Top 10 Cities Leading the Way in Sustainable Construction

As energy prices soar and the global population continues to grow, more builders are adopting green construction techniques to address these pressing challenges.

Green construction involves a variety of thoughtful design and building techniques aimed at improving a building’s energy efficiency while reducing its environmental and ecological footprint. Systems like Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), a certification introduced by the U.S. Green Building Council in 2000, evaluate factors such as material selection, water and energy usage, indoor environmental quality, and more. LEED has been adopted by other nations like Canada and Brazil, and many countries have their own agencies supporting environmentally-friendly construction practices.

Which cities excel in green construction? While some are well-established leaders in sustainable building, others are emerging players in developing markets. But first, let’s take a look at the location of the world’s oldest LEED-certified building.

10: Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C. is not only home to federal agencies that lead green building efforts in the U.S., but it also boasts significant green construction achievements. From 2003 to 2009, the D.C. area saw 23 million square feet (2,136,730 square meters) of LEED-certified space, according to the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments [source: Aratani]. In 2006, the city passed the Green Building Act, mandating LEED certification for new public buildings.

As per 2012 reports from the U.S. Green Building Council, Washington, D.C. had the second highest number of LEED-certified projects in the country, with 884 [source: USGBC]. Additionally, the city boasts 31.5 square feet (2.9 square meters) of LEED-certified space per resident, more than any other state, and over 10 times as much as the runner-up, Colorado [source: USGBC]. Washington, D.C. is also home to the oldest LEED-certified building in the world: the 143-year-old Treasury Department headquarters [source: O'Keefe].

9: Songdo International Business District, South Korea

In 2009, South Korea’s government launched a plan to build one million green homes and boost energy efficiency in an additional million, along with other eco-friendly building projects [source: Watts]. Two years later, they also unveiled a $9 billion offshore wind farm project [source: Bloomberg Businessweek]. But perhaps the most ambitious project had been underway since 2001.

The Songdo International Business District is a 1,500-acre waterfront development located 40 miles (64.4 kilometers) from Seoul. It’s a special free economic zone where businesses are exempt from certain taxes, unlike the rest of the country [source: Cortese]. The $35 billion project includes walkable neighborhoods with offices, homes, and retail spaces, all adhering to LEED standards. Songdo is also part of the LEED for Neighborhood Development pilot, which assesses the sustainability and connectivity of neighborhood designs. In 2008, its master plan won a Sustainable Cities award. Despite 40% of the area being dedicated to parks and green spaces, some critics note that the city was built on wetlands that were once home to migratory birds and other wildlife [source: Ko. Schubert, Hester]. The first phase of the city opened in August 2009, with construction scheduled to complete by 2018 at the earliest [source: Strickland].

8: Los Angeles, Calif.

Historically known for its urban sprawl, Los Angeles is now transforming into a leader in green building due to recent regulatory changes.

In 2009, the city launched the Green Building Retrofit Ordinance, requiring city-owned buildings built before 1978 or those over 7,500 square feet (696.8 square meters) to be renovated with sustainable materials [source: Database for State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency]. The following year, California adopted a green building code mandating new homes and commercial and public structures to reduce water use by 20 percent compared to the previous regulations. Additionally, construction projects were required to use eco-friendly materials and recycle half of construction waste [source: Roosevelt].

According to a 2010 EPA survey, Los Angeles had 510 Energy Star-certified buildings, covering 106.1 million square feet (9,857,013 square meters)—the highest in the nation [source: Catacchio].

7: Vancouver, Canada

In 2009, Vancouver's mayor Gregor Robertson formed a Green Action Team with the mission to transform the city into the greenest place on Earth by 2020. The team set ambitious goals, including making all new buildings carbon neutral and improving the energy efficiency of existing structures by 20 percent [source: City of Vancouver]. Today, the city enforces a building code that mandates all new municipal buildings larger than 500 square meters (5,382 square feet) to meet LEED Gold standards and incorporate passive design, which utilizes natural air and light to reduce energy consumption. Vancouver gave the world a glimpse of its vision during the 2010 Winter Olympics with an LEED Platinum-certified Olympic Village, where 90 percent of the electricity was sourced from hydroelectric power [source: Murphy].

Vancouver's commitment to sustainability is evident in several innovative buildings throughout the city. The Net Zero Building is the first Canadian multiunit residential building to achieve energy balance, consuming and generating an equivalent amount of energy. National Yards, home to the city’s engineering teams, became the first LEED Gold-certified building in Canada [source: City of Vancouver].

6: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Brazil ranks fourth globally in LEED-certified building projects, with 37 buildings already certified and 336 more in the process of certification [source: Green Building Council Brazil]. With Rio de Janeiro set to host both the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics, the city is poised to experience a surge in green construction in the coming years.

In line with the International Olympic Committee's mandate that venues for the Games adhere to global standards for carbon emissions and energy efficiency, all 34 competition venues will feature sustainable elements. While there are no specific requirements for soccer stadiums built for the World Cup, nine of the 12 stadiums being constructed across Brazil for the 2014 event are in the process of obtaining LEED certification [source: Green Building Council Brazil].

