ISSN 2043-0140
FEBRUARY / MARCH 2011
CARBON ECOBUILD ROSIE BOYCOTT JONATHON PORRITT CONTAMINATED LAND LABS AND TESTING
INTRODUCTION FROM THE EDITOR So welcome to 2011 and a happy new year, at least it would be if the government hadn’t just screwed us for the last of our pocket change. Somewhere in the halls of Westminster they have a great listening device which is tuned to hear the jingle of change in the pocket; upon detecting this sound it notifies ministers who then adjust taxes accordingly. Obviously any spare change we may have is too much and it needs to be collected by the Treasury. The government fiscal policy seems to be based upon the Sherriff of Nottingham’s model in Robin Hood. For me, so far this year has barely registered; on the 29th of December my daughter Tabitha Maude Stacey was born at 2:20am, weighing in at 7lb 3oz, so I have barely slept since then (and as such this introduction may not be coherent). Becoming a dad for the first time is an amazing experience and has utterly changed my life, everyone told me it would, but I just thought they meant the superficial stereotypical things like lack of sleep or having no time to do anything or changing nappies; but it is none of those things at all, it is like someone flicked on a switch in my head, kind of like turning on a light on a dull day, everything is still the same but at the same time things are brighter more colourful, just better. Before I wrote this introduction I looked up what the carbon cost of a baby was; how much would it increase my carbon footprint – I felt it would be quite apt as the cover focus in this issue is carbon and we have some great editorials discussing CRC, carbon counting, carbon reduction and energy efficiency, from Rob Hine from BSI, David Mole from Landmark UK, Sarah Royse from RES Group and Annie Westaway from carbon reduction company Sustain. It is obvious that a baby will increase your environmental impact but there is very little you can do in life that wont; what was interesting was finding in the search results the number of people who are refraining from having children, some have even had themselves sterilized to save the planet . I am baffled by environmental purists who insist on inaction and technological regression to preserve the planet. The only way to prevent humans from affecting the environment would be to eliminate them completely; despite being impractical, I am sure there would also be an environmental cost from seven billion rotting corpses. Even in extinction the humans would damage the environment. So we are here to stay.
imagine how much power we could produce if every glass building was clad in this product. Then in March last year I was in Canada and I witnessed one of the most innovative waste management solutions I have ever seen: a credible zero waste to landfill solution (case study on page ......) and yet nearly twelve months on we are still filling big holes in the ground with our waste. What is needed is an organisation whose role is to find new technologies and services from home and abroad and to test that they actually work, then facilitate their use and expedite safe passage through all the red tape and bureaucracy. There are hundreds of amazing eco products which would dramatically reduce our environmental impact but it is not cost effective to utilise them because architects, planners and building inspectors have not been introduced to them and there are no preset standards or rules for them to be evaluated against. A database of approved technologies could be available to both specifiers and inspectors and as new technologies are introduced to the database, people are informed of these emerging technologies and given a benchmark for their implementation. I do not believe that the human race is prepared to regress and stop flying and driving and living with the comforts afforded by modern technologies, but I do believe that through research and innovation we can reduce our impact on the planet and with increased funding and diminished bureaucracy we can solve the environmental problems we are facing. I consider myself lucky because in my role as editor of Environment Industry Magazine I have access to environmental innovations and technologies which most people do not even know exist, let alone have the knowledge to specify and then put them into action. If you want to change the world you need to respond to the ignorance and apathy of the people first.
Alex Stacey Managing Editor
I firmly believe that we have the capacity as a human society to resolve our conflicts with the environment; it seems, however, that due to arbitrary lines on a map and invisible men in the sky, we can barely resolve our conflicts with each other at the moment. But I remain hopeful that ultimately we will see eye to eye and start working together. In 2009 in Hong Kong I saw photovoltaic glass developed to be used in curtain walls of high rise buildings, making the entire building into an energy generator. I am sure it will be 20 years before this technology reaches this country but Tabitha
CONTENTS NEWS: PAGE 4 - 31
FOCUS: PAGE 32 - 39 CARBON
NEWS Page 28-29 - UKSDA - Surface Water Management & Future Water Supplies - Terry Nash, Director, UK Sustainable Development Association Page 30
- Steve Grant Column
Page 32 - The Future of The Carbon Reduction Commitment - David Mole, Deputy MD, Landmark UK Property Page 34-35 - Carbon Reduction and Management - Sarah Royse, RES Group Page 36 - 37 - Cutting Carbon - Annie Westaway, Environmental Accounting Manager, Sustain Page 38 - 39 - Setting Standards For Carbon Reduction, Rob Hine, BSI
ENERGY: PAGE 40 - 51 Page 42 - 46 - Renewable Heat Incentive Leonie Greene, Head of External Affairs, REA
GREEN BUILDING: PAGE 54 - 83
Page 48 - 50 - Trimming The Waste: Boosting Efficiency Juliet Heller, ENWORKS
Page 56 - 61 - The Green Deal - Jonathon Porritt, Forum for the Future
TIMBER: PAGE 84 - 93 Page 86 - 90 -
American Hardwood: Environmentally Friendly Building Material? - Rupert Oliver, Director, Forest Industries Intelligence Limited
Page 62 - 63 - New Homes - Jackie Sadek, Chair, UKregeneration Page 64 - 67 - Realising Green Roofs SUDS Potential - Simon PoĂŤ, Alumasc Page 68 - 82 - ECOBUILD 2011 Preview
Page 92 - 93 - The Green Agenda - Joe Martoccia, Director, UKTFA
EnviroMedia Limited, 254a Bury New Road, Whitefield, Manchester, M45 8QN
Alex Stacey Tel: 0161 3410158 Fax: 0161 7668997 Email: alex@enviromedia.ltd.uk
Environment Industry Magazine is proud to be the official media partner for the UK Sustainable Development Association. Every effort is made to verify all information published, but Environment Industry Magazine cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions or for any losses that may arise as a result. Opinions expressed in articles do not necessarily reflect those of EnviroMedia Ltd. Environment Industry Magazine welcomes contributions for publication. Submissions are accepted on the basis of full assignment of copyright to EnviroMedia Ltd unless otherwise agreed in advance and in writing. We reserve the right to edit items for reasons of space, clarity or legality. |2| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
STNETNOC CONTENTS LAND MANAGEMENT: PAGE 94 - 103 Page 96 - 98 - Contaminated Land Post 2010 Cecilia Macleod, Technical Director, Arcadis Page 100 - 102 - SUDS and the Danger of Land Contamination - Brian M Back, Chair, Environmental Innovations Limited
WATER: PAGE 116 - 127 Page 118 - 120 - 21 Years of Progress - Regina Finn, Chief Executive Officer, Ofwat Page 122 - 127 - UK Water Research Rebecca Slack, Lee Brown, Mitchell & Joseph Holden, water@leeds
FOOD: PAGE PAGE 142 - 149 Page 144 - 146 - Urban Growing and Food Sufficiency Rosie Boycott, Chairman, London Food Page 148 - 149 - Food Security - Dr Jeremy Wiltshire, Head of Carbon Management, ADAS & Prof. Roger Sylvester-Bradley, Principal Crop Scientist, ADAS
LABS AND TESTING: PAGE 104-115 Page 106 - 108 - Confidence and Competence: Accreditation - Jon Murthy, Marketing Director, UKAS Page 110 - 112 - Environmental Analysis Hazel Davidson, Technical Manager, ALcontrol Labs Page 114 - 115 - Advancing in Accuracy in Gas Analysis Gary Yates, European Product Manager, Air Products
WASTE MANAGEMENT: PAGE 128-141 Page 130 - 134 - Localism in a National Context Colin Drummond, CEO, Viridor Page 136 - 137 - Energy From Waste and Sustainable Communities - Malcolm Chilton, Director, Covanta Energy Page 138 - 139 - A solution for Anaerobic Digestion Project Development - Gary Little, CEO, Kirk Environmental Page 140 - 141 - New Energy In Severn Trent Martin Dent
MISCELLANY: PAGE 150 - 176 Page 151 - Environment Prosecutions Page 152 - 154 - Invasive Species - What Has The ‘Killer Shrimp’ taught us? - Trevor Renals, Environmental Agency Page 155 - 159 - Conservation - Biodiversity What’s In A Word? - Dr Eleanor Ballard, Principal Ecologist, WYG Page 160 - 161 - Mapping - A Geographic Solution To An Environmental Challenge - Nick Jones, Esri UK Page 162 - 164 - Training- Environmental Careers - SAC Page 166 - 175 - Case Studies Page 176 - Famous Last Words - Syed Ahmed, CEO, SA Vortex Ltd ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |3|
GMO Grapevines in Colmar: the judicial system recognises the right to research The individual who, acting alone, destroyed a GMO trial belonging to INRA, the French National Institute for Agricultural Research, in September 2009, has been even more heavily condemned by the Court of Appeal in Colmar (Alsace): a one month suspended sentence, 50,000 euros in damages, and a confirmed fine of 2000 euros. This penal decision comes over and above the fact that the legality of this test has been reconfirmed by the administrative justice system. Already obliged to pay a 2000 euro fine in November 2009, the person responsible declares that he destroyed the research site of the Institute because no public debate was possible on these GMO grapevines, contesting the interest, the methods and the scientific range of this experiment, the objective of which was to find new means to fight against the fanleaf virus, a major disease for grapevines. The fanleaf virus is a viral disease of grapevines that causes a drop in production (up to 80%). It affects approximately 60% of grapevines in France with damage evaluated at between 350 and 850 million euros per year. This test area in Alsace was built in cooperation with a local monitoring committee (CLS), made up of local politicians and representatives of winegrowers, unions and associations. Primarily composed of people who objected to GMO in principle, and wanted to find answers to the reality of the risks and benefits linked to the use of this type of technology, the monitoring committee took a demanding stance on the methods of the experiment, guaranteeing its non-commercial nature. The court reminded those concerned of the general interest of the experiment: • which has as its objective the preservation of a natural resource and the improvement of the competitiveness of the agricultural sector, representing a certain public interest; • which does not represent a risk for the environment. INRA is waiting for the next appearance in the Colmar Magistrates’ Court of the sixty volunteer reapers who definitively destroyed the experiment in August 2010.
Echome, a company offering sustainable energy solutions, was delighted to win the contract to work with a West London primary school, The school was looking at options to implement alternative energy solutions on its premises having been awarded a grant from the Community Energy Saving Programme (CESP). The grant is to incentivise them to invest in alternative energy. Echome have been engaged both to advise on the best solutions and quote on the installation. After reviewing the requirements and completing initial site surveys it was decided that a Photovoltaic (PV) solar system would be the most suitable solution. Using the Feed in Tariff to sell energy to the electricity provider the installation can generate up to 10% return on investment. This system also has educational benefits as a monitor and will be installed to teach the children about energy consumption and production. Echome provides renewable energy solutions from initial consultancy and design through to installation and commissioning. The company looks forward to starting installation in the summer and hopes that this will be an example to other schools and a catalyst for new business.
NIA Chairman receives MBE Tony Hardiman has been recognised in the 2011 New Year’s Honours List where he was awarded an MBE as Chairman of the National Insulation Association for services to the Energy Industry. This honour follows on from the NIA’s own appreciation for Tony’s support and dedication when he was presented with an award for ‘services to the industry’ at the NIA Annual Conference in December in recognition of the huge contribution he has made to the insulation industry for over 30 years. Neil Marshall, NIA Chief Executive, comments: “This is a tremendous achievement for Tony and well deserved, reflecting the time, effort and commitment that he has made for many years.” |4| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Industry-leading study to boost electricity distribution from remote wind farms A ground-breaking study led by energy specialist Parsons Brinckerhoff has concluded that, under certain circumstances, electrical power lines can carry more than double the amount of electrical energy than their current ‘static’ rating suggests. The study, which analysed the ‘cooling’ effect of wind on the rating of electrical power lines, has major implications for the wind power industry and particularly wind farms in remote rural locations, where the existing electrical infrastructure is often the limiting factor to the capacity of generation that can be economically connected. The innovative study was also the recent recipient of a prestigious Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) Innovation Award 2010, which recognises international innovation in engineering and technology disciplines. To undertake the 42-month programme, PB led a research consortium of Alstom Grid, Durham University, Imass and ScottishPower Energy Networks. The consortium was the beneficiary of UK government funding under the Technology Strategy Board programme. The aim of the study was to develop an approach to help reduce capacity restrictions placed on electricity networks, which can affect connection costs and schedules. The focus was on power systems between 33kV and 132kV. In order to prove the concept, a ‘control system’ was developed and prototyped, which had at its heart a series of software programmes developed by Durham University and Imass to model the thermal state of the power system.
