Minimising environmental impacts of building materials in Singapore: role of architects

Ho Lay Kien, George Ofori

International Journal of Environmental Technology and Management, 2002, vol. 2, issue 1/2/3, 244-266

Abstract: By 2030, it is estimated that the earth's population will be ten billion. Significant quantities of resources will be required to provide buildings for this population. Questions concerning the capability of the earth to support such a large population have arisen. Moreover, the extraction and utilisation of these resources can have negative impacts on the environment. Efforts are underway to find solutions in several aspects of the building process, including the selection and specification of materials. This paper explores the adverse environmental impacts of building materials. A mailed questionnaire survey was used to study the awareness level of architects in Singapore regarding the environmental impacts of materials and the actions they are taking to protect the environment. It was found that the architects are knowledgeable about the environmental impacts of building materials. However, they are not consciously selecting materials with regard to their environmental implications. It is suggested that architects and other parties must act to enable the Singapore construction industry to minimise its environmental impacts.

Keywords: environmental degradation; resource use; green design; metals and plastics; building. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2002
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.inderscience.com/link.php?id=789 (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ids:ijetma:v:2:y:2002:i:1/2/3:p:244-266

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in International Journal of Environmental Technology and Management from Inderscience Enterprises Ltd
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sarah Parker ().