Benchmark Study on Green Buildings - Royal Architectural Institute ...

council has said that the municipal water department will pay developers $10/m 2 of green
roof installed. This is likely to cover between 10 and 20% of the total green roof costs,
which is not much but at least it is something. This pilot project has a meager fund of
$200,000, which is not likely to cover more than a few dozen buildings. However, this is
still progress, and is one of the reasons North American installations of green roofs are
increasing at a rate of more than 70% a year.
B-3 Germany:
German Renewable Energy Law (EEG) & information:
In terms of its overall concern for the environment, Germany is one of the leading
countries in the world for several reasons. The German Renewable Energy Law (EEG)
was passed in 2000 and updated in early 2004. Above-market revenues are charged for
green power sales and the cost is spread among all consumers, to minimize the overall
effect of the cost increase. All renewable energy produced is consumed at a higher price
to encourage the development and generation of more renewable power. The goal is that
technological improvements will gradually drive prices down, slowly reducing the tariffs
paid to the producers of renewable energy, but that by then, renewable energy production
will be increasingly possible, prevalent and affordable. The EEG is a medium- to longterm
strategy designed to increase the amount of renewable energy produced in Germany,
and make it more affordable and widespread over time.
As a result of the EEG, Germany is the fastest-growing market for photovoltaics in the
world, worth over 800 million euros in 2003 (about $1.15 billion Canadian) and
1.8 billion euros in 2004 (about $2.55 billion Canadian). The German solar power
industry grew 53% to 837 megawatts of energy in 2005, representing 57% of total world
solar energy output. In late 2004, Germany began operating the world’s largest solar
power plant in Mulhausen. The plant generates 6.3 megawatts of power, and is part of a
set of facilities in Bavaria which will produce a total of 10 megawatts of power using
57,600 silicon solar panels upon completion. Another 10 megawatts of solar power
generation will be coming online soon in another four-location project. Beyond solar,
Germany is also the world’s leading producer of wind power, with over 16,000 windmills.
Power generation capacity from wind amounted to 14,609 megawatts in 2003, up from
334 megawatts in 1993. Renewable sources currently produce more than 10% of the
nation’s energy, a level which is supposed to double by 2020 and reach 50% by 2050.
However, at the current pace of development, it will likely reach this goal sooner than
that; as of projections from 2000, the 10% mark was not supposed to be obtained until
2010.
KfW Federal Bank CO 2 Building Modernization Program & CO 2 Reduction Program:
Germany is considered to be among the leaders of the global green building initiative
because of its “can-do” attitude and demonstrated ability to set environmental goals,
provide flexibility, and offer incentives for homeowners, builders and developers to build
greener buildings. One of Germany’s largest financial green building incentives is the
KfW Federal Bank’s ‘CO 2 Building Modernization Program.’ Introduced in January 2001
as part of the Government's Climate Change Program and revamped in 2003, the KfW
offers loans at preferential rates to home owners, housing authorities, local authorities, etc
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