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To test the system, a section of ScottishPower’s 132kV network in North Wales was chosen for field trials. Since January 2010, electrical, thermal and meteorological data from the trial has been collected by Alstom Grid and processed using the developed thermal state estimation and generator control system software. Calculations covered real-time ratings of overhead lines, electric cables and power transformers. The results showed that an enhanced knowledge of the thermal state of network components could enhance power flow capabilities. Key findings revealed a potential capacity increase during periods of peak wind farm generation of up to 150% for overhead lines, up to 6% for electric cables and up to 10 % for power transformers. Following the success of the initial trial, ScottishPower would now like to further develop this technology to facilitate the connection of more renewable generation without the need to invest in network infrastructure. A new consortium between Parsons Brinckerhoff, Scottish Power and a number of Smart Grids equipment suppliers has been formed to drive the technology forward, supported by Ofgem’s Low-Carbon Networks (LCN) funding initiative. The objective is to implement a real-time thermal rating system across a wide area to give ScottishPower improved visibility of the ‘actual’ thermal operating status of its network. It will involve the installation of weather stations at numerous sites across North Wales and a centralised network management system, along with overhead line temperature monitoring systems for validation purposes. Parsons Brinckerhoff’s role is to deliver the project by recruiting project partners, planning the scope of work and project programme, and by redesigning the system architecture to allow for operation across large geographical areas and to allow for a control room interface. The company will also assist with the application for LCN funding and the provision of day-to-day project management services, support for software development, and technical support such as data analysis and commissioning tools.
PM BACKS EUROPEAN SUPERGRID PLAN Plans to explore linking up green energy projects in the North, Baltic and Irish Seas have been backed by Prime Minister David Cameron as part of the UK-Baltic-Nordic Summit held in London. The Prime Minister announced that Energy Ministers will work together through the North Seas Offshore Grid Initiative and share experience with Ministers in the Baltic Energy Market Interconnection Plan (BEMIP) to ensure planning, market, regulatory and technical challenges are properly addressed and the right framework created for industry to invest in future projects. An electricity supergrid could take green electricity produced in one country to another through thousands of kilometres of sub-sea cables. Wind farms built out at sea could also be connected to a number of countries. Energy Secretary Chris Huhne said: “Europe’s future lies in green energy, and Britain wants to work with other countries to make the most of the clean energy potential in and around the North Sea. We’re stepping up our efforts with our European partners to develop a North Sea electricity supergrid that will help secure our energy supplies in a low carbon way.” The plans could help Europe meet its ambitious green energy targets and help Europe’s energy security, by balancing some of the challenges of using wind energy, including intermittency and the inability to store electricity. For example, surplus wind energy produced off Britain’s coast (when electricity demand in the UK is low, but wind speed is high) could be exported to Norway and used to pump water in its hydro-electric power stations. Electricity produced by hydropower could then be sent to Britain at times of high demand when the wind is not blowing. Latest offshore wind statistics, released by the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA), confirm that the United Kingdom is the European and world sector leader with 1,341 megawatts (MW) of installed capacity. The UK is followed by Denmark (854MW), the Netherlands (249MW), Belgium (195MW) and Sweden (164MW). Germany, Ireland, Finland and Norway have a further 145MW between them.
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The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has just announced its top ten pest-related enquiries received by its Advisory Service. Each year the charity’s entomologists add up all the enquiries they have answered and produce a list of the ten most troublesome pests. In most years slugs and snails have topped this list but in 2010 RHS members wanted to know more about problems associated with the viburnum beetle. This pest eats the foliage of various viburnums commonly grown in gardens, especially the evergreen shrub Viburnum tinus and the deciduous Viburnum opulus, also known as guelder rose or snowball bush. Adult beetles cause some damage in late summer but it is the grub stage in April-May that can cause severe defoliation. Principal RHS Entomologist, Andrew Halstead says, ‘’Viburnum beetles are in our top ten list most years but they do seem to have become more troublesome over the last decade. The damage to evergreen viburnums is more apparent because it can be seen all year round.’’ Enquiries into two sap-sucking insects, cushion scale and horse chestnut scale, have increased. Cushion scale infests the underside of leaves on evergreen shrubs, such as camellia, rhododendron, holly and Trachelospermum. Horse chestnut scale is seen on the trunks of horse chestnut, lime, bay trees, sycamore and maples. RHS members were also concerned about the glasshouse red spider mite, which sucks sap from a wide range of greenhouse and garden plants. Andrew says ’’The relatively hot dry summer last year meant that red spider mite become more of a problem on outdoor plants. However, a benefit of the dry weather was that it also restricted the activities of slugs and snails which prefer wet, cool weather.’’ The number one plant in terms of pest enquiries in 2010 was grass. This was followed by viburnums, roses, apples, fuchsias, lilies, plums, maple, pears and bay. Lawns are usually the number one problem because they have a wide range of pest problems, although most of the damage is caused by chafer grubs.
New date and venue for MCERTS 2011 The organisers of MCERTS 2011 are delighted to announce that this year’s event will now take place at the Telford International Centre, on 30th & 31st March. Previous MCERTS events have taken place near Burton, Staffs, but the new, larger venue will provide improved facilities for exhibitors and visitors and is serviced by excellent transport links. Event organiser Marcus Pattison explained: “We are delighted to be able to bring the MCERTS event to Telford. The International Centre will provide greater room for the conference, exhibition and workshops, enabling everything to take place in a single hall and providing room for further growth in the future.” The event will focus on regulations, techniques, standards and technologies that relate to emissions monitoring. The main conference will focus on recent and forthcoming regulations, including the new Industrial Emissions Directive, Operator Monitoring Assessments (OMA) and the MCERTS monitoring certification scheme. Visit www.mcerts.uk.com for registration details.
May Gurney acquires Turriff, a multi-utility provider, and strengthens geographical coverage May Gurney, the infrastructure support services company providing essential maintenance and enhancement services to clients in the public and regulated sectors, is pleased to announce that it has acquired Turriff Group Limited (“Turriff”), one of Scotland’s largest utility infrastructure maintenance companies, for a cash consideration of up to £13.6 million. Under the terms of the transaction May Gurney will pay an initial cash consideration of up to £8.6 million, with a further £5 million payable over three years dependent upon a number of key performance indicators being met, including future revenue targets and key employee retention. In addition, May Gurney is assuming approximately £9.4 million of debt. This acquisition delivers key benefits to May Gurney: • Further strengthens its position in the utilities maintenance market and gains entry to the £2.4 billion support services market in Scotland, with opportunities in local government and rail. • May Gurney gains access to the UK’s regulated £1.7 billion gas marketplace which is displaying strong and sustained growth with dependable, long-term income streams. • Turriff’s acquired order book is approximately £90
• • •
million, with available extensions worth up to an additional £70 million. Its key long-term clients include Scotia Gas, Scottish Water and Scottish & Southern Energy. The transaction is expected to be earnings accretive in the first full year of acquisition. Potential to achieve cost synergies of circa £0.3 million per annum. The transaction further underpins May Gurney’s existing £1.4 billion forward order book and long term earnings visibility.
Headquartered in Aberdeen, Turriff has more than 550 employees and is one of Scotland’s largest utility infrastructure maintenance companies with marketleading positions in gas, water, electricity and multiutility services. Under the terms of the deal, key members of Turriff’s senior management team have been incentivised to remain with the business. May Gurney Chief Executive Philip Fellowes-Prynne commented: “We are delighted to welcome Turriff to the May Gurney group. Turriff will provide access to the power and gas maintenance sectors, the Scottish support services market and consolidates our position in water. These are all key growth markets with dependable, sustainable income streams which will provide us with significant opportunities to develop long-term relationships with new clients. ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |9|
OFT market study supported by Ofwat The OFT has announced a market study, supported by Ofwat, looking at the market for treatment of organic waste. The study will look at whether the market is working effectively to deliver the best outcomes for customers. Organic waste has three mains sources: sewage, food scraps discarded as part of household rubbish and waste products from the food and farming industries. There are new opportunities to use advanced technologies for producing energy from this waste. These include techniques like 'anaerobic digestion' which ferment organic waste and produce clean energy. The study will examine whether there are appropriate incentives in place for the efficient use of these technologies. The OFT decided to launch this study after considering a proposal and request from Ofwat. The OFT will lead in the study and utilise its experience in conducting market studies of the municipal, commercial and industrial organic waste sectors. It will be closely supported by a team from Ofwat who will provide expertise of the sewerage sector. The study will examine a number of themes, including: • Whether price regulation of sewage-sludge treatment, recycling and disposal services remains appropriate, what scope there is to encourage greater competition, and what implications this may have for economic regulation • Whether there are any barriers specific to efficient investment in and use of 'co-treatment' where waste from a variety of different sources is treated at a single facility • What might be done to encourage efficient investment in advanced treatment techniques across the economy more widely Heather Clayton, OFT Senior Director of Infrastructure, said: ‘Advanced organic waste treatment techniques like anaerobic digestion offer tremendous opportunities to produce clean energy and reduce unnecessary waste. We need to make sure that the conditions are right to maximize the potential for these technologies to benefit the UK.’ Cathryn Ross, Ofwat Director of Markets and Economics said: ‘The water and sewerage sectors have an important role because they treat sewage sludge – one of the key sources of organic waste. 20 years ago sludge was a major environmental problem. Now it gives companies the opportunity to engage in new markets. But these opportunities bring challenges in ensuring fairness for water customers and competition across the organic waste sector. Looking carefully at how we regulate sludge, is part of our much wider review of how we |10| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
regulate to deliver a sustainable water and waste water sector that can deliver for customers for decades to come. By sharing best practice and tapping into the OFT's expertise, we will make better informed decisions about how - or even if - we regulate organic waste in the sewerage sector.' The OFT expects to conclude the study in July 2011 in time for any recommendations to feed into Ofwat's wider review of economic regulation in the water and sewerage sector. Key parties who wish to comment or make a submission should write to: Organic Waste Market Study, Office of Fair Trading, Level 2, Fleetbank House, 2-6 Salisbury Square, London EC4Y 8JX or Email organicwaste@oft.gsi. gov.uk
ManageCO2 launches in the UK and brings first all-in-one solution for carbon and energy management ManageCO2, the leading provider of enterprise carbon accounting and greenhouse gas emissions management software, has launched in the UK following its success in Ireland, bringing the UK’s first all-in-one solution for carbon and energy management. The simple and easy-to-use software tracks and reports an organisation’s carbon footprint across all of its facilities internationally. The innovative software combines true Enterprise Carbon Management with wireless energy monitoring to bring carbon analysis to a more granular level. This combination allows companies to more accurately identify high usage areas across multiple facilities, such as data centres, machinery and buildings, and to instantly calculate and validate the return on investment for areas of energy and carbon reduction. The software is at the cutting edge of developments in Environmental Management. It is a rapidly deployable ’cloud based’ software application that doesn’t require any IT outlay or IT involvement, further increasing the value adding and cost saving potential of the software. Adrian Fleming, Managing Director of ManageCO2, commented, “We’ve spent a number of years developing the software, ensuring not only that reporting complies with international standards and Government reporting regulations, including the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme, but also making sure that it is simple and easy for businesses to use. “Managing and reporting carbon and energy usage in a viable and transparent way is key in today’s carbon constrained economy, and we’re really excited about helping UK businesses to do this as we have done so successfully in Ireland.”
World-famous sustainable technology centre installs Sanyo CO2 heat pump system
(UK) Ltd said: “The Sanyo carbon dioxide system is pioneering technology, and is stimulating a great deal of interest. The fact that it combines high efficiency inverter control with a low or negligible GWP refrigerant such as carbon dioxide makes it unique in the market.”
The Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT) has installed a state-of-the-art Sanyo air-source, carbon dioxidebased heat pump as part of its sustainable technology programme.
Sanyo’s Graham Wright, who heads up the company’s heating division, said: “It has been an exciting year for heat pumps in general, and the ECO CO2 system in particular. There are now several hundred successfully installed in the field, in applications ranging from modern homes to 16th century priories and castles.” He added: “We are delighted that CAT has recognised its potential, and look forward to seeing the results of their tests over the coming year.”
