How can the Gulf go green?
Published: 18 February, 2008
Dubai has the unfortunate reputation of being a gas-guzzling and energy-profligate society, the epitome of unsustainable living. Large indigenous oil reserves mean that oil is cheap and energy is worth little. The citizens of Dubai are among those generating the largest amount of waste per head in the world. Despite this, some of the city's major mall owners are considering ways to respond to environmental and sustainability challenges.
The key challenge is public education. Take plastic bags, for example. Given that Dubai is a car-based society, plastic bags could be an area to target in terms of the reduction of waste. Mall owners accept that they struggle to challenge the mentality of many retailers, whose staff unthinkingly hand shoppers a bag for even the smallest of purchases. However, some retailers are now looking at replacing plastic with jute in a move that echoes the UK.
Changing attitudes also require making change accessible. In the UK, the major multiples and most high streets boast facilities to recycle glass, paper, cardboard and plastic. However, in Dubai recycling facilities are extremely limited, and those that are available are geared towards cans and plastic. The result is that the population are not in the habit of separating their waste, nor easily capable of recycling it.
The Dubai municipality is determined to educate people about how they can improve the environment. Its 'Target 555' initiative encourages citizens to cut average waste per capita by nearly 50 per cent. Mall owners are committed to doing their bit towards environmental education as well. Involving children and schools is uppermost, with management staff working with teachers on ways to environmentally inspire children in the hope they will pass on this wisdom to their parents.
Dubai has virtually no public transport system (a Metro system is currently being built, but the bus network is sporadic). Taxis are inexpensive and oil is cheap, so car usage is high. The municipality is therefore attempting to cut car travel and ease congestion by introducing hybrid buses (which use a combination of diesel and electric power) and increasing car-sharing.
While most mall owners would protest that a green transport policy for their shoppers is unattainable due to the lack of alternatives to the car, they can reduce congestion and carbon emissions by bussing in their staff. They could also consider the UK phenomenon of high end 'shopping tours' and other organised shopping experiences, which would cut the number of vehicles in use. This would reduce the cost of running so many air-conditioned car parks.
However, sustainability has been integral to the BurJuman Centre's operational detail since it opened in 1992, and in this it provides the best role model Dubai could ask for. The centre may house more luxury brands per square metre than any mall in the Middle East, yet as it expands, the focus is on improving operational efficiencies and the environmental footprint of the shopping experience for customers.
Recent upgrading of its building management system for temperature control has enabled BurJuman to reduce its energy use by an average of 10 per cent, despite construction work to extend the mall. Natural lighting is used during daylight hours, and sophisticated programmable lighting controls ensures ambient lighting is available only when required. Hand-operated sensors minimise bathroom water use and approximately 15,000 gallons of grey water from the likes of wash basins and showers is captured and recycled on-site, supporting the entire demand for landscaping, which includes 500-year-old olive trees and 100-year-old bonsais.
Carbon footprinting enables BurJuman to measure and monitor strategies to meet its own reduction targets and those set by the municipality. New detection and air control systems have enabled BurJuman to reduce CO2 levels to half that of the municipality's target for commercial organisations. A green transport plan transports staff to and from home to the centre daily.
It is easy to forget that retail is still fairly new to Dubai - at most 20 years. If the UK experience is a fair barometer, major retailers and major mall owners now have an opportunity to lead change for sustainability in a fast developing retail world. Crucially, both they and the municipality must work together to help business, and simultaneously engage citizens, in order to challenge the city's current 'non-sustainable' image.
l Michael Saxton is a partner at The Hannover Consultancy, and managing director of Grappa
