SUSTAINABLE WASHROOM CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN

Abstract

‘Sustainable development’ is “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (World Commission on Environment and Development, 1987). With the growing concern of the Singapore government’s move to construct a sustainable built environment in the next 10 to 20 years, building owners and developers should adopt good practices to reduce their resource consumption in the building. This research examines the ‘greening’ of a building’s washroom in Singapore where various sustainable materials and fittings can be implemented to contribute to a sustainable future. Data will be gathered by conducting both qualitative and quantitative research to obtain a comprehensive result. Interviews will be carried out with professionals equipped with many years of experiences in the building industry on sustainable washroom construction and a site visit to 11 Tampines Concourse will be performed to compare between a sustainable and conventional washroom. In addition, a total of 80 respondents will also be surveyed to gather their views on resource efficiency in washroom. The study reveals that a sustainable washroom can bring about potential utilities and water savings by incorporating various resource efficient technologies. This is supported by successful case studies which have reported a 36% reduction in energy consumption and annual water savings of 20,000m3. The usage of sustainable building materials facilitates the ease of maintenance and minimizes the negative impacts caused to the environment. Furthermore, a healthier washroom environment can also be created by incorporating greenery and further enhanced by a natural ventilation design. In this way, building owners are able to attain the maximum benefits of cost savings and to construct a sustainable washroom that is environmentally friendly in the future.