The centre, based at Machynlleth in Wales, will use the Sanyo system to demonstrate the latest heat pump technology in action, as part of practical courses for people visiting the centre from all over the UK and the world. The centre’s David Hood said: “Heat pumps have been around for some time, but the technology has been evolving to make it more energy efficient. The Sanyo system uses an inverter driven compressor, which is more responsive and energy efficient than previous versions. The system also uses carbon dioxide (CO2) as the refrigerant. It has a major environmental advantage over other vapour compression heat pumps that use potent greenhouse gasses as refrigerants - that are up to 1500 times more damaging than CO2. He added: “Carbon dioxide also has the potential to operate at higher temperatures, which fits in better with the way we use heat in our homes. There are currently only a few heat pumps of this type installed in the UK, and we are excited to have the opportunity to investigate it at CAT.”
CAT is an independent organisation that tackles key technology issues in relation to energy, sustainability, pollution and climate change. It has won many national and international awards for its pioneering work.
The centre is using the ECO CO2 system to heat one of its buildings at its campus in mid-Wales. CAT technicians will monitor the system to see how well it performs under a range of climatic and occupational conditions. The Sanyo system will be used as a demonstration plant for the centre’s heat pump installer programme, and as part of its MSc in Renewable Energy in the Built Environment course. The heat pump has been donated to CAT by Sanyo and distributor Oceanair (UK) Ltd. Tony Evanson of Oceanair
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CITY OF LONDON CORPORATION ANNOUNCES THE UK’S MOST SUSTAINABLE ORGANISATIONS The City of London Corporation has identified the 41 organisations competing to win a Sustainable City Award, almost half of which are small businesses, many implementing green policies to cut business costs. The awards recognise organisations from the private, public and third sectors who are leading the way in sustainable business practices. Organisations in the running to win one of 12 Sustainable City Awards, in a ceremony in the City’s prestigious Mansion House, include: •
Arcola Theatre – Hackney’s Arcola Theatre aims to be the World’s first carbon neutral theatre and the theatre provides a platform for educating Hackney residents about sustainability through events such as Arcola Green Sundays and outreach programs in local schools. Sustainable practices are incorporated into maintaining and running the building itself. For example, energy and water usage throughout the whole theatre is carefully monitored to drive reductions in usage and low energy LED lighting has been introduced to cut electricity usage by 60% - in turn, significantly reducing running costs for the theatre. In addition, inspiring green practices have been incorporated in the very performances themselves with the use of fuel cell to power the lighting in many shows and the environmental impact of all aspects of the production – such as set construction, marketing and company travel – are actively minimised.
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GetMoreLocal – GetMoreLocal is a loyalty card scheme which is run as a social enterprise by a team of 18-24 year olds in Islington and Hackney. Local residents and employees are rewarded for buying from local business within walking distance of their homes and places of work. By encouraging local trade and supporting SMEs in the boroughs, the scheme works to build a resilient and sustainable local community. In addition, GetMoreLocal’s model generates sustainable employment within the local area. Launched in June 2010, it originally employed 79 young unemployed Islington residents. As a direct result of the hands-on training they received with the project, 42% have gone on to find full time employment within the Islington area and 15 set up their own incubator social enterprises in the area which now supply to GetMoreLocal. The second workforce will be launching in Hackney this January.
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The Alma gastro-pub - for their super seasonal and locally sourced menu – staff forage for herbs, nuts and fruits, which are made into ice cream, sloe gin, cordial and champagne. JP Morgan for their research into sustainable finance and investment in the field of Microfinance Equity Valuation. Eversheds for the firms’ all-encompassing efforts to reduce waste and landfill. Sheffield City Council is shortlisted for this year’s Air Quality category for their Gas Vehicles project which involved trialling Compressed Natural Gas vehicles. The vehicles run on bio-methane gas, a renewable fuel sourced from landfill sites whose use as a vehicle fuel is well established around the globe in countries such as India, America and Argentina. With transport being the second largest contributor to Sheffield’s carbon footprint, the use of gas as vehicle fuel will play a large part in transforming the air quality in Sheffield and is part of the council’s continuing work in this field with the urban area having been declared an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA). In addition, the bio-methane gas is locally sourced which is not only developing the local green economy but in itself plays a large part in reducing emissions and improving air quality in Sheffield. Following the trial’s success, the council is now introducing the vehicles to their fleet and establishing a refuelling infrastructure for the City. London Fire Brigade – for the Harold Hill Fire Station – the first new fire station to be built in London for 10 years. Built to be the greenest fire station in London, it only uses reclaimed or Forest Stewardship Council-certified timber, and used contractors who employed and sourced locally.
Simon Mills, Head of Sustainability at the City of London Corporation, says “Sustainable business practices are now far more cost-efficient to implement and can offer a rapid return on investment – meaning that smaller organisations are championing the green agenda as a means to cut costs. This trend is reflected in this year’s shortlist, with almost half of shortlisted entries coming from SMEs.” This year the awards will be hosted by Lord Smith, Chairman of the Environment Agency.
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Eco worries laid to rest The ever-growing numbers of people who are striving to live a green life style and doing their utmost to protect the planet are taking steps to endeavour that this care continues after their death. This has resulted in a demand on the funeral directors' industry to provide eco-friendly coffins. Sunset Coffins are constructed from a very robust board that is made entirely from recycled newspapers. It takes 120 tabloids or 70 broadsheets to make one coffin. As they contain no plastics or metals Sunset Coffins are totally biodegradable making them the obvious choice for the increasingly popular woodland and meadow burials. The board is supplied by the local paper mill, which is less than a mile away from
“The best thing about that funeral was the very feminine lilac coffin – an abiding, beautiful and reassuring image from a very sad occasion”.
Sunset's workshops in Cam, Gloucestershire. It has a warm velvety texture, and is available in a range of nine colours. Matching ashes caskets are also available. Sunset Coffins are constructed using traditional furniture-making techniques to ensure strength. The funeral directors' industry has been involved throughout their development to ensure that they meet its stringent requirements for burials and cremations. how many newspapers it takes to make one Sunset coffin.
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Ashfield’s Big Bin Change Goes Online in Nottinghamshire In an attempt to reduce costs and minimise their environmental impact, Ashfield District Council has introduced an award winning revised refuse collection programme. The project has been supported by an online web application and underpinned by the National Land and Property Gazetteer (NLPG). The new routes were mapped and addresses for each of the 30,000 affected households extracted from the NLPG for an initial mailshot. The address data has been fundamental in the development and take up of an online property look up application. This allows visitors to the Council’s website to look up a street, select an address and then self access a wide range of property specific information - including details of new bin collection dates. “The original communication with residents encouraged them to go online, if possible, to access further information rather than call or visit the Council’s Customer Service Team,” commented Matthew Longman, GIS and Land Charges Manager, Ashfield District Council. “The statistics provided during the month following the ‘Big Bin Change’ showed a ten-fold increase in online queries and customer service records also indicated that residents were finding the information they needed using the self-access service.” “However this project was about more than a just change in bin day,” commented Longman. “The successful development and communication of alternative communication channels, underpinned by the gazetteer, resulted in tangible gains for the Council, improvement in services for citizens and a reduced impact on the environment.”
Making batteries last longer in electric vehicles A potentially ‘green’ energy storage device which will help to power electric transport has been officially launched at The University of Nottingham’s Malaysia Campus (UNMC). The Sahz-UNMC Pilot Plant produces ‘supercapacitors’ which are electrochemical storage devices with high power density. They are used to improve the lifetime of the batteries in electric vehicles. The plant has developed the new supercapacitors under the brand name Enerstora. They are cost-saving and more environmentally-friendly when used in the manufacturing of electric cars, trains and other electric transportation. The supercapacitor also has important applications in other areas like solar energy and mobile devices where extremely fast charging is a valuable feature. The unit was established by the UNMC Faculty of Engineering with industry partner Sahz Holdings to design and manufacture the devices with the eventual aim of building a high volume manufacturing plant in Malaysia. The fabrication process for this new technology was developed in collaboration with the Chemical Engineering Department at the University Park campus in Nottingham, UK. Electric vehicles and ‘green’ cars will account for up to a third of total global sales by 2020, according to a recent report from Deloitte's global manufacturing industry group. At present most electric vehicle batteries typically need replacing every three to five years. The motivation for establishing the pilot plant was to develop the supercapacitor which will extend and maximise the life of the batteries to help conserve the natural environment and global energy resources.
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NEED FOR A MINISTER FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
director, Peter Jones was instrumental in growing the business from a £40 million to £760 million turnover company through organic and acquisitive growth.
Government advisor welcomes Environmental Audit Commission’s call for stronger political leadership on sustainable development issues
Well-known as a public communicator on the economic, technological and sociopolitical dimensions of the sector, Peter has been a member of Defra's technologies working group, Business Resource Efficiency and Waste (BREW) panel and formerly the DTI's Environmental Innovation Advisory Group. More recently, Peter was appointed as the Mayor of London’s Board Member on the London Waste Advisory Board.
Westminster's Environmental Audit Committee's report on embedding sustainable development across Government focuses on the need for greater political leadership from the top, and recommends a new Minister for Sustainable Development placed in the Cabinet Office. The Sustainable Development Commission welcomes this clarion call to Government to show some clear leadership on the sustainable development agenda. SDC Chief Executive Andrew Lee said: 'The previous Government's arrangements for sustainable development were widely admired around the world as an example of best practice. As we start the lead-up to the third Earth Summit, the UK Government must demonstrate beyond reasonable doubt that any new arrangements put in place are significantly better than the ones it is so rapidly dismantling. Sustainable development, like climate change within it, must sit above party politics and departmental fiefdoms. The EAC report hits the nail on the head by proposing that responsibility for this crucial long-term agenda should sit with a senior Minister at the heart of government, in the Cabinet Office. To be effective it will be crucial that this Minister has clout and has the heavyweight backing of No10 and the Treasury. We have written to a number of key Ministers setting out the critical tests we think should be applied to any new proposals. We hope the Government will take up the EAC's recommendations and will be looking very carefully at forthcoming announcements by Ministers’
Peter Jones OBE joins SWR as non-executive director Waste management company, SWR, has appointed Peter Jones OBE to its Board as non-executive director. The move comes as the ambitious firm looks to further cement its position as one of the industry’s rising stars. With more than 20 years experience in the waste industry with Biffa Plc, latterly as Development and External Affairs |16| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
SWR Chairman, Angus McDonald, said: “The board of SWR is delighted that Peter Jones is to join as a non executive director. He has an unrivalled reputation in the waste industry in the UK and we look forward to his input.” Peter Jones said: “The waste industry is poised on the edge of a substantial upheaval in relation to end of life material destinations, both geographically and technologically. Coincidentally, that upheaval is compounded by the need for nimble, adaptive and evolutionary logistics systems as sophisticated as any we are familiar with in the way that consumer products reach our homes.
“SWR epitomize that approach utilising skills required outside the sector. I’m sure that their ideas and working practices, which are heavily focussed on the service potential of materials recovery and the role that information technology can play in supporting the process, will soon become mainstream.” Giles Whiteley, chief executive of SWR, said: “SWR is part of a small but growing new breed of waste management companies. We are still a relatively young organisation, but one that is forging the way in terms of new and innovative working practices in the sector. Peter, with his hugely impressive track record, will provide an invaluable addition to the team and will no doubt prove instrumental in helping us achieve our ambitious growth plans.”
NEW EARTH MOVES INTO SCOTLAND WITH SUCCESS IN SCOTTISH BORDERS Waste treatment and renewable energy specialist, New Earth Solutions, has been selected as preferred bidder for a major waste management contract with Scottish Borders Council, the company’s first venture into Scotland. The contract entails the development of a new residual waste treatment facility, as well as the processing of mixed dry recyclables and composting of green waste. The service will cover around 65,000 tonnes of waste each year, of which 45,000 tonnes will be treated using New Earth’s mechanical biological treatment technology in a new state-of-the-art facility at the Council’s Easter Langlee site in Galashiels. New Earth will be responsible for the processing of the Council’s mixed dry recyclables and green waste from April next year and the residual waste treatment facility is due to be operational from October 2012. New Earth’s flexible approach supports the Scottish Borders Council’s drive to improve its recycling rate and divert waste away from landfill as part of its contribution to Scotland’s Zero Waste Plan. Cllr Len Wyse, Executive Member for Environmental Services, at Scottish Borders Council commented, “We are extremely pleased that this milestone in the procurement process has been reached. It is anticipated that the contract will be awarded in Spring 2011, which will place Scottish Borders Council at the forefront of waste treatment within Scotland. The proposed facility will use leading technology to divert a majority of collected household waste from landfill and thereby minimise the future costs to Scottish Borders Council for dealing with waste.” The 24-year contract will also include the provision of ‘green’ energy using New Earth’s Advanced Thermal Conversion technology to generate 3MW of low-carbon renewable electricity and heat, sufficient for around 3,000 homes and contributing to the region’s renewable energy targets. New Earth Solutions’ Contracts Director, Richard Brooke, is delighted with the result, “Our appointment as preferred bidder by Scottish Borders Council is particularly pleasing as, subject to contract award, the project represents a broad scope of services to be managed by New Earth and utilises our range of technologies and processes. The Easter Langlee facility will be our farthest north, truly expanding our reach to cover the UK mainland. We look forward to working in partnership with Scottish Borders Council.” |18| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
RHS Announces 2011 Britain in Bloom Finalists The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has announced the finalists for the 2011 RHS Britain in Bloom campaign. This year 77 villages, towns, cities and urban communities from across the UK will be visited by a panel of national RHS Britain in Bloom judges.
