Integrating Fire Safety in Green Buildings

 People construct buildings to serve one or more specific objectives. They provide protection, offer comfort, look beautiful, and either contribute to benefit nature or at least do less harm to the environment. In ancient times people lived in caves primarily to protect themselves against the sun, rain, dust, and wind and, as well as safeguard themselves from wild animals. Later, they started building homes to make their lives comfortable.

Once our basic needs got fulfilled, we took comfort to higher levels. We started adding elements of beauty and luxury to our homes and places of work. We began building structures that are visually appealing and pleasurable, often at the cost of harming the environment. When this activity became rampant, we got pushback from nature in the form of negative impacts like dwindling water resources, widening ozone layer gap, depleting forest cover, etc. We then undertook corrective measures. The green building movement is a result of this realization.

 The Green Building Movement

The green building movement began in the US in the 70s but picked up speed in the 90s. India got its first Green Building in 2003. Subsequently, there was continuous adoption of the green building concept. As of Sep 2017, more than 4,300 projects with about 4.7 billion square feet of the built-up area had registered for green technology. 1

One of the reasons for the wholehearted acceptance of the idea of green building is operational expenditure saving. The building owners were able to see a real business case in reducing water and energy expenses and feasible return on investment. Another factor that helped is that comfort, luxury, and beauty could easily be incorporated into the green building concept.

 The impact of the Green Building movement on the protective aspect of structures, especially Fire Safety, is yet to be addressed. This aspect has been the topic of study and discussion for a long time in different forum across the world. Now, it is time that we fill the gap because fires nullify a lot of benefits brought about by Green Buildings in conserving nature.

 Fires Act Against the Intent of Green Buildings

Let us examine the different aspects of sustainability about green buildings – low impact design, air and water pollution control, energy efficiency, water quality, sustainable building materials, waste management, facilities for service staff, and innovation. There are several aspects of fire that makes them unsustainable, where there is a natural synergy between fire safety and sustainability.

One of the most significant fires that happened in the recent times is the Australian bush fire2. The fires destroyed around 18.6 million hectares, which is equivalent to an area of the size of England. Australian bushfires likely contributed 900 million metric tons of carbon emissions. Compare this to the fact that in the 12 months before June 2019, Australia’s annual carbon emissions stood at 532 million metric tonnes.

The fire gutted over 5,900 buildings and killed at least 34 people. Nearly three billion terrestrial vertebrates alone– mostly reptiles–have been affected, and some endangered species may be at risk of becoming extinct. The fire killed over a billion animals, which clearly shows how fires cause damage to the environment and work against the cause of conservation and sustainability.

There are several other aspects of fire safety that are inimical to sustainability.3

·         The fire plume will throw out the combustion products that are toxic and cause harm to humans and animals.

·         If we do not perform proper treatment of the water used for extinguishing the fire, the toxic chemicals generated from the fire may run off into potable water.

·         Contaminants from firefighting activities such as run-off water containing firefighting foams also cause pollution. There is also the risk of land getting contaminated from disposing of fire-damaged materials that may contain heavy metals. 

·        Fires can also substantially change vegetation, enhance soil erosion, and even cause desertification of previously fertile areas. There are environmental impacts from rebuilding fire-damaged structures and relocating vital services – such as added car travel if a local facility is closed due to fire.

Some Sustainability Initiatives Endanger Fire Safety

Several initiatives that are considered green are suspected to increase the risk of fire. They may either make the site more fire-prone, facilitate the spread of fire, make firefighting more difficult, or pose a threat to the lives of firefighters. It is crucial to consider these points so that a solution is found out by which we achieve both objectives of sustainability and fire safety.4, 5, 6, 7

·         In the pursuit of making buildings green, we often use lightweight components. Many of these materials are not fire-resistant. One such example is the polyethylene core of the Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) cladding, which is suspected to be to cause many fires.

·         In many green buildings, vinyl and polymer-based products are preferable as they use recycled content, minimize heat loss and gain, are durable, and are sourced locally. Research has shown that Vinyl siding, coupled with certain insulation materials, present high risks to fire-safety.

·         As compared to traditional office designs, open floor plans can reduce the space required by employees and the number of construction materials consumed, lowering the environmental impact. However, it can also mean fewer smoke barriers that are needed to provide occupants sufficient time to exit the building in case of a fire.

·         Skylights reduce the artificial light needed to illuminate a space, again cutting energy use. However, if the air shaft traverses across multiple floors, they can provide a path for smoke and fire to travel.

·         For making green, the structures have become light. However, they tend to collapse easily during a fire, endangering the life of the firefighters.

·         When we install rooftop solar panels on a building, some questions still surround solar panel safety. The solar panels, when on fire, will radiate heat and lead to whole roof fires.

These are, but a few examples. We can resolve many of these conflicts over a comprehensive discussion between Green Building and Fire Safety professionals early in the process.

Following an Integrative Approach

The month of August 2020 saw two big fires, both in facilities meant for the treatment of COVID patients. On 6 August, a fire in the ICU of a private hospital in Ahmedabad cost eight lives. Two days later, another fire broke out in a hotel that was converted into a COVID treating facility in Vijayawada and leading to 10 deaths. In both cases, the facilities were not fully compliant with the Fire Safety norms. 8, 9

The problem of fire fatalities in India is a big one. The latest National Crime Records Bureau ( NCRB) report states that 12748 Indians died in fires in 2018.10 That makes it 35 deaths a day. India continues to struggle with the issue of enforcement of Fire Safety rules. There are lessons to be learned from the journey of the Green Building movement, which has found a way to incentivize people to adopt sustainable measures. This approach can provide an opportunity to solve the Fire Safety problem.

Every green building certification process emphasizes the integrative approach. The different stakeholders consisting of the owner, architect, MEP consultant, facilities manager, etc., are supposed to meet several times during the process of making the site green and discuss the various aspects. We must address Fire Safety during this process, and a fire safety expert should necessarily be part of the integrative process. This step will ensure that we do not make any decisions that will endanger the Fire Safety of the building.

It will also be immensely helpful if the green building governing bodies include fire safety in the certification criteria. Compliance with basic fire safety norms should be made mandatory. In India, the National Building Code (NBC) Part 4, as well as Indian Standards (IS), cover Fire Safety. Furthermore, there should be some weightage given to the synergistic aspect by which we achieve the combined goals of making the building green as well as fire-resistant. These steps will help in nudging building owners and managers to make the site green as well as safe from fire.

References

1 "Indian green building market to double by 2022" The Hindu. Mar 30, 2018

2 "Bushfires in Australia" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bushfires_in_Australia#September_2019_to_March_2020

3 Drew Martin, Mai, Tomida & Brian Meachan "Environmental Impact of Fire" Springer Open Sep 8, 2016.

4 John Shafer "Green Buildings: Design Features and Hazards for Firefighters "Fire Rescue Issue 4, Volume 9

5 Arun Jacob Mathew "Fire Safety and Sustainable Buildings" WFM Media

6 Christopher J Wieczorec Fire Safety: An integral Part of Sustainability SFPE, 2011 Q4 issue

7 Loren Snyder Green Building Design Can Pose Fire Safety Challenges, Facilities.net

8 "Blaze kills eight in ICU, Gujarat COVID hospital had no fire hospital "Indian Express, Aug 7, 2020

9 "3 arrested for fire tragedy at Vijayawada COVID care hotel ", Deccan Herald, Aug 11, 2020. 

10 "35 Indians die in fire accidents daily: NCRB" Deccan Herald, Feb 4 2020.

 Written by Rajesh Venkiteswaran