Colombia. The VerdeVivo project, by the construction company Conaltura, received from the US Green Building Council – USGBC – the first LEED Gold certification granted to a housing development project in Latin America.
This project, located in the southern area of the Metropolitan Area of the Aburrá Valley, is composed of 3 urbanizations: Arizá, Ceiba and Palma, with approximately 4 hectares of extension, which are consolidated as a green lung of the region, preserving about 760 trees, with a radius of positive impact on air quality of 11 hectares.
VerdeVivo benefits middle-class households, with efficiencies in water and energy consumption, generating economic savings, greater profitability and valorization of the property and a better quality of life for those who inhabit it.
"According to the measurements and validations, in the operation of the buildings water savings of 32% and energy savings of 47% are projected. In the construction process, savings were achieved in drinking water consumption of the order of 800,000 liters and an 80% level was reached in the use of the waste generated, "said the technical manager.
"One of our strategic pillars at Conaltura is sustainability in our residential housing projects in the country. We are aware of the importance of caring for the environment and natural resources, and its effects on the quality of life of the population. VerdeVivo shows that in Colombia it is possible to build sustainably and impact families beyond the same home," said Claudia Garcés, technical manager of Conaltura.
Conaltura preserved the habitat and ecosystem of the area, by recovering and conserving the project's forest and its species of fauna and flora. In addition, the heritage house, built in the 1940s on this land, and which was owned by former President Mariano Ospina Pérez and his wife Bertha Hernández, was restored.
"We celebrate from the guild of the construction sector and the building activity the commitment, quality, innovation and impact of the VerdeVivo project. This is a success story in Latin America that reflects the commitment of our sector to the construction of quality cities, with a high environmental, social and economic impact," said Eduardo Loaiza Posada, manager of Camacol Antioquia.
VerdeVivo aims to raise awareness among its residents and the population of the area of influence about the importance of acquiring lifestyle habits for the care of the environment. For this reason, the project has 350 common bicycle parking lots and individual parking spaces for each owner and the connection between the cycle-route with the mass transport system of the Medellín Metro. Additionally, Conaltura developed in VerdeVivo the plan "Siembra desde ya tu futuro", which promotes training and dissemination on the importance of sustainability in the lives of families that all í residen.
