Architecture and sustainability: the role of environmental rating systems - case study in Brazil

The predatory impact of civil construction industry does not seem to occur consciously. It is a process that results from the rapid growth of populations and the necessary response - with the construction of new buildings, the expansion of existing cities and the creation of new ones. In this sense, it seems pertinent to discuss the practices adopted during design and construction process in order to preserve the environment. Throughout the 1990s different environmental rating systems had emerged. UK BREEAM certification has been followed by North American LEED, French HQE and others. However, the careful analysis of the most popular methods indicates that the environmental and economic aspects of sustainability have been valued, leaving social issues in the background. On 2000, Japanese architects have drawn up a chart for environmental architecture which relates environmental, economic and social aspects in an inseparable way. The document reveals aspects that have never been considered by traditional environmental rating systems. In this sense, the purpose of this research is to present a critical analysis of the environmental rating systems adopted in Brazil confronting requirements defined by LEED and AQUA-HQE methods to the sustainable principles proposed by Japanese Architectural Charter for a Global Environment. Results indicate that, in decoupling environmental issues from other aspects of sustainable development, the environmental rating systems have become obsolete and inefficient.