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Definingthefutureofthe

sustainableconstructioninDustry

Ten Years ForwardTen Years Back

how has the UK construction industrychanged over the last decade?

where will sustainable constructionbe in another ten years?

A white paper from THE GREEN REGISTERof CONSTRUCTION PROFESSIONALS

2011 The Green Registewww.greenregister.org.uk
http://www.greenregister.org.uk/http://www.greenregister.org.uk/http://www.greenregister.org.uk/http://www.greenregister.org.uk/http://www.greenregister.org.uk/http://www.greenregister.org.uk/http://www.greenregister.org.uk/http://www.greenregister.org.uk/


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Ten Years Forward

2011 The Green Registe

DEFINING THE FUTURE BY

LEARNING FROM THE PAST


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INTRODUCTION

This year The Green Register of Construction Professionals celebrated its 10thanniversary. To mark this milestone our director, Lucy Pedler, asked three of our expertsabout their views on the future of sustainable construction. She presented each onethe same two questions:

In the last decade, what are the biggest changes youve seen in the UK construction industry?1.What do you think will be the most important developments in the next ten years?2.


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THE EXPERTS

CATH HASSELL is an expert in sustainable water strategies andintegrated water management with 14 years experience in theconventional plumbing industry and 10 years in environmentalbuilding. She was a founding member of the UK RainwaterHarvesting Association, and in 2004 she set up ech2o, whereshe works with councils, developers, housing associations,

architects and engineers to successfully incorporate sustainablewater systems into the built environment.

EMMA STOREY is a licensed Education and Ofces BREEAMAssessor and CODE for Sustainable Homes Assessor. She hasbroad experience of providing environmental assessments ona range of large and small projects, with a particular focuson educational and community developments. Her backgroundin planning and policy has given her a keen understanding oflocal, regional and national planning regulations, legislationand sustainability related plans and policies.

ROB BORRUSO has over ten years experience in bothmechanical engineering and environmental science. Havingpreviously worked as a product specialist and a renewableenergy advisor, Rob has extensive experience in troubleshootingexisting underperforming renewable energy installations.He now works as an independent energy consultant with aclient base ranging from small community groups to housingassociations.


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FOREWORDby Lucy PedlerDirector, The Green Register ofConstruction Professionals

We are living in challenging times. With geo-politicalshifts occurring around the globe and seismic shiftshappening in the Pacic region, the earth is anythingbut static. The environment we live in is in constant uxand our actions as human beings can contribute both

positively and negatively to the state of the planet. Inthe next ten years we have an opportunity to reverse,or at least slow down, the destruction we are causingto the very place we rely on for sustenance and lifesupport.

The Green Register has, in the last decade, madea contribution to positive change - we have taughtthousands of construction professionals about

sustainable building practices and helped them tochange the way they work, to produce buildings that are lighter on the earth,beautiful to be in and contribute to health and well being.

We are extremely fortunate to have as our core trainers a group of dedicatedexperts. They provide unbiased, cutting edge information to our audiences, whoconsistently give positive feedback from our seminars and training. I have invitedsome of our core trainers to give us their thoughts about where the next ten yearswill take the construction industry and the following articles are a selection of the

responses.


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CATH HASSELL

Ten years ago Ecobuild hadnt yet happened. Nothing had happened. It wouldnt be until2005 before the rst Ecobuild show, which at the time had only 20 or so stands. No-onewas suggesting that heat pumps were an environmental solution, let alone a renewabletechnology. Condensing boilers were still four years away from being compulsory, with

everyone full of reasons why they were too difcult to t, and there were only four places whereyou could buy sustainable goods in the UK: Construction Resources, The Green Shop, EcoMerchant and Green Building Store. BREEAM and EcoHomes were standards to which only afew buildings were being built, but there was little compulsory requirement to do so. Furthermore,

environmental buildings were seen as very niche, led by self builders and a few forward thinkinghousing associations.

