Is conscientious consumption possible when
second homes in Goa are vacant most of the time?
Acquiring a Green Building
certification seems to be the latest fad for promoting luxury second homes in
Goa. Real-estate projects are invariably profit-driven but there seems to be a
rise in ‘conscientious consumerism’, especially amongst status-seeking urban
Indian elites. The problem with ‘green’ second homes, though, is that they are
not socially and culturally sustainable, especially in the context of a small
state like Goa, where land is a scarce resource and cannot even adequately
cater to the needs of locals.
Take the case of Nivim Goa,
a building named for the part of Aldona where it is located, and which is
apparently the ‘first green certified home in Goa’. Built by the company Build
Grounded (www.buildgrounded.com), its website tries to
impress upon the reader that the company is invested in sustainable practices.
And probably to prove the company’s credentials, the construction of Nivim Goa is
elaborately documented on the website.
Highlighting the architectural features of the property, the website
states that “Nivim is an expansive country home meant to rediscover the
quiet luxury found in nature”. The location of property in Goa is itself a
unique selling point, of course, but note how luxury and nature are equated in
the aforementioned description to attract investors from congested Indian
metros. Properties like Nivim fit the aspirational desires of Indian elites who
are seeking to prove that they have arrived. This is because owning a property
in an exotic destination like Goa, a property which additionally claims to
offer access to ‘nature’, while bearing
the badge of ‘green-certification’, surely symbolises the ‘status’ of these new
urbanites within the elite class in India.
However, there is a major
problem in engaging in such ‘conscientious consumerism’. When the website claims
that the house is “perched on a lush slope amongst tropical trees”, it is meant
to create the impression of Goa as not just natural, but also devoid of a local
population. Deliberately rendered invisible, the seeming absence of locals
offers up a scenario where this ‘certified green [second] home’ can be consumed
without any guilt or concern for Goa itself. No wonder many elite estates have
tall compound walls, which cordon off their residents from the ordinary masses
and allow them to remain blind to the issues facing them.
Real-estate companies, like
Build Grounded, often claim to be honestly working towards sustainable
architecture in order to ‘save’ the planet. American urbanist Daniel
Brook argues that green certification programs like Leadership in Energy
and Environmental Design (LEED) is a “system that's easy to game and has more
to do with generating good PR [Public Relations] than saving the planet”
(2007). The promoters and builders of
Nivim Goa also seem to do “honest soul searching” when they ask on their
blog, “[W]hy would a person choose to live in Goa (part-time or full-time)?” Already
suggesting that Goa is a vacant land, this rhetorical question is aimed at an
elite settler who is invited to participate in a vision of conscientious
consumerism, which is exactly what the problem is.
The
‘Gold’ green rating awarded to Nivim is by the Indian Green Building Council, a
certification program that is apparently based on LEED. The cons of such programs
far outweigh their sustainable claims, writes Vanessa Quirk in an article
titled ‘Where is LEED Leading Us?... And Should We Follow?’ (2012). The entire
LEED certification has a fatal flaw, asserts Quirk, and it is that “no matter
the un-sustainability of the context (the middle of a desert, for example), no
matter its purpose (even a structure for parking), if a building adheres to the
requirements, a fundamentally unsustainable building could still attain LEED
certification”. This is as much true of a vacation homes, which unlike primary
homes remain largely unoccupied throughout the year.
Despite
this, second homes like Nivim, are certified as “Gold”. Even if the building boasts
of features such as “100% use of solar power for water heating… Use of [a] 3-star
energy efficient refrigerator (40% less energy use) and 5-star rated
air-conditioners (25% less energy use)…”, among others, the project remains
socially unsustainable because it leads to the exploitation of resources meant
for locals. The vacation homeowners and users seem to fit the stereotype of
those who seek the ‘outdoors’ as epitomised by the natural setting in Goa, but
cannot do without the luxury within, including the use of air-conditioners.
Most local Goan homes, for instance, are not fitted with air-conditioners, and
therefore are probably much more energy efficient.
There
is a wide gap between the comforts which the urbanite seeks in tourist
destinations and the comforts which the average locals are accustomed to, and
therein lies the problem of green certifications. Such certification assumes
standards that are applicable to elites, while ordinary homes built by locals, within
their means, would never be eligible for such certifications. Green Building certifications
are status-seeking mechanisms, another PR stunt for the elites.
Nivim
being sold, the promoters have moved on to the next
project, another “beautiful contemporary [second] home that retains the
charm of a traditional Goan-Portuguese
courtyard home… [while again] targeting Green Homes certification from the
Indian Green Building Council”, as the website maintains [emphasis mine]. While
such conscientious consumerism is just a greenwashing of the ugly world of
luxury consumerism, local housing needs are marginalised as such projects drive
up the cost of land, making housing unaffordable for many Goans.
This article was first published on
The
Goan Everyday on 17.07.2016