5: Copenhagen, Denmark

Copenhagen is known for its extensive green spaces and a network of 242.3 miles (390 kilometers) of bike lanes, with one in three residents cycling to work or school daily [source: City of Copenhagen]. As the city anticipates an influx of 60,000 new residents by 2025 and strives to become the first carbon-neutral capital by the same year, Copenhagen—one of the pioneers in offering incentives for sustainable practices—remains a leader in the field of green construction [source: City of Copenhagen].

The country's building regulations mandate that by 2020, the energy consumption of buildings must not exceed 30.7 kilowatts per square meter annually [source: Danish Architecture Centre]. In 2010, city officials declared that all new and existing rooftops with slopes of less than 30 degrees must be transformed into green roofs, covered with vegetation to capture rainwater and provide cooling benefits, among other advantages [source: Nusca]. One of the most innovative projects is expected to be completed in 2016: a municipal waste incinerator that will produce energy for tens of thousands of nearby homes, and will feature a ski slope on its exterior [source: Witkin].

4: Chicago, Ill.

Under the leadership of former Mayor Richard Daley, Chicago introduced several green building initiatives in the early 2000s. In 2002, the city completed the Chicago Center for Green Technology, the first rehabilitated municipal building to earn a LEED Platinum rating, which also serves as a resource for those interested in green building practices [source: Chicago Center for Green Technology]. Shortly afterward, the city began mandating LEED certification for all municipal buildings, and any projects receiving financial or zoning assistance from the city had to include green building features. Chicago also launched its Green Permit Program, which expedites the permitting process and reduces costs for projects incorporating sustainable elements [source: City of Chicago].

By 2012, the U.S. Green Building Council reported that Chicago had 794 registered or certified LEED projects, the third-highest in the nation [source: USGBC]. The city boasts more than 4 million square feet (371,612 square meters) of green roofs that help absorb rainwater and regulate building temperatures [source: Richardson]. The Willis Tower -- formerly known as the Sears Tower and the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere -- began a major retrofit in 2009 aimed at reducing its energy use by 80 percent, utilizing solar panels and wind turbines for power, and incorporating additional sustainable features [source: Stern].

3: Masdar City, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

Located about 17 kilometers from Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, Masdar City promotes itself as ''one of the most sustainable communities on the planet'' [source: Masdar City]. The $19 billion development, initiated by the government-owned Mubadala Development Company and first envisioned in 2006, serves as a test bed for new sustainable technologies and innovations.

Currently, six buildings in Masdar City are operational, including the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology (a branch of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology), housing for students and staff, and a handful of commercial ventures, all connected to an intelligent energy grid that tracks energy and water usage to ensure adherence to strict consumption limits. The city’s architectural design prioritizes passive building techniques to minimize energy consumption. Much of the city’s energy is supplied by a 10-megawatt photovoltaic array located on the city’s outskirts. Conventional cars are banned from entering, and transportation is limited to walking or using electric vehicles. Additionally, a 147-foot-tall (44.6-meter) tower channels wind to cool the area, with an LED display on the tower changing color to show whether residents are meeting the city’s energy consumption targets.

The city has faced several obstacles, including delays in construction and suboptimal performance from its photovoltaic system [source: Vidal]. Construction is expected to be completed by 2025, at which point Masdar City will accommodate around 40,000 residents and 50,000 commuters [source: Masdar City].

2: San Francisco, Calif.

San Francisco’s inclusion on the list is no surprise. The city’s green building regulations, introduced in 2008, predate the state’s CALGreen laws by two years, with even stricter standards [source: SFDBI]. The city mandates that all municipal buildings, as well as renovations over 5,000 square feet (464.5 square meters), achieve at least LEED Silver certification. It also accelerates permit reviews for projects targeting higher LEED certification levels and bans certain toxic materials and specific wood types in municipal construction [source: SF Planning Department, SFEnvironment]. By 2012, San Francisco had 522 LEED projects and over 248 Energy Star-certified buildings within its boundaries [source: USGBC, Catacchio]. Additionally, the city ranked first among 30 U.S. green building markets in the 2011 Green Building Opportunity Index [source: Better Bricks].

1: China

In China, the impact of green construction extends far beyond a single city. Over the past two decades, millions of rural inhabitants have flocked to urban centers. By 2025, it's expected that nearly a billion people will live in China's cities, according to BBC [source: Campanella]. Building homes and infrastructure for these vast populations has become a major industry: Each year, China accounts for approximately half of all new buildings globally [source: Larson]. Despite consuming less energy per capita than North American nations, China's enormous population makes it the largest emitter of greenhouse gases worldwide [source: Bradsher].

China leads the world in spending on green energy initiatives [source: Melik]. The government has rolled out various programs to support green construction, including subsidies for purchasing energy-efficient materials [source: Liu]. While the exact accuracy of the claim is debatable, Chinese officials assert that over 95 percent of new urban buildings meet the country’s energy efficiency standards [source: Liu]. Green building’s energy-saving advantages may be the only sustainable way to cope with the nation’s rapidly growing urban population, especially since over a quarter of China’s energy consumption is tied to its buildings—a figure projected to rise by 70 percent by 2020 [source: Larson].