RHS Britain in Bloom is one of the largest and most successful horticultural campaigns in Europe, involving over a thousand communities each year. It is perhaps one of the best examples of the Prime Minister’s Big Society initiative with approximately 115,000 volunteers donating an estimated 1.7 million hours of their time to the campaign The 2011 campaign also sees the launch of the RHS’ new three year partnership with Anglian Home Improvements - the new headline sponsor of RHS Britain in Bloom. “We are delighted that, after opening up more opportunities for communities to participate in the UK Finals, we have 77 finalists this year, 11 more than last year,” says Stephanie Eynon, RHS Community Horticulture Manager. “This increase reflects the overall level of participation in the campaign throughout the UK and the tremendous work being done by these communities. RHS Britain in Bloom is all about local community involvement. David Cameron is encouraging people to take a more active interest in their community and the RHS is pleased to be able to demonstrate that people around the country have, through Britain in Bloom, been doing just that for many years.” She added, “We are also very excited that Anglian Home Improvements is the new headline sponsor. We believe this partnership will help raise further awareness of this campaign and enable the RHS to make Britain in Bloom 2011 its most successful year yet.” Martin Troughton, Anglian Home Improvements Marketing Director said, “Sponsoring Britain in Bloom is a fantastic opportunity as we share a common purpose in ‘greening’ our communities. Anglian Home Improvements has a range of products to make the home a more energy efficient, greener place to live. By supporting Britain in Bloom, together we can make a tangible impact across Britain.” The RHS Britain in Bloom campaign is a year-round initiative, which sees communities working to improve their local environments. Some groups are entirely voluntarily run and some work in partnership with their local council.
Atkins’ chief executive named in New Year Honours List 2011 Atkins’ chief executive Keith Clarke has been formally recognised for services to engineering and to the construction industry with his inclusion in the New Year Honours List 2011 bestowed by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth. Keith has been awarded a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE). The British honours system is one of the oldest in the world. It recognises outstanding achievement and service across the whole of the United Kingdom. Allan Cook CBE, chairman, Atkins commented: "Atkins is delighted and very proud that Keith has been honoured for his services to our sector. His career has spanned architecture, construction and engineering, where he has made a significant contribution to positioning Britain as a technical leader on the world's stage. His recent campaign to drive our sector not only to respond to, but to lead technical solutions to the challenges posed by delivering low carbon economies deserves particular credit." Keith Clarke CBE, chief executive, Atkins said, "It is a privilege to be in the engineering sector and to be honoured in this way. I believe it is engineering's decade as deep technical expertise will help this country take a leadership position in finding engineering solutions to help deliver low carbon economies. I am proud to be part of it."
bricks, Thermalite blocks, ready-mixed concrete and aggregates. Martin Crow, Hanson UK’s head of sustainability, said: “Achieving the standard for asphalt with a rating of ‘good’ shows our continuing commitment to high environmental and sustainability standards. The final step in having all key products certified is to get cement and GGBS certified in the first half of 2011.” The BRE Environmental and Sustainability Standard (BES) 6001: 2008 covers the environmental and social issues for organisational management and supply chain management, including all the processes from the origin of raw materials, through all stages of the manufacturing process to point of sale. For the client, specifier, distributor or end-user, it provides assurance that products conform to environmental impact specifications. Responsible sourcing is recognised within the Code for Sustainable Homes (CSH) and BRE Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM), counting towards the credits required to assess the code level of a building.
Honours are given to people from all walks of life when they have made a difference to their community. People are nominated by an individual or organisation familiar with the work of the candidate or through submission by a government department that has identified a candidate doing good work within its sphere of interest. Keith has more than 30 years’ experience in urban regeneration, policy development and the implementation of large scale projects in construction and engineering as well as extensive international experience, having worked in the USA, Asia, India and Europe. He has led the move towards a low carbon economy by actively encouraging engineers to change the way they plan, design and build vital new infrastructure to address the challenge of climate change.
Hanson UK moves a step closer to achieving its goal in responsible sourcing Hanson has been certified with the Responsible Sourcing of Materials (RSM) standard for its 34 asphalt production sites, and taken another big step towards achieving the standard across all its product lines. The company already has BES 6001 RSM certification for ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |19|
England’s special wildlife sites show dramatic improvement Some of the sites that have shown improvement and the habitats and species that have benefited include: • In the South East – 28,500 hectares of land in the New Forest (98.6 per cent of the total SSSI area) is now in favourable or recovering condition. This is Europe’s largest area of lowland heath and This is a major improvement since 2003, when only 57 provides a home to Dartford warblers, nightjars, per cent of these Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) smooth snakes and numerous bat species. were in the same condition. It follows seven years of • In the North East – 4,480 hectares of Bowes Moor hard work by Defra, in conjunction with Natural England, in Country Durham (100% of the SSSI area) has been the Environment Agency, the Forestry Commission and transformed through a partnership between partners from the public, private and voluntary sectors. landowners, commoners and conservationists, helping to increase species such as merlin, golden Welcoming the achievement, Environment Secretary plover and black grouse. Caroline Spelman said: • In the East of England – Environmentally sensitive “These sites really deserve the title of special. They include farming practices have helped maintain 13,400 spectacular and beautiful habitats from flower-rich hectares of the Breckland Farmland in Norfolk (100% meadows to remote upland peat bogs and give protection of the SSSI area), providing a haven for one of to wildlife that might not otherwise survive. This fantastic England’s rarest birds, the stone curlew. achievement is testimony to the hard work of everyone involved. People really do care about and value our natural • In the South East – Conservation volunteers have environment and together we can safeguard our remaining helped restore 2.4 hectares of Hogley Bog (100% of the SSSI area), a tiny area of wetland near the natural heritage for future generations.” centre of Oxford, providing a home for rare plants like the grass of Parnassus and the tiny creeping bog As well as protecting wildlife, these sites also give pimpernel. opportunities for rural businesses, space for recreation • In the West Midlands - Conservation work at Wren’s and scientific research, and safeguard essential services Nest caverns in the centre of Dudley, has helped such as clean water, flood management, carbon storage, preserve a world famous treasure trove of fossils. pollination and food production. Over 95 per cent of England’s finest wildlife and geological sites, covering more than one million hectares of countryside, are now in favourable or recovering condition, according to Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman
Helen Phillips, Chief Executive of Natural England said: "The turnaround in the fortunes of England’s SSSIs is one of the great conservation success stories of recent decades and owes much to the tireless efforts of an army of conservationists, landowners and volunteers. Thanks to their efforts, a host of rare species from sand lizards to golden plovers now have a greater prospect of flourishing; while much loved landscapes, such as the New Forest and the Yorkshire Dales, face a more secure future."
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FORK RENT IS HIGHEST BIDDER IN ONLINE ‘HELP FOR HEROES’ AUCTION FOR JCB UNION JACK DIGGER When the hammer came down at the online charity auction for JCB’s unique Union Jack digger leading Ipswich-based plant hire firm Fork Rent had secured the machine with the highest bid of £70,250. JCB staged the auction as part of a Christmas fundraising initiative in support of Help for Heroes, the British charity that supports servicemen and women wounded in conflicts around the world.
I know they will be really pleased with the machine, and even more pleased to know that the money raised from the auction will be going to Help for Heroes to support our wounded servicemen and women this Christmas.”
Fork Rent’s Managing Director, Guy Nicholls said: “I’m absolutely delighted that Fork Rent has secured the Union Jack 3CX Eco Backhoe Loader. It’s such a distinctive machine and very fitting that JCB auctioned it to raise money for Help for Heroes. We’ve got on our thinking caps on today at Fork Rent to come up with more ideas how it might be used again to raise even more funds for Help for Heroes, such as a John O’Groats to Lands End road trip maybe.”
Bryn Parry, CEO & co-founder, Help for Heroes, said: “We at Help for Heroes (H4H) are thrilled that JCB decided to auction their exclusive Union Jack digger and well done to Fork Rent for securing the machine. The money raised will provide much needed funds to help our wounded heroes on their road to recovery, and if Fork Rent is able to use the Union Jack digger to raise even more money for H4H, that would be just fantastic.”
Yvette Henshall-Bell, UK and Ireland Sales Director at JCB said: “It was clear from the bidding that Fork Rent was keen to have the Union Jack 3CX Eco backhoe loader.
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A group of wounded soldiers joined teams from JCB and Help for Heroes, and over 100 representatives from the British construction industry, for the official launch of the auction on London’s South Bank
Exhibitors commended Eco Expo Asia an excellent channel for meeting quality buyers from around the world Visitors hailed the fair an effective sourcing platform for eco products and technologies Professional fringe events made the fair a leading arena for technology exchange in eco industry The 5th Eco Expo Asia ended successfully on 6 November 2010 at AsiaWorld-Expo, Hong Kong. The 4-day event gathered 266 exhibitors from 19 countries and regions and received 8,011 visitors from 62 countries and regions. Among these 2,775 were from overseas. The top 10 visiting countries and regions by volume were the Chinese mainland, Canada, the US, Macau, Japan, Korea, Hungary, Thailand, Australia and the Philippines. The fair was opened by the Secretary for the Environment of the Government of the HKSAR, the Honourable Edward Yau, JP on 3 November 2010. Attributing the international development of Eco Expo Asia to the territory’s green trading abilities, Mr Yau said: “A remarkable highlight of this year’s event is the sheer number of overseas exhibitors. Clearly this is a reflection of Hong Kong’s capacity as a trade platform for environmental and green enterprises.” Exhibitors commended Eco Expo Asia an excellent channel for meeting quality buyers from around the world Over the years, the scope of Eco Expo Asia has become increasingly more international. The fifth edition featured 10 national and regional pavilions from Foshan, France, Guangdong, Japan, Jiangmen, Kunming, Macau, Shenzhen, the UK and the US. Besides these, the Hong Kong Environmental Industry Association, the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation and the Green Council organised local companies to form group pavilions. What’s more, over 40 buying missions representing more than 1,000 delegates visited the fair. Exhibitors were impressed by the quality and relevancy of the visitors. First time Japanese exhibitor Sun Cubic Limited came to introduce their new solid fuel made from beer draft. Mr Koichi Okubo, Managing Director of Clifford Mary, plc, advisor of Sun Cubic, said: “The result is excellent. I am surprised to meet so many business visitors from a number of different countries and regions. Some of the visitors from South East Asia have already expressed interest in introducing our technology to their plants. We are very happy and will definitely come back next year. It is a good platform to introduce Japanese technology internationally.” Another new exhibitor, Topanga Advanced Plasma Lighting from the US Pavilion, was also impressed. “The |24| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
fair has surpassed our expectations. We’ve obtained solid business contacts not only from Asia, but surprisingly from Africa and the Americas,” said Mr Mehran Matloubian PhD, Chief Strategy Officer. An air purifier manufacturer, Wah Mei Tat Environmental Electronics Technology Co Ltd, exhibited in the Jiangmen Pavilion. Their General Manager Mr Ricky Lee said: “This was our first time to exhibit and we have achieved very positive results, much better than expected. A Japanese filter manufacturer would like to cooperate with us as an OEM and export our proprietary air purifier back to Japan. A Swedish company would also like to cooperate with us too. We will come back again next year, bringing along our medical related eco products.” Returned exhibitor Mr Ryan Kwok, Marketing Executive of Mitsubishi Chemical Hong Kong Ltd expressed, “Eco Expo Asia is the most important environmental industry fair in Asia. The visitors are relevant and genuine buyers coming from all over the world. The base of Hong Kong being an international business hub is the strongest. Our new 2010 products were well-received by international visitors.” Expanded Eco-friendly Vehicle Zone proved a major focal point The extended Eco-friendly Vehicle Zone was well-received and publicised by visitors and media. The exhibitors in this area were excited with the leads generated. Occupying the largest stand in the fair, Volkswagen displayed for the first time in Hong Kong their Touareg Hybrid, Milano Taxi Concept and L1 Concept. Mr Samson Leung, PR Manager of Volkswagen Hong Kong Limited, said: “This has been a very good event. There are a lot of different exhibitors and products on show. It has been the right environment to present our new environmentally friendly electric and hybrid cars.”
