DOES CONSTRUCTION LACK SUBSTANCE ON SUSTAINABILITY?

摘要

We've all heard the one about the construction industry becoming sustainable, haven't we? But did we really understand the message - and, if so, what are we doing about it? Britain's commitment to reduce 60 percent of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 saw Tony Blair declare that tackling global warming is 'unquestionably' an environmental policy and one that needs to be addressed at an international level. The Government has recently admitted that by 2010 the UK would only achieve a 14 percent cut in carbon dioxide emissions from 1990 levels, instead of the planned reduction of 20 percent. So where does the UK construction industry fit into all of this. 50 percent of the UK problem can be apportioned directly to the buildings in which we live and work. In very broad terms, there is a need to reduce (new build) CO_2 by a factor of four. The current (existing) stock will need to be refurbished to use around one third of what is currently the norm. This is a huge challenge.