Comparative analysis of resources consumption in Dutch and Mexican housing

Abstract

Population growth has decreased in developing countries but the demand for housing is still
high. Sustainable building strategies are necessary to decrease the environmental load of
housing. Diverse strategies have been used in developed countries, but it is necessary to
look for a different approach in developing countries. The goal of this study is to identify
trends in resources consumption and building regulations in developing countries in order
to find suitable alternatives. This paper focuses on the case of Mexico. A comparison with
housing in the Netherlands is made to locate problems and to find best practices.
Two reference houses were compared regarding resources consumption. Material, water
and energy consumption were calculated. Construction materials were classified according
to their origin. Energy consumption was classified according to its origin and final use.
Building criteria and regulations in Mexico were studied to determine the relation between
the goal of regulations and the impact of housing to the environment.
The trend in resource consumption is different between Mexico and the Netherlands.
Buildings in Mexico tend to consume more materials, while the energy consumption for
heating in the Netherlands is very high. Mexican regulations aimed to reduction in energy
and water consumption, but little regard is shown towards material consumption and waste
production. Policies related to materials and energy are directed only to some types of
households (e.g. hot climate regions), a more involving policy is needed to achieve better
results.