitled ‘Green Economy for Sustainable Development,’ under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and DEWA’s strategy to reduce energy consumption by conserving our precious natural resources and finding energy-efficient renewable solutions. We want to reduce energy consumption as part of our efforts to protect the environment to achieve our long-term goal of sustainable development, for generations to come,” said HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD and CEO of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA).

“In line with DEWA’s strategic direction to become a sustainable world-class utility, DEWA welcomes the visits to the Green Building as part of our commitment to raising awareness about the importance of adopting conservation practices and we are working to establish Dubai as a world leader in clean energy and sustainable solutions to meet the challenge of increased demand for energy, while mitigating the potential impact of climate change,” concluded Al Tayer.

Adnan Sharafi, Chairman of EmiratesGBC said:  “Today, there is growing awareness on the need to promote sustainable built enviornments across the region. However, it is also important that we share our best practices with our stakeholders so they understand the concept better and can adopt green initiatives in their projects. DEWA has indeed set a global milestone with its new sustainable building, and through the tour we provided our industry partners a first-hand overview of what can be tangibly attained in green building practices. Our partnership with DEWA for the tour underlines our commitment to work towards achieving the UAE’s Green Vision, announced by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai.”

“Buildings are responsible for 40 percent of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions and more than 70 percent of the electricity consumption. EmiratesGBC is focused on enhancing awareness on the need to develop sustainable environments through such initiatives,” he added.

EmiratesGBC has more than 260 members representing all stakeholders in the building construction supply chain. EmiratesGBC regularly takes part in key conferences and exhibitions to promote sustainable built environments. The Council hosts a dedicated forum, ‘Focus Day’ that discusses various concerns and topics associated with driving sustainability. It also hosts a series of initiatives that facilitates industry dialogue and provides educational resources and information on sustainable practices.

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Note to Editors

About Emirates Green Building Council:

The Emirates Green Building Council (EmiratesGBC) was founded in June 2006, and became the 8th full member of the World Green Building Council in September 2006. EmiratesGBC is an organization that promotes and educates on green issues in the built environment and is the official body for the UAE endorsed by the World Green Building Council. EmiratesGBC currently has around 260 members in the UAE which represents 1000s of individuals interested and involved in Green Building in the UAE and the region. In addition, EmiratesGBC members receive discounts on a number of programmes such as those related to conferences, seminars, training and green building events.

For further information, please contact:

Mohammed Al Tawil

ASDA’A Burson-Marsteller

+9714 4507600

mohammed.altawil@bm.com