The North Park in the Black River Park office park in Cape Town is the first building in South Africa to be awarded an “existing building” certification from the Green Building Council SA (GBCSA). It has received the certification due to the council’s recently launched Green Star SA Existing Building Performance (EBP) pilot tool.

The North Park has been recognised with a 5-Star Green Star SA EBP certification.

The EBP rating tool was launched by the council in August 2013. The tool acknowledges excellence in the performance of existing, or older buildings, where green innovations have been introduced and retro-fitted to make the building more sustainable while reducing its impact on the environment.

“The awarding of our first-ever Green Star SA EBP rating is a significant milestone for the GBCSA, Misplon Green Building Consulting and the green building movement in South Africa,” comments Brian Wilkinson, CEO of the GBCSA.

“We want many more owners of buildings to follow the example set by Black River Park. With this first EBP rating awarded, the GBCSA will go on a big drive advocating the case to get existing buildings to be retrofitted with green innovations, as these buildings make up the large majority of buildings out there,” he adds.

Until recently GBCSA’s Green Star rating tools have focused largely on the design and construction of new buildings and major refurbishments. This resulted in insufficient focus on ongoing building operations and management.

This existing building rating tool enables the effective measurement of a building’s environmental performance in relation to its operation and management. It provides indicators to ensure that the building’s environmental performance is efficiently maintained or improved upon over time. The new EBP rating tool is significantly differentiated by the fact that buildings can get a 1-6 star certification with this tool and the rating is valid for a period of three years in order to ensure continued efficient operation and management of the building.

Black River Park has been at the forefront of sustainable commercial real estate for over a decade and this certification confirms the strength of the management team and their commitment to sustainability. The EBP certification of a building within the park marks the completion of the first stage of Black River Park’s drive to get all the office buildings at the park certified.

Black River Park and the GBCSA will be hosting a precinct tour and plaque unveiling on November 13^th 2014.

 

Source: Green Building Council SA