Resilient Built Environment: Critical Review of the Strategies Released by the Sustainability Rating Systems in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Since the COVID-19 outbreak, buildings have been viewed as a facilitator of disease spread, where the three main transmission routes (contact, droplets, aerosols) are more likely to happen. However, with proper policies and measures, buildings can be better prepared for re-occupancy and beyond. This study reviews the strategies developed by several Sustainability Rating Systems (SRS, namely WELL, Fitwel and LEED) to respond to any infectious disease and ensure that building occupants protect and maintain their health. The best practices, that are similar between each SRS, highlight that the overall sustainability of the spaces increases if they are resilient. Results indicate that SRS promote a weak sustainability approach since they accept that economic development can reduce natural capitals. SRS are also characterized by an aggregated level of assessment of different criteria that does not allow to map different choices. However, the decomposition of the concept of sustainability in its three bottom lines (i.e., environmental, social and economic) shows that preventive strategies are likely to be systematically adopted as the state-of-the-art. Finally, even if the latest research points out the airborne transmission as the major infection route, the SRS lack analytical measures to address issues such as social distancing.