TABLE OF CONTENTS - The Professional Green Building Council

Theme C: Education and Market TransformationIn addition to these efforts being made on the policy side, experts suggest rollingout an economic incentive mechanism to bolster the rational development ofenergy saving in construction. A host of economic measures including taxation,pricing and distribution of extra allowances should be carried out, to drive theenergy conservation. If all measures are adopted effectively, energy consumptionin building constructions would suffice to save 50 million tons of coal equivalentsduring the 11th Five-Year Plan period. [3]2. DEVELOPMENT OF GREEN BUILDING IN CHINAThe China Long and Medium-Term Energy Conservation Plan, drawn up by theNational Development and Reform Commission, is divided into two phases: the11th Five-Year Plan and the period between 2007 and 2020. China will see aconstruction boom of green, energy-efficient buildings in the coming 15 years.According to the MOC, China will transform all existing buildings into energysavingbuildings by 2020. Buildings built after 2005 will embrace newtechnologies that could save 65 percent more energy per square meter comparedwith buildings built now.With scientific and systematic design, energy-efficient and green buildings canembrace high technologies including natural ventilation, natural lighting and waterrecycling. Yet, the cost of green buildings, saving 60 percent of the energy per unit,is only five to seven percent higher than the ordinary buildings, but it will greatlyreduce energy consumption and environment pollution. Homeowners wereexpected to spend an estimated $200 bn by 2020 on improvements to meet the newregulations. According to ministry statistics, the energy consumption per unit forChinese construction is two or three times that of developed countries. Currently,energy-saving buildings in China occupy less than one percent of the country'stotal construction by square meter. This creates a huge potential for buildingenergy-efficient buildings in China.607