This presentation was delivered by Diaa El-Masry to a group of young people in Qatar University during summer 2014. It is a basic introduction to the Green concepts and how can we help ourselves by being more environmental friendly!

2. Outline
• Sustainability
• Green Buildings
• Energy conservation
• Water Conservation
• Waste Management
• Indoor Environment
• How to Protect the Environment

3. Sustainability
• Maintaining a balance
between:
– The Society
– The Economy
– The Environment
• Being sustainable helps
improve the health of the
current and future
generation.

4. Sustainability
In order to be sustainable, countries should
follow certain guidelines put by environmental
interest groups (i.e. EPA), such as:
– Conserving Water
– Conserving Energy
– Improving Air Quality (in/out)
– Reducing waste
– Reducing the Use of Raw Materials
– Reducing the Use of Private Cars
– Increasing Dependency on Renewables, and…
–Build Better Buildings!

5. Green Buildings
• It is to Sustainably Design,
Build, Operate, Maintain
and Demolish buildings!
• Green buildings are
environmentally friendly
through the application of
the best practices of
Construction Industry.
Reference(s): www.epa.gov/greenbuilding/

6.  Higher Efficiency
 Less Energy
 Less Water
 Local Components
 Less Waste
 Healthy Materials
 Harmony with Nature
 Self Sufficient
 Higher Value
Traditional Buildings

7. Source: IEA Statistics Division, UN Statistics Division, QSAS Manual
Impacts
of the
Built
Environment
Air
Pollution
Land Use &
Contami-
nation
Fossil Fuels
Depletion
Water
Depletion
Water
Pollution
Materials
Depletion
Buildings Impact

8. Green Buildings
Components of Green
Buildings:
– Energy efficiency and
Renewable Energy
– Water Efficiency
– Environmentally
Preferable Building
Material
– Waste Reduction
– Toxics Reduction
– Indoor Air Quality
Reference(s): www.epa.gov/greenbuilding/

9. Green Building Systems

10. Green Homes
• Those buildings can be:
– A home
– A school
– A laboratory
– A mall
– A hospital
– An office
Or anything else!

11. Activity - 1
• Draw/Design a simple graphic
icon to represent Green Building
as you see it.
• Select a strong slogan to express
and support your perception.

14. Energy Conservation
• Fossil fuel is the most
resource used to
generate energy.
• It releases many
polluting gases into
the atmosphere (COx,
SOx, NOx) causing
health problems to
humans and animals.

15. Energy Conservation

16. Energy Conservation
• There are many alternative renewable
methods to produce energy:
 Solar energy
 Geothermal
Energy
 Wind Energy
 Water Energy
(Hydropower)
 Biomass
 Etc.

17. 1. Solar Energy
• Solar energy is a renewable energy resource
since the radiation of the sun does not end.
• Photovoltaic cells are used to capture the
radiation of the sun and then transforms it
into electrical energy.

18. 1. Solar Energy
• Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) is when mirrors
reflect the sun rays to a receiver that converts the solar
energy to heat
• Heat is then used to turn turbines which produces
electricity

19. 2. Geothermal Energy
• Since the core of the
Earth is very hot, it is
used to heat water
that is circulating in
pipes.
• This heated water
(Steam) is, then, used
to turn turbines that
generate heat which
produce electricity.

20. 2. Geothermal Energy
• Geothermal
Cooling/Heating
Systems
– It is a heating
and/or cooling
system that uses
the earth´s ability
to store heat in
shallow ground or
water thermal
masses.

21. 3. Wind Energy
• Wind energy uses the
energy in wind for
practical purposes such
as generating electricity,
charging batteries,
pumping water, and
grinding grain.
Reference(s): www.eere.energy.gov

22. 4. Water Energy (Hydropower)
• It is the use of flowing
water to create energy
that can be captured
and turned into
electricity.
• Dams are built to trap
and store water. When
needed, this water is
released causing a
strong flow of water.

23. 5. Biomass
• Consists of organic material such
as plants, residue from
agriculture, forestry, or the
organic biodegradable fraction of
industrial and municipal waste.
• This organic waste is broken
down to extract the stored energy
from it.

24. Water Conservation
• 99% of the water found on
Earth is salty water or
frozen
• Less than 1% is freshwater
that we can directly drink
from
• Each day, 300-400 billion
gallons of freshwater are
extracted!
• 25% of this amount is used
for flushing WC’s!

25. Water Conservation
• Water can be used more
efficiently using simple
ways:
– Fixing leaking faucets
– Better appliances (e.g.:
efficient toilet flushes)
– Use only the water you
need
– Using water efficient
irrigation methods such as
drip irrigation

26. Water Conservation
New buildings are installing
low flush toilets and/or
dual flush toilets
– Low flush toilets use 6
liters or water as oppose
to 18 liters in old flushing
systems
– Dual flush toilets releases
either 3 liters or 6 liters
depending on the button
pressed

27. Waste Management
It is responsible to manage the generation,
collection, handling, transporting, processing,
and disposal of waste; whether it is solid,
liquid, gaseous, radioactive, or hazardous.

28. How to Protect the Environment
• Reduce: reduce the waste
generated and refer to alternative,
renewable resources of energy
• Reuse: refer to durable, long
lasting products that can be used
over again
• Recycle: transform the damaged
or used product into the original
or to a different product.

29. Waste Management
There are different
types of waste:
1) Solid waste
 Municipal Waste
 Construction
Waste
 Industrial Waste
2) Waste water
3) Hazardous waste

30. Waste Management
1) Solid Waste:
is the waste produced from houses, industries,
business firms, manufacturing, construction,
etc. that should be sorted at source as either
plastic, glass, paper, or other.

31. Waste Management
2) Liquid Waste or wastewater:
• It is the waste produced from
houses or industries such as
sewage.
• Wastewater should be treated
before being disposed into the
ocean or
• It could be treated and used by
other sectors such as the
agricultural sector for irrigation.
• Could also happen due to
accidental oil spills from boats.

32. Waste Management
3) Hazardous Waste:
• It is waste produced from
hospitals, laboratories, research
labs, nursing homes for the
elderly, clinics.
• If even less than 1% is found in
nonhazardous waste, it will all
be classified as hazardous waste
since it can spread and affect the
waste around it.
• It can cause severe damage to
humans, animals, and the
environment.

33. Indoor Environment
• There are certain safety measures to take while designing
a building such as:
– Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC)
– Paint used
– Carpet used
– Material of furniture
– Chemical contamination
– Biological contamination
– Smoking areas
– Temperature
– Humidity
– Lighting
– Acoustics
– Air quality

34. Indoor Environment
• Each of the mentioned
factors can contribute
to health problems.
• If the people in the
building are all sick
with the same
symptoms, that
building is called Sick
Building Syndrome
(SBS)

35. Activity - 2
• Select one of the following topics:
– Energy Saving
– Water Saving
– Materials Conservation
– Waste Reduction
– Indoor Air Quality Improvement
• Write down “3 Innovative Ideas”
that can help achieve the goal of the
topic.