Italpinas Development Corp (IDC) received the EDGE preliminary certification for Miramonti Green Residences Phase 1 from the Philippine Green Building Initiative Inc. (PGBI) last month.
“We at IDC are, of course, delighted about this achievement and grateful to PGBI and EDGE for granting Miramonti Phase 1 this very important certification,” Arch. Romolo V. Nati, chairman and CEO of IDC, said.
“While there are a few green building certification bodies available for local developments, IDC chose EDGE because it is designed for the particular environment that we are developing in the Philippines,” he added.
EDGE takes into consideration these specific aspects and contextualizes its processes and systems accordingly.
After an initial third-party audit, EDGE (Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies) found Miramonti Green Residences Phase 1 in Sto. Tomas, Batangas truly green and sustainable. This means that Miramonti meets the global standards for green building certification, in the same way that IDC is aligned with the UN sustainable development goals of (a) building resilient infrastructure, promoting inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and fostering innovation (#9); and (b) making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable (#11).
According to EDGE, Miramonti Phase 1’s resource-efficient design will result in the reduction of 39% in energy, 52 percent in water, and 41 percent in embodied energy in materials, compared to a local base case.
Angelo Tan, the International Finance Corp’s Climate Business Country Lead for the Philippines, said “Italpinas is one of the pioneers of EDGE certification in the Philippines, playing an instrumental role in the growth of EDGE-certified buildings that we are now seeing across the country. As an EDGE Champion, and with the successful preliminary certification of Miramonti, Italpinas continues to fulfill their commitment to sustainable development through their consistent approach to greening their real estate portfolio.”
As a green building certification body, EDGE is an innovation of the IFC, a member of the World Bank Group. EDGE gives importance to passive green features, something that aligns with IDC’s basic philosophy of using passive green design strategies in all its developments.
All of IDC’s projects are green and sustainable, rated green by EDGE, and have so far received awards for best mixed-use building in the Philippines by the South East Asia Property Awards for several years. This is relevant not only for the prestige or recognition but because sustainability in green buildings has become greatly relevant for a lot of people in this pandemic.
“We’re very happy with this development,” IDC’s Director and President Jojo Leviste said. “External accreditation from internationally recognized bodies is important to us, for confirming objectively that IDC’s design philosophy walks the talk.”
