On January 16, at the construction site of the Phase III expansion project of Taiyuan Wusu International Airport, the T3 terminal building, shaped like the Chinese character "山" (mountain), rises from the ground. Inside the check-in hall, aerial work platforms lift construction workers performing ceiling installation, where the wood-colored ceiling and the tree-shaped giant columns on the floor form a continuous "forest." As the core part of the country's first regional hub and provincial-capital-level zero-carbon airport project, this building, with a total floor area of 400,000 square meters, is a vivid footnote to the green upgrade of public buildings in Shanxi.

It is understood that the T3 terminal was designed strictly in accordance with the three-star green building standard, with Shanxi Construction Investment Group taking the lead and a consortium comprising Beijing Urban Construction Group, China Construction Eighth Engineering Division, and Shanxi Third Construction Engineering Group carrying out construction. The application of new materials and technologies such as high-performance insulated exterior walls and large-diameter precast concrete pipe piles not only significantly shortens the construction period but also markedly improves the building's thermal insulation performance and reduces energy consumption.

"Photovoltaic foundation piles are being installed on the terminal roof, drilling of surrounding geothermal wells has been fully completed, and pipeline laying is now underway," Hou Ruihua, project manager of the T3 terminal construction consortium, told reporters. After the project is put into operation, renewable energy sources such as photovoltaics, medium-to-deep geothermal energy, and air-source energy will provide zero-carbon electricity and clean cooling and heating for airport operations, with a smart management platform enabling efficient energy allocation.

In Shanxi Xiaohe New City, Building A of the Xinyuan Smart Construction and Operation Headquarters recently passed certification for the operational phase of near-zero energy buildings and was accepted as a zero-carbon building demonstration project under a national key R&D program. Since it began operation in June 2021, through technical refinement and continuous commissioning and optimization, the building has achieved a comprehensive energy-saving rate of 62.05%, a renewable energy utilization rate of 27.78%, and an annual reduction in carbon dioxide emissions of 74.7 tons, with all indicators meeting the operational requirements for near-zero energy buildings. In addition, the project has produced key technologies such as a provincial-level construction method for prefabricated near-zero energy buildings, providing important technical support and a replicable practical example for the design, construction, and operation of green buildings in cold climate zones.

As a national pilot province for comprehensive energy revolution reform, Shanxi Province regards promoting green building development as a key lever for achieving the "dual carbon" goals, setting off an all-round, in-depth green transformation in the housing and construction sector.

From Taiyuan Wusu International Airport's exploration of a near-zero-carbon transportation building operation model, to Building A of the Xinyuan Smart Operation Headquarters integrating the three major standards of "near-zero energy, three-star green building, and prefabricated AAA-grade" to become a model of smart office buildings; from Taiyuan Shoukai Huaxilongyuan, the province's first high-rise passive ultra-low-energy residential project, to Datong Ruihu Yunshanfu, which integrates five major features including passive and prefabricated construction... a batch of high-quality green building benchmark projects, through technological innovation and model integration, have provided replicable and promotable examples for the province's green building development.

A relevant official from the Shanxi Provincial Department of Housing and Urban-Rural Development introduced that in recent years, through measures such as building a policy system, upgrading and improving standards, and leading with typical projects, Shanxi Province has continuously enriched the connotation and expanded the extension of green buildings, completing one year ahead of schedule the "14th Five-Year Plan" target of "fully building new urban buildings as green buildings."

Legislation first, laying a solid foundation for transformation. In September 2022, the "Shanxi Province Green Building Development Regulations" were deliberated and adopted by the Standing Committee of the Provincial People's Congress, specifying that new urban civil buildings shall be constructed in accordance with green building standards and establishing a whole-life-cycle collaborative linkage mechanism from planning and project approval to operation and maintenance management. On this basis, Shanxi Province has successively issued supporting policy documents such as the "Green Building Special Action Plan" and formulated local standards such as the "Green Building Design Standard," building a trinity development system of "legislative guarantee + policy support + technical specifications" to safeguard the high-quality development of green buildings.

Standards upgraded, driving quality improvement. On the basis of large-scale development, Shanxi Province has focused on improving the quality and efficiency of star-rated green buildings and was the first in the country to put forward the mandatory requirement that "public buildings implement the one-star or higher standard, and out-of-code high-rise buildings implement the three-star standard." It has simultaneously established a survey and design quality commitment system, a lifelong responsibility system, and an expert demonstration system, ensuring that green building performance indicators are effectively implemented by strengthening construction supervision and operation and maintenance evaluation. Up to now, the proportion of star-rated green buildings in the province has steadily increased, and all out-of-code high-rise buildings have reached the highest domestic green standard.

This year, Shanxi Province will continue to take cultivating new growth points for green buildings as a lever, promote the upgrading of green building actions, and continuously deepen the energy revolution in the housing and construction sector. A new picture of green buildings empowering high-quality urban development is unfolding across the land of Shanxi.