So, what changed? How and why has the whole industry adopted sustainability as the biggestbuzz-word since health and safety? For those of us whove been involved in this sector for thepast 10 to 15 years, these are questions we still struggle to answer. While were pleased it hashappened, were also frustrated by the sheer amount of greenwash the industry has spawned. Ifyoud ask me whats changed, Id say the marketing industry.

WHAT NEXT? For any change to be signicant it needs to affect existing buildings, not just new

builds. Therefore, I think the main drivers for real, measurable change in the coming years will bethose that affect the existing built environment. If you look at whats happened in the last decade,you can see the emergence of a few positive trends.In April 2005 condensing boilers became compulsory in dwellings for the retrot market as wellas for new builds. Good news? It gets better. Right now, 50% of all condensing boilers sold in theworld every year are going to UK consumers. With 1.5 million boilers a year now at an averageefciency of 91% instead of 78%, thats a lot of CO2 saved.

In the summer of 2005 the south east of England suffered its worst drought in 100 years. This eventled to a greater emphasis on water within the Code for Sustainable Homes, and a requirement for

mass metering of dwellings in water stressed areas.

The Code for Sustainable Homes, launched in 2007, was used by local authorities as a requirementfor all dwellings in mass developments, not just Housing Association properties (as originallyplanned), leading to a far greater impact across the building industry and the market that suppliesit.

In the last decade, what are the biggest changes youve seen in the UKconstruction industry, and what do you think will be the most important

developments in the next ten years?


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The Code has kick-started the UK bathroom industry into making water efciency central in all ofits product ranges. Yes, you can still nd power showers that provide ow rates at 20 litres perminute and baths that hold 250 litres plus of water, but these are now far outweighed by otherproducts: baths that hold less than 150 litres due to clever design, or expensive shower heads thatprovide water at 8 litres per minute, and an increasing range of ultra efcient dual ush WCs, allof which are now being tted in existing homes.

Far more successful than the grants system, the Feed In Tariff has increased the take-up ofphotovoltaics exponentially. With a 1kW peak array providing an average 800kWh of electricityper year, roof based PV systems have the potential to push the UK towards the EU requirement ofgenerating 20% of its electricity from renewables by 2020. The market for PVs is also becomingfar more competitive with 1kW peak now down to as little as 3,500 per installation in some partsof the UK.

THE BIGGEST DEVELOPMENT IN THE NEXT TEN YEARS?

I choose two.

The Renewable Heat Incentive (if it comes in): Well only understand its real implications whenwe nally know which technologies will be included and how much the government will payper kWh of heat produced. If the government gets it wrong, it has the potential to increase theamount of CO2 produced from heating our homes, as old boilers are replaced with air sourceheat pumps instead of being upgraded to condensing boilers.

The Feed in Tariff: Its success will depend on whether the rate of return paid from April 2012onwards will be enough to continue the rapid rate of installation PV systems.


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EMMA STOREY

There seems to have been changes on three levels, which have all contributed to signicantchanges within the construction industry over the past ten years:

1) Legislation and Regulation2) Planning Procedures and Policies3) Construction Trends

LEGISLATION AND REGULATION:Over the past ten years the UK government has had a large inuence over the constructionindustry. Rules and regulations designed to drive private and public sector investment in sustainableconstruction have been implemented and have had a dramatic effect on the construction of alltypes of buildings. Examples are given below:

Longer term goals and targets including international and national targetsChange in building regulations (particularly min. energy standards within Part L)Introduction of mandatory Energy Performance Certicates for all houses and publicbuildingsEconomic incentives

Changes in scal policy, for example landll taxationChanges in environmental legislation, for example requirement to produce SWMPOther policies such as expedited permitting and approval for green projects

PLANNING PROCEDURES AND POLICIES:There has been a major shift in the way planning is permitted throughout the UK. The Planningand Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 has required all Councils to make changes to their planningpolicy structure changing from the previous system of Unitary Development Plans (UPDs) toLocal Development Frameworks (LDFs). The main difference has been that new policies are in linewith the National and Regional Spatial Strategies (therefore all working towards the over-arching

goals), as well as including more locally focused policies and strategies - to ensure nationalpriorities are adopted successfully on a local scale. All new policies have also undergone aSustainability Appraisal, which has gone some way to ensure the policies meet borough-widesustainability objectives and include environmental factors.