Green Mobility Innovations Limited displayed their electric van and new electric bike at the fair. Mr Lawrence Ho, General Manager, was very happy. “We have done very well participating in Eco Expo Asia. This has been an exceptional platform not only to promote our unique electric vehicles and business model locally and internationally, but also to advocate our green concept to society at large. Through the synergy effect with the C40 Hong Kong Workshop, we managed to meet many government officials and mayors from China and other countries. I have already lined up meetings with potential local and overseas cooperation partners. I will definitely come back with bigger presence next year.” Ms Angel K Y Cheung, Assistant General Manger, DAS Aviation Services Group, the official Hong Kong dealer of Green Wheel, was equally satisfied with trade achieved at the fair. “Business has been good. Interest in the Green Wheel electric vehicle was beyond our expectations. We have got a lot of serious leads to follow up once the fair is over.” Professional fringe events made the fair a leading arena for technology exchange in eco industry Visitors from near and afar were pleased to see a wide range of green products and services on display. Returning to the fair for new eco products and eco applications the third consecutive year was 100% Concept Asia-Pacific Ltd, the Asian arm of Frenchbased 100% Souvenirs and founder of Eco-Sys Action Foundation. Mr Christian Pilard, Managing Director said, “With more exhibitors presenting a wider range of products, you can really see how the fair is developing each year. I’ve only been here a short while and already I have spotted some interesting suppliers of toys and packaging materials. I’m confident I can get what I need from this event.”
environmental solutions that are cost-effective and energy efficient. “This is a great show. We always find what we need here and this year proved no different. We’ve found a US firm that produces plasma lights which are 50% more energy efficient and four times longer lasting than anything else currently available. We will definitely be working closer with them in the future,” said Mr Ting. Fringe events contributed to the overall success of the show The Eco Asia Conference 2010 was the largest and most comprehensive to date. It included the Eco-UK Seminar, the Eco-US Seminar, the Nordic Panel Discussion and the Sino-French Seminar on Sustainable Development and sessions on Green Transportation and Waste Management & Recycling. Other fringe events held together with the fair and conference included the Round Table Meeting between Mainland Authorities and Corporations on Eco Projects, the Green Building Conference, “Low Carbon Activities in Hong Kong” Seminar and the Public Day Forum on Low Carbon Living. “The exhibition was very inspiring with many exciting exhibits on show. There were also many excellent environmental seminars, conferences and business lunches to attend, which all contributed to the success of this very prestigious international trade fair on environmental protection,” said Dr Aileen Patricia Lothian, Director, Young SET Ambassadors, who took part in the show under the UK Pavilion. Eco Expo Asia is jointly organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council and Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd, and co-organised by the Environment Bureau of the Government of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The next edition will be held from 27 – 30 October 2011 at AsiaWorld-Expo. For further information, please click www.ecoexpoasia.com or email ecoexpo@hongkong. messefrankfurt.com or exhibitions@hktdc.org
Ms Anita Jha, Senior Vice President of Indian non-government aid agency, Sulabh International Social Service Organisation, came to the fair for sanitation and water purification solutions. “Everything is well sign-posted and set out logically, I like the format of the show very much. I have found a possible supplier from the US for technology to purify water and from Hong Kong for waste management options quite easily, and will be following up with them on my return to India.” Mr Ben Chan, General Manager of Hong Kong company, Yuen Fat International Limited said: “We want to start a new eco business. So we are here to see what opportunities are available relating to LED and roofing products. It is a good show. I have found what I want and have identified several potential partners.” Mr Fred Ting, Associate Director of IEQ Global Pte Ltd from Singapore came to the show looking for indoor ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |25|
Bee scientists to force killer mites to self destruct Scientists may be able to halt global honey bee losses by forcing the deadly Varroa mite, lethal in the freezing weather, to self destruct. The blood-sucking Varroa is the biggest killer of honey bees world-wide, having developed resistance to beekeepers’ medication. It is particularly destructive in winter as depleted colonies do not have enough bees huddling together to keep warm. Now researchers from the Government’s National Bee Unit and Aberdeen University have worked out how to ‘silence’ natural functions in the mites’ genes to make them self destruct. Dr. Alan Bowman from the University of Aberdeen said: “Introducing harmless genetic material encourages the mites’ own immune response to prevent their genes from expressing natural functions. This could make them self destruct. The beauty of this approach is that it is really specific and targets the mites without harming the bees or, indeed, any other animal.” Dr Giles Budge from National Bee Unit, part of the Food and Environment Research Agency (Fera), said: “This cutting edge treatment is environmentally-friendly and poses no threat to the bees. With appropriate support from industry and a rigorous approval process, chemical-free medicines could be available in five to ten years.” Environment Minister Lord Henley said: “Bees are essential to putting food on our table and worth £200m to Britain every year through pollinating our crops. This excellent work by UK scientists will keep our hives healthy and bees buzzing.” The process uses the Nobel Prize-winning theory ‘RNA interference’, which controls the flow of genetic information. So far the ‘silencing’ has worked with a neutral Varroa gene, which has no significant effect on the mite. Scientists now need to target a gene with the specific characteristics that are perfect to force the Varroa to self destruct. Tests by other scientists have shown the treatment can be added to hives in bee feed. The bees move it into food for their young, where the Varroa hides.
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Educating future generations and local communities about the 3Rs has been a constant in the history of EMERGE. As our full name indicates: East Manchester Environment & Resources Group Emerge, resource conservation is at the heart of what we do, as is stimulating fresh thinking about everyday materials and processes. Our first practical work in 1996 was with young people in East Manchester, creating carnival costumes from rubbish, to demonstrate the principles of waste reduction, reuse and recycling. We went on to create numerous carnival floats from junk, organised Manchester’s first ‘3Rs Fashion Show’ and ran artistic and educational workshops to inspire others to reconsider their attitudes towards and see greater value in waste. Today, EMERGE’s education team is made up of professionals. Our work is high quality and complementary to the national curriculum, directly supporting learners, teachers and staff to achieve positive outcomes as well as meet the challenges of making schools more environmentally friendly and self-determinedly responsible. What motivates us? Despite the 3Rs hierarchy being simple to understand, ‘double-think’ persists. How do you really reduce waste? We in so-called civilised society continue to squander resources with an alarming disregard for the warnings of climate scientists and carbon footprinters. Yet whose responsibility is it? The “we are what we do” campaign slogan rings out! The role of producers cannot be underestimated, yet we consumers need to take more responsibility for the choices we make. EMERGE’s Big Lottery funded REAL Skills Programme delivers a variety of innovative educational workshops for youngsters of all ages as well as school staff and the wider community. We explore the 3Rs and the complexity of issues around sustainability, how to reduce materials’ usage and enact sustainable purchasing. Our latest exciting initiative is ‘Zero Waste Week’. ‘Zero Waste’ is “a goal that is ethical, economical, efficient and visionary, intending to guide people in changing their lifestyles and practices to emulate sustainable natural cycles, where all discarded materials are designed to become resources for others to use. Zero Waste means designing and managing products and processes to systematically avoid and eliminate the volume and toxicity of waste and materials, conserve and recover all resources, and not burn or bury them. Implementing Zero Waste will eliminate all discharges to land, water or air that are a threat to planetary, human, animal or plant health.” A legacy of our Big Lottery funded programme, EMERGE piloted Zero Waste Week in Manchester Schools in 2010, assisting 13 schools to reduce their waste by a total of 6 tonnes whilst also reducing 12 tonnes of CO2 equivalent emissions in the process. Thanks to the foresight of Greater Manchester Waste |28| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Disposal Authority and its 10 local authority members who are supporting the expansion of this groundbreaking pilot we are launching the scheme on the Greater Manchester stage. EMERGE will work with 36 schools culminating in a celebration event in May 2011. By making more with less, Zero Waste seeks to reduce the ever-growing pressure on the world’s forests, soils and mineral resources. For example, doubling the life of a car saves the 15 tonnes of materials required to make a new one. Recycling paper gives wood fibres six lives rather than one. Increasing the productivity of resources also leads to major savings in energy. Zero Waste will play a central role in cutting CO2 emissions and sequestering carbon in the soil. Zero Waste Alliance UK’s Charter seeks to stop the burning of waste that creates climate changing greenhouse gases (heat and power from waste produces thousands of tonnes of greenhouse gases, toxic gases and toxic ash). EMERGE backs their ideas for creating a new, sustainable, green economy. Val Barton, Director ZWA UK, says, “Evidence shows that, where it has been piloted, progress towards Zero Waste is on course in the UK and that committed individuals and communities are close to achieving it. There are already examples of 88+% recycling today.” Martin Horwood MP recently confirmed that Zero Waste is a stated objective of the Coalition Government. “It is only when people understand that Zero Waste is achievable and is the only truly sustainable policy to deal with discarded materials that we shall see a real progressive reduction in residuals. When the top end of the waste heirarchy is successful who needs plans for the bottom end?” EMERGE is now translating ‘3Rs’ messages into workplaces, given that we provide waste management services to 750+ Greater Manchester businesses. Encouraging Zero Waste has never been timelier, particularly when waste reduction offers clear savings. We’re also working with the FSB, Enviromedia and a number of partners to re-livery our vehicles (watch this space in the next edition) if you’re seeking a sponsorship opportunity locally.
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Surface Water Management & Future Water Supplies By Terry Nash, Director, UK Sustainable Development Association The UK … too wet or too dry …? It is one of the anomalies of the UK climate that notwithstanding apparently copious supplies of regular rain which periodically gives rise to local flooding, we are at one and the same time short of mains water.
Terry Nash, MD of the Gusto Group and a Director of the UK Sustainable Development Association
This can in part be explained by the limitations of national arrangements for capturing and storing water, and in part by the UK’s steadily rising population. This means, for example, that the driest and most highly populated part of the country (the south east) enjoys an average rainfall per capita lower than around the Mediterranean, with inevitable pressures on water supplies being the consequence. Somewhat alarmingly, the Environment Agency is forecasting that the population will continue to grow by a further 20-million over the next 40-years, leading to still greater pressures on national water supplies that are already under stress in all areas south of the Humber. Changing priorities … Starting with flooding, for many years it has been a national priority to regulate surface water on new development sites so that water running off the site is controlled and down-stream flooding avoided. To this end, Sustainable Drainage Systems (SUDS) have become commonplace, often being based on the concept of simply holding the water on-site for subsequent slow-release over time. However, these traditional methods only deal with water quantity, and make little or no improvement to water quality, local amenity or biodiversity, all of which need to be taken into account to deliver the sustainable homes of the future. To meet these requirements, SUDS must now be designed to cope with “quantity” issues such as local flood management, reducing downstream flood flooding, and avoidance of river bank erosion. Alongside this, however, water quality also need to be taken into account, together with wildlife habitat , biodiversity and visual appearance. And last, but by no means least, developers must first agree the overall design with the its local SUDS Adoption Board, and agree an associated adoption fee. This will inevitably mean that all elements of the system must be open for inspection and maintenance, to ensure their long-term effectiveness. Letting nature take its course … The recently published Developer Guidelines advocates that this should be achieved by mimicking nature to the maximum extent possible as illustrated in the report as shown.
