City planners set green guidelines

New neighbourhoods would have to meet green-space requirements and have shorter streets under new regulations.

Corniche Park exemplifies the principles of green-space urban planning that are being implemented.

ABU DHABI // New neighbourhoods would have to meet green-space requirements, have shorter streets and put buildings a set distance from public transit depots under guidelines released yesterday by city planners. There are plans to turn the guidelines into regulations by April 2009, which would force contractors to comply with them.

The Estidama initiative, devised to make Abu Dhabi the sustainability capital of the Middle East, drew up the guidelines. Estidama was launched in May to complement Plan Abu Dhabi 2030, the capital's blueprint for development over the next two decades. The guidelines will be tested soon, said Falah al Ahbabi, the general manager of the Urban Planning Council, which is taking part in the initiative along with developers, the construction industry, the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi and Abu Dhabi Municipality.

"The testing period is very important," he said. "Awareness is very important to let the market understand that there is a huge initiative coming from the Government." Among the key proposals are minimum space requirements to support green areas. "We're suggesting that for every 1,000 people, there will be two hectares of open green space," said Salem al Qassimi, an associate planner with the UPC.

To control urban sprawl and promote mixed-use districts, each development should also have "at least three different types of buildings - whether residential, institutional, commercial or retail", Mr Qassimi said. Residential streets could be no longer than 170 metres to encourage walking. Developments would have to be within 350 metres of mass-transit stations. Mr Qassimi said building designs should also include more features of traditional Arab architecture. "We're looking at having more Arab features within the city to build its character again."

Preserving heritage sites is also given high priority, and landscapers would be instructed to plant more native greenery. Mr Ahbabi added that the Estidama programme has devised the first ratings system for sustainable construction tailored specifically to the Middle East. "When we founded Estidama eight months ago, we looked at most of the common green building standards, such as the LEED [Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design] programme in the US," he said. "We looked at what is suitable for our environment, plus we changed what was not applicable to where we live."

A major emphasis is on water conservation and solid-waste management. For example, at least 40 per cent of water for landscaping would have to be derived from grey water - waste water commonly collected as runoff from washing. The programme also wants to conserve energy at the community level by encouraging green roofs to cool buildings naturally and curb the use of air conditioning. "Green roofs also encourage social activity, so it's an environmental sustainability as well as a social sustainability factor," Mr Qassimi said.

While Dubai's green building rules have caused some confusion among some contractors, Mr Ahbabi said developers in the capital were well aware of the Estidama guidelines and some have even asked whether they could apply the standards now. "The news has been spreading. We've been sending newsletters to them and all the major players do know about Estidama and are fully very supportive of it." The release of the guidelines yesterday was the second of Estidama's three phases. In May, Estidama launched its ratings system for buildings, which awards up to five "pearls" to developments based on their environmental footprints. A third set of standards, for existing buildings, is expected in November and would become mandatory regulations by January. [e-mail]