Comparative analysis of resources consumption in Dutch and Mexican housing

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.