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Applied to a particular site, this translates into making arrangements to handle typical annual surface water at the point it falls (“Source Control”), making sub-site arrangements to handle the overflow resulting from 1 in 30 year occurrences (Site Control), and a site-wide arrangement to handle 1 in 100 (or even 200) year occurrences (“Regional Control”). So far so good, insofar as managing surface water and reducing flood risk is concerned; meanwhile, however, we enter 2011 with newspapers are already reporting low reservoir levels, and the introduction of hosepipe bans being forecast (in January!). If we’ve got it, let’s use it … Having gone to so much trouble to retain water on-site, it is surely perverse not to make good use of it to help alleviate water-shortages; enter rainwater harvesting! Rainwater harvesting in its simplest form can be a stand-alone system for a single building that reduces the demand for mains-water. It does so by substituting the harvested rainwater for non-potable applications such as toilet-flushing, clothes-washing machines, or for outside uses. In the home this accounts for around 50% of the water being used, rising to well in excess of 80% in public buildings due to their different pattern of water usage. Looked at in this way, they provide an excellent and very costeffective solution to the reduced water consumption requirements of Water Regulations, the Code for Sustainable Homes, and BREEAM assessments; used in a coherent way as part of an integrated solution to both water supply and surface water management issues they become, in the vernacular, a “no-brainer”! An integrated approach … Taking an integrated approach, on a housing development for example, rainwater harvesting can be used cost-effectively at two of the three SUDS levels, starting by the using a traditional dedicated installation for each suitable individual property; this will ensure that these properties meet the necessary water consumption requirements, whilst also providing inexpensive local Source Control. Where possible, developers will usually look to meet all their SUDS obligations at the level of individual properties as under these circumstances the system does not need to be adopted. A properly designed rainwater harvesting system might accomplish this, but on those site/development specific occasions it cannot do so, then rainwater harvesting can also be integrated into the Site Control element of the system. Many modern developments incorporate higher density properties where roof sizes cannot supply all of the non-potable water requirements of the residents. Under these circumstances, communal rainwater harvesting systems, whose supply is supplemented by the overflows of the individual property systems, can satisfy both water consumption and SUDS Site Control needs. This approach will help to minimise the cost of the Regional Control element of the SUDS, in the process helping to ensure that all three elements are fully maintainable and thus able to be adopted.
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PLENTY MORE FISH IN THE SEA? Tragically, the old adage used by countless mothers on broken-hearted daughters is no longer true. Fish stocks globally are in rapid decline, and whilst we know about it and governments recognise it, we seem singularly unable to do anything about what is nothing less than patent lunacy.
We’re in very real danger of consigning entire species of fish to the history books. We’re catching sharks at approximately four times the rate at which they breed, and fishermen are now hauling in infant fish with fins only an inch or so across – fish that were thrown back alive only a few years ago.
So when is an endangered species not an endangered species? The answer seems to be: when it’s a fish. The Japanese, for example, have a voracious appetite for Bluefin Tuna, and the fact that it is predicted to be functionally extinct within three years seems only to increase their efforts to catch yet more. A single large fish sold for £250,000 (that’s right - a quarter of a million sterling) in a central Tokyo market in early January. The country that finds it necessary to slaughter 1,000 whales each year for ‘scientific purposes’ is pursuing the magnificent Bluefin to extinction. It is estimated that there are less than 10,000 Bluefin Tuna left in the Atlantic, and the effects of the BP oil spill right in their spawning ground in the Gulf has yet to be assessed.
Whilst it’s easy to point the finger at Japan and China, it has to be said that their brand of lunacy is eclipsed only by ours. We British – always amongst the first to start bleating about wildlife and the environment – regularly commit an even greater crime. We go out to sea in modern, industrial fishing vessels armed with the very latest fish-finding and catching gear technology has to offer, and through calm and storm, high seas and doldrum, we catch fish by the tonne. Having done that, we then throw a large proportion back into the sea. Half of all fish caught in the North Sea is thrown back dead or dying. That’s around a million tonnes a year.
There were concerted moves to restrict fishing for Bluefin at last year’s UN Conference on wildlife trade. The Japanese responded by mounting a massive campaign and sending missions to developing countries - effectively ‘bullying’ them into supporting their ludicrous position that “a fish cannot be classified as an endangered species”. Vote against, and Japanese aid and trade will dry up faster than sushi in the sunshine. All moves to protect what remains of the Bluefin Tuna were successfully rebuffed and the galactically stupid position was adopted. This means that according to the UN, a fish cannot be classified as endangered. I’m sitting here typing the words, still unable to comprehend the utter and abject madness they represent. Japan’s ‘success’ spells trouble for all fish of course. Sharks are another species in fast decline due to the Chinese appetite for soup made from its fins, and they too can no longer be classified as endangered. Over 70 million slow-breeding sharks are taken each year, and moves to ban shark fishing in certain areas were thoroughly quashed. Indeed, the Japanese campaign resulted in a vote against even monitoring the trade. And so the decline in the global population of sharks doesn’t just continue, but accelerates unseen.
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We do it because of the Common Fisheries Policy – European Law. In other words, we, as a sovereign nation, force our fishermen to commit crimes against the environment because of an over-ruling law. It’s the Nuremberg Defence – something that was rejected outright by the Tribunal Judges in 1946, and something we should reject once more as an act of environmental protection and plain common sense, in advance of the re-drafting of this diabolical policy. For my money, we have a clear moral duty to do so, just as the UN General Assembly stated when it demanded individual responsibility despite the laws of a given nation. In purely practical terms, we as individuals can take a simple step and show our support for a change to this policy. Please go to www.fishfight.net and add your name to an open letter to be sent to the Common Fisheries Policy Reform Group and all MEPs. Over 600,000 people have already done so, and so you’ll be in good company. It takes but a minute or two, although I hope you’ll stay and read some of the useful information on the site. Remember that nobody – but nobody - can afford to ignore a million or more people from one nation. steve@stephenmgrant.com
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In the 2010 Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) the government made a number of key announcements that will have a big impact on the future of the UK’s low carbon economy. One initiative in particular that will be significantly affected is the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC). David Mole is Deputy Managing Director of Landmark UK Property, a company that at the start of 2010 launched a new online service to help businesses get to grips with the scheme. Here, David explores what the future might hold for the CRC and what advice he would give to participating businesses. It was clear in the CSR last year that the government has ambitious plans for dealing with climate change and set out a number of new initiatives for achieving its objectives. However, some observers felt that the CSR may not have gone far enough in dealing with the UK’s environmental responsibilities. One of the most controversial announcements made in the CSR was that the government would be keeping revenues raised from the CRC scheme, instead of recycling the money back to the organisations taking part, with no guarantee they will be spent on environmental initiatives. This was followed by Chris Huhne’s announcement that the scheme as a whole will be delayed, with the first sale of permits to cover energy use now taking place in 2012 as opposed to next year. Widespread reaction to the scheme was that it was too complex and as such the Government has pledged to make the process simpler, and launched a consultation to address this. The findings, which are still yet to be announced at time of print, should hopefully address the uncertainty amongst participants and offer some clarity for the future. One thing that is for certain is the need for authorities and organisations to focus more than ever on recording and delivering the necessary data as efficiently as possible, particularly in the public sector where widespread job cuts are likely to leave staff and resources stretched. The introductory phase provides the perfect opportunity for authorities and organisations to gain experience on reporting and complying with CRC, before the purchase of allowances from April 2012. CRC compliance and auditing tools In January 2010, Landmark launched its online data management software tool, Carbon Counter (www. carboncounter.co.uk), and has been working closely with a wide range of organisations to help them understand and manage their obligations under the scheme. Using Carbon Counter organisations can save time and ensure that their data is fully compliant with the legislation, |34| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
The Future Of The Carbon Reduction Commitment By David Mole, Deputy MD, Landmark UK Property and has been designed to ensure that participating organisations provide the right information in a format appropriate for the Evidence Pack required by the Environment Agency. Almost half of these currently signed up to Landmark’s Carbon Counter are made up from public sector organisations, such as district councils, county councils, police authorities and NHS trusts. Organisations such as city and district councils are often responsible for administering electricity, gas, oil and biomass on multiple sites so maintaining a clear evidence pack and audit trail is vital. Perth and Kinross Council wanted to avoid the financial risks and penalties involved with non-compliance and needed to deliver more than just their existing monitoring and targeting (M&T) software. Gordon Dick, Energy Officer at Perth and Kinross Council, said: “We needed to deliver data, registration and compliance for CRC so finding the right solution was critical. By considering an application that was designed specifically for CRC we decided that Carbon Counter could complement our existing M&T software. Filtering out relevant information means we can create evidence folders and reports.” The fact remains that CRC is a legal obligation for eligible organisations so it is important that participants continue to record and deliver the necessary data as efficiently as possible. It should also be remembered that CRC could still yield financial rewards. Performance in the CRC league tables will impact on reputation and in the long term this can have a positive impact on the bottom line. What’s more, identifying areas of high carbon use can help to identify potential areas where cost-savings can be made. Despite the changes to the scheme there are still clear benefits available to those organisations sharp enough to maximise the opportunities ahead. To find out more about Landmark’s Carbon Counter service, visit www.carboncounter.co.uk
Carbon Reduction and Management By Sarah Royse, RES Group The UK’s binding commitment to reducing its CO2 emissions by 80% by 2050 has taken energy efficiency, carbon management and renewable energy from being an emotive subject to a real business issue that, if not addressed successfully, can adversely affect an organisation’s competitive advantage. While energy and carbon legislation has become more stringent, it has been coupled with attractive financial incentives for investing in both energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies. Discerning businesses at the vanguard of our recovering economy are now able to gain a significant advantage over their competitors by being proactive in exploiting the economic and carbon benefits that include: • Increased financial benefits through the early adoption of government backed incentives to invest in renewable technologies • Significantly reducing their energy bills through investment in energy efficiency initiatives • Hedging against future fuel prices rises with a secure and reliable on-site energy supply • Exploiting the marketing benefits of being a low carbon business Increasing Electricity Prices Without doubt businesses need to consider the impact that rising electricity prices will have on their bottom line. Recent figures released by DECC as part of its consultation on the electricity market reform show that electricity prices will increase by about 50% over the next 10 years, which will have a dramatic impact on energy costs. Businesses that fall under the Carbon Reduction Commitment Energy Efficiency Scheme (CRC |36| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
EES) also have to consider the impact of the current (and future) levy on their carbon emissions. Developing a Strategy to Reduce Energy Consumption & Carbon Emissions All businesses, irrespective of size, need to act now to gain maximum advantage over the medium to long term. By developing an effective strategy that reduces your energy costs and carbon emissions and exploits the other less tangible benefits that result, you will make your business leaner, more competitive and help boost your reputation amongst your customers, staff and the wider market. As a rough guide, you should be aiming to reduce your energy costs by between 15 – 25% from quick wins with some investment. You then need to develop a strategy to exploit renewable technologies so that you can benefit from the relatively high returns from the incentives that the Government is currently operating and rolling out. From a financing perspective you should also consider the tax benefits of exploiting the Enhanced Capital Allowance (ECA) scheme for energy saving technologies. Most importantly, make sure your energy efficiency strategy has a demonstrable business benefit so that you can readily exploit energy efficiency as a fundamental part of your corporate strategy. The Carbon Reduction Commitment Energy Efficiency Scheme (CRC EES) The CRC EES is a mandatory UK-wide scheme which organisations across both the public and private sectors are subject to if they have an energy consumption of 6000 MWh per annum or more. The scheme is designed to incentivise large organisations to take up cost-effective energy efficiency opportunities through reputational and financial drivers. The scheme has had a significant impact on the importance that businesses now attribute to saving energy and reducing their carbon footprints. It is estimated that the levies incurred will add around 10% to annual electricity spend. This is in addition to the
predicted electricity price increase. As a consequence, energy efficiency is something that should be on your Board’s agenda as it is now a business issue that needs to be dealt with. There is still clarification required to determine whether the allowance payments will be accounted for above or below the bottom line. We expect that the levy will be accounted for with electricity costs and therefore sit above the line. As a consequence this will have an impact on share prices due to the direct impact the levy will have on net profit. Future Proof Your Bottom Line There are some straightforward actions you can implement easily and quickly; • Identify opportunities to reduce your carbon footprint and prioritise by the most relevant constraints facing your organisation. • Understand whether your energy costs are directly related to your customers’ activities and ensure you have a mechanism in place to pass these on if you can. • Review your supply chain to ensure that any related carbon impact to your business is as low as possible. • Implement appropriate energy and carbon management business processes and procedures to provide you with long-term cost reductions and performance improvement. • Move quickly towards a strategy that will maximise your income-generating opportunities under the Feed-in Tariff and Renewable Heat Incentive to reduce direct energy costs. • Implement a communications programme so all staff are engaged Where Do Renewable Energy Technologies Fit In? Renewable energy is now a realistic option both in terms of investment and electricity generation because of the financial incentives now available. This means that from a financial perspective you could; 1. Gain a return of up to 10% on your investment 2. Generate revenue for the next 15-25 years 3. Reduce your dependence on a particular fuel source by diversifying your energy supply using renewable energy
launched in June. We think that the RHI will provide a greater return on investment. However, the benefit will be for those businesses with buildings with significant heat load. It is therefore critical for organisations to plan now for the opportunities to integrate renewable heat technologies into their buildings so that they are in a position to take full advantage of the RHI in June. Making the Best Out of Financial Incentives To ensure a high return from the FiT and the RHI we advise businesses to: 1. Undertake an outline assessment of your real estate portfolio for the suitability of renewable energy technologies. This includes a review of the physical constraints to renewable energy technologies to determine both high potential and low risk sites. Estimated financial payback and internal rate of return (IRR) can also be determined. 2. Undertake a detailed assessment of the shortlisted sites and applicable technologies. 3. Identify potential financing options. 4. Develop the technical specification and install the renewable energy technology. 5. Commission the installation. 6. Register the installation. Finally, make sure you do your research and get the best advice available to you and partner with suppliers who have a track record in supporting businesses to get the best out of energy and renewables. Inbuilt is a market leader in delivering carbon reduction, renewable energy and efficiency solutions for public and commercial organisations. We provide all the expertise you will require to make strategic carbon-related decisions that bring a long-term positive impact on your business. Inbuilt is part of the RES Group, who has been at the forefront of the renewable energy industry for over 25 years and has to date built more than 5,000MW of successful renewable energy projects worldwide. Further information on Inbuilt can be found at www. inbuilt.co.uk
In April last year the government launched the Feed in Tariff (FiT) as a financial incentive to encourage the uptake of electricity generating renewable energy technologies. Eligible technologies include photovoltaic panels (PVs), wind turbines and hydro. Tariff rates vary between technologies and the size of the installation, and are likely to be payable for anything up to 25 years. In 2011 the government will launch the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) which is a similar scheme to the FiT but focused on heat generation rather than electricity. We are expecting the formal tariffs to be announced in the coming months and the scheme to be formally ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |37|
Cutting Carbon How Technology Can Help By Annie Westaway, Environmental Accounting Manager, Sustain The Government has set out its stall. It wants to be the ‘greenest Government ever’, according to the Prime Minister, and this is going to mean more targets for cutting carbon. Annie Westaway from carbon reduction company Sustain, looks at how technology can help achieve this, but only if it works hand in hand with changing people’s attitude towards energy consumption.
