Role of Green Architecture in Avoiding Energy Crises in Egypt

Abstract

With its population burst and industrialization rate, Egypt continues to consume energy more than ever, with an annual increase of 15 per cent. It is expected that in 2020 Egypt will need approximately 103 ToE, which is a great burden on resources and the economy. This enormous amount of energy is used to run vehicles, light streets, operate factories and to provide energy for homes. Domestic houses, consume 45 per cent energy use in Egypt. Moreover, by current energy sectors growth rates, Egypt may not be able to provide for the 103 ToE required, and is expected to have a 15-20 per cent deficit, resulting in energy crises. Therefore, reduction of consumption and/or increase of energy generation have become a must. Green techniques can be of a great help in both fields; energy generation and reduction of energy consumption. However, generation of energy in Egypt through renewable means such as solar energy and wind energy are not expected to develop massively in the current decade due to the lac of capital and existence of technological barriers. Therefore, the most feasible option would be reducing consumption by applying green architectural techniques to the biggest energy consuming systems in Egypt; residential buildings. This study introduces green architecture as an approach to avoid energy crises in Egypt and reduce the burden of energy sector on the national budget. It proves the high probability of energy crises in Egypt, proves the possibility of reducing energy consumption using green architectural techniques, and finally determines the means of applying its outcomes in the Egyptian mar et.