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Sustainable Buildings– The New Green?
March 28 2008

There is no doubt that there is a worldwide trend towards being environmentally aware, but how did it start?

In the UK, the 1960’s brought our first ‘Green’ thoughts after the moon landing, when we could see our planet as a finite and fragile entity, and most of the people voicing their concerns were usually Hippies.

In the 1970’s we then became concerned with ‘Energy Efficiency’, and this was fuelled by the Suez oil crisis, resulting in the first energy-related construction policy of cavity wall insulation and double glazing.

The 1980’s brought concern over the ‘Ozone Layer Hole’, found by academics and largely solved by the Montreal Protocol. ‘Environmentalism’ then brought people like Greenpeace, previously viewed as being on the terrorist fringe, into mainstream politics when they were consulted by the government. Other countries were not so welcoming to such groups, and President Mitterrand authorised the French Navy to bomb ‘Rainbow Warrior’.

The 1990’s brought us ‘Sustainability’ and this became fashionable before it became mandatory in the construction world. Many buildings were designed without using our natural resources effectively or efficiently. Once we had a National Grid we then found ways to use electricity. Why design buildings that shaded sunlight to keep buildings cool (as we used to) when we could use air-conditioning?

The twenty first century has many definitions of ‘Green’ and is ever changing. ‘Global Warming’ has now become ‘Climate Change’. We have been growing economically and our lifestyle has changed dramatically over a very short period, but it is not sustainable (to re-use a 90’s word!). To achieve ‘Single Planet Living’ (where the resources of one planet can sustain our population), we need to use one tenth of the Earth’s resources to even stay in the same place of ‘Climate Change’.

Professor Albert Bartlett tells us that the shortcoming of humans is our inability to understand exponential function – in other words what will happen in the future if we keep doing what we are doing. I think (I hope) that, with all due respect, the Professor may not be entirely accurate in current times, as concern with the state of our planet has seemed to spread rapidly across the world. Not everyone has come on board to make changes - yet. There will always be a scale – ‘the devotees’ will be there at the start, campaigning for change, and then ‘the mainstream’ will come on board and then ‘the die-hards’, those most resistant to change, will join, usually when they are forced to by legislation.

Politicians tell us that Climate Change is an important issue. Tony Blair told us in 1994 that ‘Climate Change was the single most important long term issue’, but in 1995 ‘Climate Change’ was not listed as a campaign issue. Politicians will only take notice when it matters to us – not the other way round. Once the voting public takes notice and are heard, then, and only then, do we have legislation.

So, in 2008, where are we in terms of sustainable construction? Things are starting to change – over the last twelve months we are seeing designers and architects trying to ‘out-green’ each other. There are three main issues that are affecting the construction industry:

Energy
Water
Climate Change

Buildings consume approximately 50% of the world’s energy and are responsible for approximately 50% of the UK’s carbon emissions. At the moment, the re-use of water is not efficient, and in the UK the vast majority of water loss is by leaks. So how can we use less energy and help reduce problems that cause climate change?

Buildings used to be naturally ventilated, have a fireplace or not be heated, have daylight or candles, have water from wells and use local labour and materials. Why did this change?

As I mentioned before, the National grid, electric light and light bulbs resulted in us finding more and more uses for electricity. Transportation improved, the labour skill base improved and materials became cheaper as transportation became easier.

For over fifty years, buildings were not designed to use natural shade. We saw the first light-weight skyscraper, the Seagram Building in America, built – heavily glazed. Air-conditioning was put into these buildings. Many over-heated buildings were due to poor design, and air-conditioning was fitted retrospectively, which is even worse than it being incorporated into the original design.

We are now seeing ‘Total Design’. A holistic approach to architectural design – multidisciplinary design resulting in buildings that are carbon-neutral, using sustainable materials that can cope with the future. We are seeing green roofs and the collection and re-use of water. But we are not seeing much of it.

This is all about to change. You must have an energy certificate for your new house by 2016 and for commercial buildings by 2020. Technology is expensive at the moment as the demand is low. If you are building 500 homes it is cost effective, 250 homes or more it is cost-neutral, but less than that, it is expensive.

The next buzz word you will be hearing, if you have not already, is ‘Peak Oil’. The finite nature of the oil reserves means that they may peak in the next five years on a global level. Certainly in some African countries it is not uncommon for queues at petrol stations that could last for hours. Car sharing takes on a whole new appeal when there is no fuel for the cars! And what next? ‘Peak Food’, Peak Water’?

People will probably only want to change their habits when they are forced to – when they have to queue for hours for petrol or their fuel bills are so expensive they cannot afford to heat their homes. Maybe we need to look at renewables in a different light. We talk about a 15-year payback and this sounds so expensive, and it may be expensive in the short term, but in the long term it could be the difference between a warm home and a cold one.

If you look back at all predictions for the future it is always optimistic – we should all be living in a silent-transport world with clean air open spaces, empty roads and having so much leisure time we don’t know what to do with it. Recognise that world? I didn’t think so! Bearing that in mind, as the UK is the windiest country in the world and the least sunny in Europe (you may have realised this already!) then it is possibly the best place for wind farms for renewable energy. So when we are asked to protest against these wind farms, because ‘there really isn’t a problem with oil reserves or nuclear power (which is also finite by the way), and everything in the garden will be rosy in ten years time’, remember all those old predictions!

We have been used to changes happening over long periods of time. We have now run out of time. Things are changing fast and they will be changing even faster. The goalposts will be constantly moving. My advice is to go with the flow and not to resist the change. Our planet is changing and we need to act fast to protect it, and ourselves, for our children and grandchildren.

I am afraid that it involves real change, and is not as easy as ‘Carbon Offsetting’ - another buzz word to ease our consciences. Mike Rainbow of Arup recently told me about a spoof site that really puts carbon offsetting into perspective, and it is called ‘Cheat Neutral’. So what is Cheat Offsetting? Cheat Neutral tell us that “When you cheat on your partner you add to the heartbreak in the atmosphere. Cheat Neutral offsets your cheating by funding someone else to be faithful and not cheat. This neutralises the unhappy emotions and leaves you with a clear conscience”!!!
They also have pictures of ‘projects’ – pictures of some of the people that are offsetting your cheating! It is a tongue-in-cheek website, but does have a serious side, as, when you look at it in these terms, carbon offsetting starts to look pretty ridiculous! 

However the news is not all bad. Two years ago you would have struggled to find a company that was carbon neutral and now we have Google, Marks and Spencer, Nottingham City Council; and British Gas to name but a few. The future may be bright after all!

Information given verbally by Mike Rainbow of Arup, at the Nottingham Construction Forum, of which Susie is a member when she is wearing her ‘SUSU Interior Design’ hat as well as her ‘SUSU Organic’ one! The photograph is of The Beddington Zero Energy Development (BedZED) - the UK's largest carbon-neutral eco-community  and the first of its kind in the U.K..