House
builders reduce carbon emissions 
CABE - Public building can do more to tackle climate change, CABE tells MPs
The government must take the opportunity of its massive
building programme to ensure that all new public buildings meet
the carbon challenge, both at completion and in use. That was
the message to ministers and members of parliament at the
official launch of the 2007 Prime Minister’s Better Public
Building Award on Monday, 26 March.
Public buildings would contribute much more to climate action if
their performance was measured and understood. CABE chair John
Sorrell said: ‘It is impossible to judge how we are doing when
no one knows what our energy performance is.’
Capital expenditure will rise from £43 billion this year to £60
billion in 2012. Ensuring that all public buildings actually
match their predicted energy consumption is critical to
achieving government targets on environmental sustainability,
including reduced carbon emissions. Constructing and running
public infrastructure and services – such as schools, hospitals,
libraries and airports – account for approximately one third of
all carbon emissions (see editor’s note).
Much progress has been made in housing policy over the past
year. The government has published the Code for Sustainable
Homes, called for all new homes to be zero carbon by 2016 and
launched the ‘carbon challenge’ to house builders. But in the
National Health Service, for example, carbon emissions rose by
11 per cent between 1999 and 2005 and targets for reduced carbon
emissions by 2010 are unlikely to be met.
The government has already made an ambitious commitment for all
government offices to be carbon neutral by 2012. Its advice is
to prioritise whole-life value over initial capital costs.
But there is a missing link: whole-life value needs to be
understood in action. Government departments need to invest more
in assessing the actual performance of new public building.
How well a public building performs in practice – including its
energy performance – should be measured, monitored and reviewed.
This will need comprehensive post-completion and post-occupancy
evaluation. Crucially, the results should be analysed before
clients, developers, architects and designers embark on their
next public building project.
John Sorrell added:
‘Government departments need to ensure that every public
building project is evaluated as it is being used. There are too
many gaps between ambition and reality and we must find out why.
This is the only way to drive the continuous improvement in
construction that will ensure public building really can
mitigate and adapt to climate change.’
The Jubilee Library in Brighton, winner of the 2005 Prime
Minister’s Award, shows what can be achieved. A clear brief and
the design team’s rigorous initial proposals have resulted in
ambitions being fully realised: post-occupancy energy
assessments indicate emissions 20 per cent lower than the
industry norm for a naturally ventilated building.
Adding his support for the award, Culture Secretary David Lammy
said:
‘Great design makes sense economically, socially and
environmentally. And the challenge of sustainable development
demands the sort of creative and innovative design solutions
that the Prime Minister’s Award showcases across the UK. I'm
looking forward to a diverse and inspiring shortlist for this
year’s award.’
Email:
GCrisp@cabe.org.uk