Civil Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
in sustainability are technically feasible. Similarly the World Green Building Council
was proud to announce that eight of the most outstanding green office buildings
around the world consumed 85 per cent less energy and sent 70 per cent less waste
to landfill than their traditional counterparts (WGBC 2009). The exceptional firms
involved in these developments have made substantial contributions to their own
financial performance while demonstrating the ability to incorporate zero carbon
systems into all building types, as well as to creating sustainable approaches to the
management of waste and infrastructure. Unfortunately, however, the work of most
construction firms falls far short of these standards, and large-scale developments
to secure sustainable outcomes continue to be exceptions to the rule almost
everywhere.
THE ECO-EFFICIENCY OPTION
This strategy is about identifying win-win solutions by reducing environmental
in terms of construction, it forms the most promising option. It is largely about
getting more from less, since it emphasises the importance of achieving value for
money as a holistic and long-term objective. These ideas were introduced in the
section on value management in
Chapter 6
and extended further under the heading
of resource efficiency in
Chapter 9,
where we gave a range of examples of how to
increase efficiency in buildings and infrastructure. For instance, Italy and the Czech
Republic both continue with notoriously low recycling rates, which are due, in
part, to a strong consumer preference for virgin aggregate materials and the lack of
any significant price difference between virgin and recycled materials. In contrast,
construction firms in the UK and Sweden face higher landfill taxes that encourage
far better rates of recycling (EEA 2008: 8). The UK and Sweden could therefore
claim to be relatively more eco-efficient. In other words, enlightened companies in
the right cultural setting understand this option, but the vast majority of small firms
remain indifferent and uninvolved.
THE SUSTAINABILITY OPTION
This is the most difficult option as it seeks to achieve triple bottom line benefits -
addressing economic viability, environmental soundness and social responsibility.
Any business in any sector would find this difficult, as most economic activity still
takes place with very little concern for the wider environmental and social effects. As
the government minister responsible for launching the 2011 Construction Strategy
reminded the audience, the government seeks to enable more to be constructed
within the funds available. So the point to remember is that most contractual
decisions are ultimately signed by individuals or departments who often have a low
price as their priority. This option, however, demands adopting new values - values
that are more holistic, that show concern for future generations and which delegate
responsibility to the lowest level. Perhaps surprisingly some developments have
taken place within construction to suggest that some of the players in the industry
are prepared to meet these challenging criteria. For example, many PFI projects, and
their equivalents across the globe have demonstrated that environmental and
social
