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Colm Lauder: Are developers ‘green-washing’ by paying for sustainability certificates?

Planning regulations already mean building must be environmentally friendly, but a commercial industry has developed to capitalise on the need to be seen to be green

A building can meet all the requirements for strong LEED certification and still have major sustainability problems

For developers, builders, agents, and tenants, it has become almost unavoidable to ensure that their commercial buildings are festooned with acronyms like BREEAM, LEED, NZEB, or WELL to boast of their sustainable credentials.

All are common on the site hoardings of Dublin’s latest office developments and the marketing brochures of agents.

These certifications, which come at a not insignificant cost to developers and owners, are a must-have for new projects at every stage of the ...