The State of Qatar has accomplished several milestones in the implementation of initiatives related to sustainable development, an official of the Gulf Organisation for Research and Development (GORD) has said.
According to GORD founding chairman Dr Yousef al-Horr, the organisation is working with the Planning and Statistics Authority on data that would provide public information related to the certification of establishments and other projects.
“We did a survey on achievements in terms of the implementation of green requirements and specifications in Qatar’s building environment. Over the last 10 years, there were more than 1,500 projects with 1.7bn square feet of assessed master plans, such as Lusail City, special economic zones, Barwa City, and the Lekwhiya Police City.
“Also, we have around 200mn square feet of buildings certified; the master plans are platinum designed on sustainable practices like transportation, infrastructure, and landscaping. I would say that Qatar is number one in the region in this regard,” he emphasised.
According to al-Horr these statistics will be released in the coming period, and the information will include the type of certification for new or existing buildings and master plans for individual construction projects.
On incentivising establishments that are implementing sustainable development practices, al-Horr said GORD is discussing with different government agencies to initiate a countrywide incentive scheme “to encourage the market to go towards this direction.”
Al-Horr said GORD is working with the government and private sectors to meet the requirements of the environment pillar of Qatar National Vision 2030.
Citing the retail sector, al-Horr said LuLu Hypermarket in Qatar has become one of the first retailers in the Mena region to achieve sustainable operations certification under the Global Sustainability Assessment System (GSAS) from GORD.
Upon completion of necessary audits by sustainability experts from GSAS Trust and GORD Labs, the project achieved an overall score of 1.51, which corresponds to a ‘Gold’ rating under the GSAS operations certification.
Only recently, al-Horr handed over to Dr Mohamed Althaf, director of LuLu Group International, the GSAS certificate and plaque during an awarding ceremony held at LuLu Hypermarket’s Al Messila branch.
LuLu Hypermarket has identified environmental management as one of its highest corporate priorities to reduce the risk to the environment and the organisation. To achieve ‘Gold’ certification rating, several site audits, and desk reviews were conducted for the assessment of current operational and maintenance practices at LuLu’s Al Messila branch.
The retail sector, al-Horr explained, “is very crucial” as this industry operates at the frontlines and deals directly with the general public.
In an earlier statement, it was noted that LuLu and GORD are now initiating dialogue on facility upgrade through GORD-managed ‘ESCO model’ approach whereby energy-saving opportunities will be implemented resulting in cost savings and carbon emission reduction.
 
 
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