Construction Emissions Must Be Reduced to Meet Net Zero MPs Warn

THE ENVIRONMENTAL AUDIT COMMITTEE (EAC) is warning that lack of Government action on construction emissions means climate deadlines will be missed.

To reduce the levels of CO₂ in construction – responsible for 25% of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions – EAC recommends that the Government mandates a requirement for whole-life carbon assessments for buildings within building regulations and the planning system.

The assessment would calculate emissions from the construction, maintenance and demolition of a building, and from the energy used in its day-to-day operation.

In its report: Building to net zero: costing carbon in construction – Report Summary the Committee says the UK is currently lagging behind countries such as The Netherlands and France which have established mandatory whole-life carbon assessments for their built environment.

Carbon Targets for Construction

Once these assessments are in place, the Government should develop carbon targets for buildings to align with the UK’s net zero goals. A clear timeframe for introducing whole-life carbon assessments, and ratcheting targets, should be set by the Government by the end of 2022 at the latest, and they should be introduced not later than December 2023.

Prioritise Retrofit Over New Build

Retrofit and reuse of buildings, to keep the carbon locked in, should be prioritised over new build, the EAC recommends. While the Government says this is a priority, the Committee argues that reforms to permitted development rights have created an incentive for demolition and new-build over retrofit.

Where retrofit is not possible, EAC recommends efficient and more effective use of low-carbon building materials. The Government’s investment in the development of low-carbon cements is welcome, and mandating whole-life carbon assessments for buildings could encourage the use of more recycled steel and other recycled building materials. EAC also recognises the potential of timber as a low-carbon construction material, though the Committee identified significant hurdles to its wider use, such as appropriate sourcing, enhanced tree planting and a current skills gap in timber use in construction.

Skills Gap

As EAC has identified in previous reports, the UK is facing a chronic skills gap in energy efficiency and retrofit. Without these vital green skills in the UK economy, net zero ambitions will fall flat, it says. EAC is again calling for a retrofit strategy and upskilling programme to be developed. In addition, EAC recommends that training in undertaking whole-life carbon assessments is made accessible through the education system.

Environmental Audit Committee Chairman, Philip Dunne MP, said: “Our buildings have a significant amount of locked-in carbon, which is wasted each time they get knocked down to be rebuilt, a process which produces yet more emissions.

“Ministers must address this urgently. Promising steps are being taken: for instance, the Levelling-Up, Housing and Communities Secretary of State recently paused the demolition and retrofit of Marks and Spencer on Oxford Street on environmental grounds.

“But much more needs to be done, and baseline standards for action need to be established. Mandatory whole-life carbon assessments, and targets to crack down on embodied carbon, provide part of the answer. Constructors and developers can then determine which low-carbon materials, such as timber and recycled steel, they can use.

“As in many other areas in the drive to net zero, the UK must have the green skills to make its low carbon future a reality. Before the summer recess in July, I urge the Government to publish a retrofit strategy and upskilling programme that can ensure the UK economy will have the green jobs necessary to deliver a low-carbon built environment.”

INDUSTRY COMMENT

Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the Federation of Master Builders

Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the Federation of Master Builders, said: “I welcome the Environmental Audit Committee’s (EAC) conclusion that a retrofit strategy and complementary upskilling programme will be vital if we are to reach net zero by 2050. Fortunately, the Construction Leadership Council has already provided a blueprint for this National Retrofit Strategy, that would save 84.9Mt carbon emissions by 2040; unlock 500,000 new jobs; and help level up communities right across the country. At a time when consumers’ energy bills are spiralling upwards, these measures have never been so urgent.”

“I wholeheartedly join the EAC in urging the Government to bring forward a credible long-term retrofit strategy, that incorporates the necessary upskilling needed within the sector, before the Summer Recess. With 29 million leaky and energy inefficient homes across the UK, the clock is ticking if we are to reach net zero by 2050.”

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