In addition, there has been a change in the application process throughout the UK. The Planningand Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 also requires all planning applications to be more front-loaded with emphasis on the need for pre-application consultation and detailed information. Thisrequires applications to include reports and evidence on impacts on sustainability (economic,social and environmental perspectives), ecology, transport and site specic risks of ooding and

In the last decade, what are the biggest changes youve seen in the UKconstruction industry, and what do you think will be the most importantdevelopments in the next ten years?


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contamination. In addition to planning consent, many new developments now require an on-siterenewable energy contribution. This has led to signicant changes in the design, constructionand operation of buildings.

CONSTRUCTION TRENDS:

Green materials and building products are becoming more popular due to the upward trendin the green construction market, leading to such materials becoming more readily availableand lower in price. In addition to this, contractors are also gaining a better understandingof sustainable construction and obtaining environmental standards, to ensure contracts areawarded and work is secured and their brand is promoted. The need for accreditation (such asISO14001 and BES 6001) within the industry has also led to a greening of the supply chain,with suppliers and sub-contractors also being required to meet environmental standards withintheir company practices and their products.

THE FUTURE:Existing patterns of change will continue to breed new changes in the construction industryover the next decade.The level of public interest and knowledge in sustainable construction will grow and willkeep doing so in the future.Energy prices and energy security issues are also likely to make signicant changes withinthe construction industry and market over the next ten years. A continued increase inenergy prices is a very powerful and accepted argument for purchasing or renting anenergy efcient building.All factors will also see a change in technology within the sector, to ensure economicpayback and environmental concerns are met within all types of developments.


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ROB BORRUSO

Since the turn of the century (I still think of that as the end of the Victorian era), much haschanged in terms of the prole of sustainability. Despite it increasing, depressingly littlehas changed in terms of CO2 emissions and resource consumption. Worse still, the gapbetween how green we think we all are and how green we actually are has widened

signicantly, and to me this is the greatest concern.

NEW-BUILD ENERGY STANDARDS:Probably the greatest success in sustainable construction over the past decade has been therapid ramping up of expected standards of energy performance for new-builds, to a level thatjust 20 years ago seemed improbable. As a result there has, justiably, been some backslappingin government and industry circles. Yet, when you take a step back and look at the gures moreclosely, things get a little less exciting.

Household energy consumption has indeed dropped by about 3 mtoe1 or 7%, but these numbers2also show there has been a shift from gas to electricity. Thus, the actual amount of CO2 emittedhas hardly dropped at all.

HALTING GROWTH:There are many more houses now than there were 10 years ago. As population growth is the

biggest threat to the global environment, Id say the biggest success in sustainable constructionin the past ten years has been the halting of growth in building-related CO

2emissions. A start

certainly, but perhaps not the world beating headline the Chris Hulmes and Ed Millibands of thisworld would have us believe. As we know, its absolute - not relative - numbers that count.

WHAT DO THE NEXT 10 YEARS HOLD?Well, actually in this medium term time frame Im fairly optimistic. Baby boomers will startdisappearing, freeing up a lot of under occupied housing, and a narrowing of economic differenceswithin Europe will kill off much immigration. These two factors should ease the pressure forgrowth in housing supply. Furthermore, the inexorable rise in energy costs will focus minds on

improvement to the existing stock, which is where the real problem is. The inevitable squeezein personal nances will also cut down on energy-consuming gadget buying, which should slowgrowth in electricity usage.

CONCLUSION:In the next ten years, I think we will actually start to see a fall in building related CO

2emissions.

Interestingly though, this will be because of structural changes in our society, not because of anyprofusion of subsidised renewables.

In the last decade, what are the biggest changes youve seen in the UKconstruction industry, and what do you think will be the most importantdevelopments in the next ten years?


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NotesMillion tonnes oil equivalent ie 11,630 GWh1.http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/source/total/total.asp2. x


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2011 The Green Register Ltd.

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10 Years Back 10 Years Forward White Paper FINAL