Developers to Go Green in South Africa

While the electricity crisis in South Africa is making life difficult in the country, it may have an unseen benefit for the future of the country’s environment. With the call to use less power being issued across South Africa, property developers are looking for ways to make new builds more energy efficient.

The government, on both a local and a national level is promoting “green builds.” The country now has a newly established the Green Building Council of SA and the City of Johannesburg is introducing new requirements to property developers to ensure new developments are more energy efficient.

In an article in Business Day, Philip Harrison, Executive Director, Development Planning and Urban Management, said property developers needed to add alternative energy or energy-saving technologies when submitting plans for approval. Building plans would be evaluated in terms of these measures.

Resilient Property Income Fund has jumped on the “green” band wagon with designs that will adapt to the new South African landscape according to the Resilient Executive Director David Lewis. He said that it is essential to incorporate more green building concepts in retail centers and other buildings.