Hillary Clinton skips the Taj Mahal to visit India’s greenest building

During her second visit to India, Hillary Clinton chose to skip a visit to the Taj Mahal and India Gate to visit the greenest building in India. She visited the ITC Green Center in Gurgaon which she described as a monument of the future. She also added “The monument is a building to the future. The Green Centre not only represents the promise of a green economy but also demonstrates the partnership of India and the US in the 21st century”.

This building recycles and reuses all the water that lands on it. It also has insulated glass to keep out the heat and allow natural light in the premises. The ITC Green Center has managed to reduce its energy by 51% and water consumption by 40%. Even the wood used in this building is certified and the landscaping is done using local plant species. The ITC Green Center is the world’s largest completed LEED platinum rated green office building. With this unique design this building has managed to annually save Rs 1 crore in power bills alone! The Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) has planned to construct 1,000 LEED certified buildings by 2010. Currently, green buildings covering 67 million sq ft are being constructed all over the country.
[Treehugger]