when it’s not being used and implement efficient consumption practices that have no adverse effect on comfort. Energy efficiency improvements are a more expensive alternative. They have a capital cost attached and are the result of a deliberate choice, such as investing in new technologies that improve a building’s performance. The third option involves providing a service in a more energy efficient way, such as conducting business meetings via teleconference. This requires some investment and also may have an impact on individuals. The final method involves some reduction in comfort or convenience and could include changing the operations of a building, such as turning the heating down, or using less convenient forms of transport.
With around half of the UK’s carbon emissions coming from buildings, it’s clear that tackling energy consumption in housing and commercial properties must be a priority for the Government. Engaging with people in a way that makes them want to reduce their energy use is a crucial part of the solution. But people resist change, particularly if it is perceived as detrimental to their lifestyles, so the answer is not easy. First of all, it’s important to understand that energy savings can be made in four main ways, all of which require different levels of investment and have varying impacts on individuals. The measures which have the least impact will usually be the least controversial. Eliminating waste is a relatively easy and low cost change to make. This encourages people to switch off equipment |38| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
In our experience, whatever the preferred option, sharing information on energy consumption can be hugely effective and empowering. Once people see the hard facts and figures showing energy used and wasted, they are much more likely to engage with efficiency incentives. This is where detailed automatic monitoring comes into play. Internet based monitoring systems provide comprehensive information to help better manage buildings and ensure they are performing efficiently. They can do this by identifying and recording energy used in every aspect of a building’s daily function, such as heating, air conditioning, lighting and IT systems. Detailed information gathered from unobtrusive sensors throughout the building are connected to an operations centre via a wired or wireless internet connection. They monitor utility use on a continuous and real-time basis.
Importantly, they do so at a high level of granularity – every six seconds if required – which produces more detailed information than relying on standard half hourly meter readings. Analysing the information to identify trends is just as important as gathering it. At Sustain, our building optimisation team does just that to evaluate building performance and develop the best approach to tackling improvement of systems and communication with occupants. This strategic analysis allows the right decisions to be made. Ongoing analysis of this data is important if an organisation is to establish the behaviour patterns of occupants and choose the most appropriate equipment upgrades, while assessing whether incentives designed to change behaviour are working. Changing behaviour of people in offices presents a particular challenge – they do not pay the bills and it’s difficult for them to make a connection between their actions and the amount of energy they are using. This is often because they are only made aware of their energy use infrequently, if at all, and after a period of time. So what practical measures can be taken to address this? A drive from the top down coupled with gathering momentum from bottom up gives the best chance of success. This relies on board members making energy saving a priority while putting the incentives in place to help occupiers become enthused and motivated about energy saving. Creating an energy steering group is a good way of keeping carbon reduction top of mind. It ensures there is a focused group of interested individuals who have responsibility for making things happen rather than allowing the issue to drop off the agenda. This can be combined with workshops to educate employees and give them the practical know-how about making positive changes to their energy use.
have managed to sustain the change over a period of time or saved the most carbon can also inject an element of healthy competition. Frequent information sharing sessions, which use feedback and analysis from the energy monitoring systems, are also important so that employees can see the fruits of their efforts on a regular basis. Creating energy awareness in any organisation can be a slow process, but those who commit to both technology upgrades and a behaviour change strategy will have the greatest chance of success. Ideally, these elements should be co-ordinated so that further efficiencies can be made. For example, physical upgrades, such as automated controls of equipment, may not be needed if employees can be incentivised to make those savings through manual controls instead. Communication across the company, at all levels, is absolutely imperative. It’s only through actively engaging people on this issue that positive changes can be made. Involving stakeholders in the creation of carbon reduction solutions inspires a greater sense of ownership and allows solutions to be tested across a number of groups to ensure they are suitable. Effective behaviour change requires a powerful threepronged approach – gathering accurate real-time energy data, which informs technology upgrades that work, alongside a robust and integrated behaviour change strategy. The three elements need to combine to form a holistic energy saving programme that draws on calculation, communication and collaboration. This will result in a smoother journey towards carbon reduction, setting organisations on a path that will see energy saving become standard practice.
Asking employees to make a personal commitment to energy saving in both the workplace and at home can also be effective. This can be accompanied by a league table so that ideas are shared. Rewarding those who ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |39|
SETTING STANDARDS FOR CARBON REDUCTION By Rob Hine, BSI
performance league table, thereby providing a strong financial incentive to achieve a good league table position. As part of the government’s spending review in October 2010, however, it was announced that these repayments would not now be made; instead the government will retain the money it raises to be put towards reducing the UK’s public finances.
There can be no doubt that it is in the interest of all commercial and public organisations to reduce their carbon emissions, but the largest users of energy have a particular incentive in the form of the Carbon Reduction Commitment Energy Efficiency Scheme While this has indisputably made the CRC scheme (CRC). Official estimates are that this scheme, less appealing to many organisations, it’s important which came into force in April 2010, will affect to note that the scheme hasn’t gone away and there around 20,000 UK organisations, of which are still very good reasons for wanting to achieve good 5,000 will be required by law to participate performance in line with its objectives. fully. This means that they will have to monitor Not the least of these is that reducing carbon emissions their emissions and buy “allowances” means using less energy, which in turn means lower energy from the government for each tonne bills and fewer allowances to buy. Many organisations will also of CO2 they emit. The organisations want to achieve a good rating in the league table to demonstrate will also be featured in an officially to their peers and their customers the success of their efforts to published league table, where protect the environment. their position will depend on how well they have performed in reducing their emissions. It was originally intended that the money collected by the sale of allowances to participating organisations would be “ re-cycled” back to participants, based on their position on the
Unsurprisingly, this means that energy management is still in the spotlight. Indeed, in a survey recently carried out by BSI (British Standards Institution), 78% of respondents said that energy management was either important or very important to their organisations, and also indicated that they expected it to increase in importance in the future. But how can effective energy management be achieved, and how can its results be unequivocally confirmed? There are, of course, many approaches to managing energy, some of which are more effective than others. One of the best, however, is to implement a system based on the new BS EN 16001 standard, which builds upon existing standards and initiatives and represents the latest best practice in energy management. Similar in format to the ISO 14001 standard for environmental management that covers the full range of environmental impacts, BS EN 16001 specifies the requirements for an energy management system that will enable an organisation to develop an energy management policy, identify its most significant areas of energy consumption and target energy reductions, implement controls and check the effectiveness of processes and procedures through monitoring. It also makes provision for management reviews as an aid to ensuring continual improvement. In short, BS EN 16001 provides an excellent framework for measures to help organisations identify, manage and reduce energy usage and really embed energy
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management into the culture of the organisation. What it doesn’t do, however, is to provide assurance of actual or even relative reductions in energy use, and such assurance is required to meet the Early Action Metric (EAM) of the CRC. In the first year of the CRC, the EAM is the only factor that will be considered in deciding the position of an organisation in the league table. The EAM has two components: 50% is based on the voluntary introduction of additional energy meters that can be read remotely, and the remaining 50% is based on adoption of an approved early action scheme, such as the new BSI Kitemark Scheme for Energy Reduction Verification. This scheme goes further than simply verifying the actual energy usage of an organisation, by building on its good energy management practices and independently verifying the output of those practices. In other words, the scheme confirms the actual reduction in carbon emissions along with quality and suitability of the management and measurement behind the figures.
It is worth mentioning that, for most businesses, the most useful of these schemes are those that concentrate on the greenhouse gas emissions that result directly from energy usage, as required by the CRC, rather than clouding the issue by, for example, including emissions from transport. There is no doubt that implementing an approved early action scheme delivers benefits that go far beyond meeting the EAM requirements of the CRC. It also makes organisations look closely at every aspect of their energy usage, and provides them with the tools needed to make and maintain improvements. The results can be – and frequently are – little short of astonishing. BSI has found that organisations can reduce energy costs by as much as 30%, a figure that is sure to have a big impact on profitability in commercial organisations and on meeting budgetary targets in the public sector. And, of course, hand in hand with these savings go corresponding reductions in carbon emissions. No one can doubt that the pressure to reduce energy usage will continue and even intensify, especially as the UK government has committed itself to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by at least 80%, compared with the 1990 baseline, before
2050. That’s a tough target, and the CRC is one of the measures that have been put in place to help ensure that it is achieved. The key to meeting the requirements of the CRC is, as we have seen, the implementation of an effective system of energy management, ideally using BS EN 16001 to provide the framework. And the key to proving that the requirements have been met is to sign up for a scheme that offers independent verification. While it is, of course, easy to see all of this as an unwelcome imposition, it makes good sense to take a broader view. Yes, the government, with its CRC scheme and other measures, is forcing the pace in energy reduction, but the result is benefits for all of us. Businesses and public sector organisations benefit from reduced energy bills, and the planet benefits from the reductions in harmful emissions. In short, don’t regard the CRC and similar measures as problems; recognise them for what they really are – opportunities!
