Large-scale construction about to start in Xiongan New Area

An aerial view of the Xiongan New Area Citizen Service Center, the first major project being built in the area. [CAO XIAOWEN/FOR CHINA DAILY]

Large-scale development and construction is about to start in Xiongan New Area, in northern China's Hebei province, the top local official said, adding that all new civil buildings will be built to comply with green building standards.

Chen Gang, Party chief of Xiongan New Area, made the remarks at an international forum on ultra-low-energy building that opened in the area on Wednesday and will end on Friday.

The first major new construction project, the Xiongan Citizen Service Center, has been completed in the area, which was established in April last year.

Xiongan will promote green buildings by using environmentally friendly and recyclable construction materials and applying energy-saving technology in the processes of design, construction and operation, according to a master plan for the development of Xiongan New Area published in April this year.

Chen said the government services section in the center has been designed to use passive green and energy-saving technology to trap heat from the sun, lights, people and electronic appliances in order to provide a constant temperature and humidity.

The section can achieve that using half the energy of a normal building, Chen said, adding that the center is a green and smart park that represents Xiongan's development concept.

Green buildings, which save resources and are friendly to the environment, can help cities achieve energy-saving, low-carbon and sustainable development, Wan Bentai, former chief engineer at the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, told the forum.

"Thus, the attempt to utilize green buildings is an important foundation to build Xiongan into a green, livable and smart area," Wan said.

To make Xiongan a model in the use of ultra-low-energy buildings, a special research institute for studying such buildings will be founded during the forum.

The need for green buildings in Xiongan will promote the development of related industries in the area and the rest of the province, said Ye Qing, chairman of the Shenzhen Institute of Building Research.

"During the process, we can learn from experience in other countries and find our own way of developing green buildings suitable for local conditions," Ye said.