Carbon Saving Technologies
Despite the fact that legislation is rapidly being imposed on new build properties, both private and commercial, as part of a transition toward a greener economy, the harsh reality is that carbon emissions would have to be reduced to around 20% of current levels per head in the UK to meet the government’s current target of 60% carbon reduction by 2050. Even if the building control enforcement system could cope, which it can’t, the fact remains that the products of the volume house building companies do not offer good value in terms of quality, value for money or in terms of energy performance.
Public opinion is shifting toward demanding energy efficient properties but the mass of the building industry is slow to change because it fears increased costs that will disadvantage them in the absence of a level playing field. Some developers have successfully built and marketed ecologically attractive properties at a premium, enticing others to move in this direction.
The number of self build properties in the UK is growing year on year, but is still less than half of that in countries with better standards in sustainable building. Low environmental impact buildings do not have to be built at a substantial cost premium, but they do draw on the talents of the forward thinking architect to rise to the challenge.
Carbon reductions in electricity generation and transport are harder to achieve so the burden is being placed heavily upon architects to achieve more substantial reductions in building construction and running costs.
The art in building design is in achieving harmony between alternative but complimentary techniques and methodologies so as to achieve real reductions in CO2 emissions and consequential running cost savings without compromising the comfort of the built environment.
The techniques and methodologies listed are not exhaustive but aim to capture those that are most significant at this time.
Choosing which combinations of technologies provide the most cost effective Carbon Savings for your property will depend to a large extent on the type of property, its location and its purpose. Renewable Technologies energy consultants specialise in identifying optimum solutions for fulfilling the energy requirements of buildings.