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ENERGY Page 42 - 46 - Renewable Heat Incentive - Leonie Greene, Head of External Affairs, REA Page 48 - 50 - Trimming The Waste: Boosting Efficiency - Juliet Heller, ENWORKS
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Renewable Heat: The Battle to Wake A Sleeping Giant Leonie Greene, Head of External Affairs, REA. Determined campaigning means the UK is now on the brink of introducing a comprehensive framework to support rapid growth in renewable heat technologies. The REA’s Head of External Affairs Leonie Greene reflects on REA’s three year campaign in partnership with Friends of the Earth- and with a large supporting cast. 3 years ago the REA and Friends of the Earth first thrashed out an agreement on a Renewable Energy Tariff campaign. The aim was simple and urgent – to deliver policy mechanisms for renewables in areas where the UK was clearly failing and where Government was not showing sufficient political vision for how society could engage with renewables. That meant fighting for a simple user-friendly ‘Feed-In Tariff’ for renewable power technologies that everyday people, businesses and communities could invest in. Compared to the continent technologies like solar, community wind and micro-hydro were barely visible in the UK. This had to be addressed. And it also meant much needed action on renewable heat, which is the biggest use of energy in the UK and responsible for almost half of UK emissions. The draft legislation drawn up by Friends of the Earth and REA for the campaign proposed something similar to a Minster Greg Barker meeting Hoval at the Bioenergy Conference and Expo
‘Feed-In Tariff’ for heat for two reasons; firstly the long-term stable framework offered by FITs had clearly been very successful at growing the mass-market renewables industry internationally. Secondly, given heat is generated locally, the scheme also needed to be user-friendly and attractive to a very diverse array of potential investors. REA also included a ‘green gas’ Tariff – where biomethane produced from the digestion of organic wastes like animal slurry is injected into the gas grid. Green gas was taking off internationally while the UK seemed barely to have heard of it. A coalition of over 30 organisations rallied around our Renewable Energy Tariff campaign. Awareness that renewable heat had been overlooked for far too long was a primary driver and attracted support from organisations as diverse as the National Farmers Union, Home Builders Federation, Greenpeace and RIBA as well as social housing providers and fuel poverty groups. There was tremendous cross-party support in Parliament with LibDems and Conservatives arguing strongly for the Renewable Energy Tariff amendment. Pop star Lily Allen emailed all MPs asking them to support the amendment, prompting then Energy Minster Malcolm Wicks to sit up and take note. Government finally realised the determination of Parliament to press for Renewable Energy Tariffs for local power, heat and green gas when Labour MP Alan Simpson organised the biggest backbench of Gordon Brown’s premiereship to date. Suddenly success looked likely, particularly given equally strong support in the Lords where negotiations around the amendment began with government. REA and Friends of the Earth held an event in the Lords with eco-enthusiast Dick Stawbridge and featuring a model village powered by local renewable technologies, which politicians lined up to be photographed with. The establishment of DECC and the arrival of Ed Miliband as Secretary of State resulted in a much more positive position from Government. By the time the Energy Bill became the 2008 Energy Act the Renewable Energy Tariffs clearly had the support of all parties. Having secured the legislation, in 2009 the REA worked with over 70 organisations to develop a ‘blueprint’ for how the Renewable Energy Tariffs could work for power, heat and green gas. The ‘blueprint’ was presented to then Energy Minister Mike O’Brien. The Government’s own proposals began with the ‘Feed-In Tariffs’ for renewable power technologies, largely reflecting the REA’s blueprint. When the government proposals were published there was strong criticism from both the LibDem and Conservative frontbench spokespeople that the proposals were not ambitious enough, anticipating just 1.6% of UK power to be supplied by sub 5MW renewable power technologies.
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Chris Huhne at our RET lobby in the Lords in 2008 trying to get the legislation in the Energy Bill.
Initial proposals on renewable heat were not published until early 2010, on account of the RHI being a much larger mechanism designed to deliver 10% of the UK’s heat from renewables by 2020 – a ten-fold rise in current deployment levels. The infancy of the UK’s renewable heat industry and the novelty of applying such a structured approach to this sector also made for a slower time-table. But again enough of the REA’s proposals were reflected to secure industry confidence and the sector and investors began to buzz in anticipation. The potential for renewable heat generation in the UK is vast so it is bizarre that this sleeping giant has been overlooked for so long. The arrival of a new Coalition Government and the unexpected Comprehensive Spending Review process derailed much of the momentum that had begun to build in the industry. Suddenly it looked uncertain. Many of the organisations that helped us win the legislation for the RHI regrouped – reflecting the huge importance placed on renewable heat. To my own delight Alan Simpson, who did so much when an MP to foster cross-party support for the enabling legislation, had joined Friends of the Earth and quickly took a front seat role in the campaign.
announcement for the RHI in October which carried the additional benefit of being paid for out of general taxation, avoiding protestations from both heavy industry and fuel poverty critics. Credit was due in particular to Energy Minister Gregory Barker who has a good understanding of decentralised energy technologies and recognised the economic opportunity the scheme presented, as well as its necessity for meeting binding renewable energy targets.
While all this final leg of campaigning took place REA policy staff beavered away behind the scenes with civil servants at Decc and consultants, honing cost and technology data and policy detail. This built on the REA’s response to the consultation, which had input from a great many REA members across the full range of technologies. The RHI is likely to provide payments over 10 to 23 years, depending on the technology. The scheme aims to provide a good rate of return on the additional cost of going renewable, as opposed to fossil. These rates need to be relatively generous as the technology is unfamiliar to most. Particularly in domestic instances heat technologies are usually a distress purchase. If you and your family are cold the wait for something greener than a gas boiler had better be worth it. If we are to meet the renewable heat target, then half of replacement boilers in 2020 in some sectors will need to be renewable. And early growth must be vigorous. Detailed research by NERA for DECC shows that the better the start the cheaper the scheme will be overall.
The final campaign push saw 160,000 postcards distributed to the public to send to their MP last summer. A cross-party EDM went down sponsored by Zac Goldsmith, Caroline Lucas, Alan Whitehead and Martin Horwood. 38 Degrees began an online petition to Danny Alexander. And collectively we rebutted negative newspaper stories and wrote to the Prime Minister and key departments setting out the clear case for renewable heat. The campaign culminated in a 21ft hot air balloon outside the Commons reminding MPs that fossil heating was responsible for ‘half the CO2 problem’.
The UK industry starts from a very low base. And for bioenergy technologies there must be additional development in supply chains, not just technologies. That means transforming the UK’s forestry industry, which is largely cottage. Key conservation groups supported the RHI to secure a revenue stream for the refreshed management of the UK’s desperately neglected forests. It also means diverting some of the 100 million tonnes of organic wastes from landfill and from muck-spreading on farms. One of the technologies under the RHI is biomethane injection, which converts environmentally problematic waste into renewable gas, which can be injected into the national grid.
So there was delight at the £860m budget allocation
For smaller installations the RHI is likely to be ‘deemed’
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– that is a proxy will be made based on reasonable heating need. Decc came up with the elegant proposal that deeming could be based on given energy efficiency assumptions. In this way, those homes that bother with energy efficiency will be rewarded, while those who don’t will miss out. The industry is all for energy efficiency but it is difficult to see how this could be imposed via the RHI without huge, costly bureaucracy. Being snarled up in bureaucracy while families freeze is never going to be a successful business model. For the 2 milllion homes off the gas-grid the RHI is particularly interesting. Fuel poverty is highly concentrated in off-grid rural areas and the RHI will greatly broaden the heating options for these homes, and reduce exposure to volatile fossil fuel prices. However, it will be essential to ensure these homes have assistance overcoming upfront capital costs. Final proposals are due any time now. We are not out of the woods yet, with deep concern about the delays on policy implementation and the damaging effect delay has on particularly the smaller players in the renewable heat sector. The industry urgently needs the RHI to begin in June 2011, its introduction already delayed. And REA continues to lobby for the inclusion of key missing technologies including sustainable liquid biofuels and deep geothermal. When detailed proposals are published we will be looking closely to ensure that the proposed Tariff rates are set Hilary Ben, Caroline Lucas, Andy Atkins (Director FoE), Gaynor Hartnell (Director REA), Zac Goldsmith, me and others campaigning last summer.
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at commercially viable levels. We know from experience with the Feed-In Tariffs, if the rates aren’t strong enough nothing happens – that’s not a situation we can afford on renewable heat given the huge growth rates needed. We also need to resolve bizarre contradictions with other policy areas like the treatment of renewables under the Carbon Reduction Commitment which could derail investment by the commercial sector. Of course we hope the Coalition Government will take a much more proactive approach to advancing renewable energy going forward. While this campaign was ultimately successful, it was not a campaign that should have had to have been fought, so obvious was the need for strong policy support in the UK for local renewable heat and power technologies. While heat now has an ambitious policy approach which we applaud, the very low ambitions on local renewable power which the Conservatives and LibDems criticised in opposition remain, and indeed were subject to a 10% budget cut under the CSR. Unfortunately therefore, it seems it won’t be long before we will need to regroup and campaign again. The technologies expected to be supported by the RHI are; Ground Source Heat Pumps; Air Source Heat Pumps; Solar Thermal; Biomass Boilers (domestic to large-scale with a wide range of fuels); Green Gas and Energy-fromWaste CHP. REA is lobbying for the inclusion of Deep Geothermal.
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Trimming the waste: boosting efficiency makes good business sense Juliet Heller, ENWORKS
A recent Carbon Trust survey of finance directors found that big businesses waste at least £1.6 billion a year on energy that could easily be saved through measures such as upgrading heating and lighting, and training staff in energy efficiency. The research also found that energy efficiency projects deliver an average return on investment of 48 per cent. In the current economic climate, more and more businesses should be taking advantage of the easy savings to be made by using resources such as energy more efficiently. But are enough companies taking action? The evidence shows that by making simple improvements in business practice - many costing very little or even nothing at all - companies can help to ensure that they have a future. In other words, the efficient use of resources can make the difference between losing and saving a business. |50| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Business resource efficiency will also improve the UK’s ability to achieve its emission reduction targets and help to address the problem of global resource depletion. Engaging the business sector in efficiency practices is vital. Over one third of energy use in the UK is in the commercial and industrial sector. Each year around £6 billion is spent on energy, but £1 billion of this is wasted by small firms through inefficiencies. ENWORKS is a flagship business support partnership helping companies across the North West to make cost savings by reducing their use of energy, water and materials and by producing less waste. The partnership’s resource efficiency support is helping to save over 669,000 tonnes of CO2 a year, leading to total savings of over £120 million a year.
As Samantha Nicholson, Operations Manager at ENWORKS argues, “Not only is there a powerful environmental argument for using resources more efficiently, there is also a strong commercial argument. Being more efficient in your resource consumption means reduced energy bills, lower waste costs, and reduced production costs. Over half of the cost savings ENWORKS has helped to achieve have required no capital cost so you shouldn’t think of resource efficiency as just saving the planet – it is also about making very real savings for your business.” To facilitate the process, ENWORKS uses its innovative Online Resource Efficiency Toolkit, (see image over page) web-based software that enables a business to record and manage its opportunities to make savings. Since its launch in 2004, the Toolkit has supported over 8,700
businesses of all sizes in the North West and further afield, including most recently across Wales.
consumption by installing a continuous brewing system. Overall, it is saving £14,000 and 48 tonnes of CO2 a year.
Nicholson explains the benefits: “The Toolkit removes lots of the barriers that businesses experience on the sustainability journey. This isn’t a report or manual that sits on a shelf gathering dust; it’s an easy-to-use electronic tool that allows busy staff to manage large amounts of detailed data across several projects, and it’s continually updated to align with the latest national research on CO2 calculations.
Camfil Farr, Lancashire The company designs and manufactures air filtration and clean air systems for commercial and industrial use. An ENWORKS advisor recommended that they replaced inefficient lighting, optimised their heating systems, identified and repaired leaks in the compressed air systems and reduced the fuel consumption of their delivery van fleet. Overall the company is saving over £271,000 and 942 tonnes of CO2 a year.
“It also helps managers who meet resistance to adopting Crown Paints, Lancashire Crown Paints is the largest independent paint manufacturer in the UK, with over 1500 staff. An ENWORKS advisor helped it to reduce its water consumption by installing new water meters and implementing strict water usage guidelines. The company reduced waste paint and solvent use by recycling and made its production line practices more efficient, as well as improving compressed air efficiency. It is now saving £600,000 and 295 tonnes of CO2 a year.
environmental measures to build a strong internal business case. The data provides them with the pros and cons of specific measures, both in a financial and environmental sense.” How the ENWORKS Programme works The process typically starts with an ENWORKS advisor visiting a business to provide a free initial consultation. If the business decides to go ahead the advisor carries out a detailed review to identify and quantify resource saving options. Potential opportunities for making improvements are logged on the Toolkit, which is used to calculate the cost savings, payback periods and environmental benefits. To help keep track of progress, each opportunity has a status, beginning with ‘initial scope’ and moving through ‘investigation’, ‘feasible/not feasible’ and ‘implementation’ to ‘achieved’. ENWORKS then continues to provide support, both on-site and off-site, that is tailored to the company’s need, for as long as it is needed.
Case studies: Whitehaven Brewery, Cumbria This small brewery produces beer from traditional recipes, without chemical treatment. An ENWORKS advisor helped to reduce costs by installing an insulated temperature control room and a heat exchanger chilling unit to keep the beer at a constant temperature. The company reduced its water use from 25 litres to 5 litres by installing a new cask washer, and reduced its gas |52| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Nicholson added: “We hope more and more businesses will recognise the value and economic sense of increasing their resource efficiency. We work with an extremely diverse range of businesses including manufacturers, retailers and the leisure industry and our data demonstrates clearly that resource efficiency helps them to make huge savings.” Sharing best practice ENWORKS is keen to share best practice across its partnership and the Toolkit is an invaluable aid in this. Recent analysis of savings data showed particularly high electricity savings were being achieved in one area. An investigation identified that surveys to detect leaks in compressed air systems were generating substantial cost and environmental savings for businesses, through low-cost repairs. This finding was shared with other advisors in order that the good practice could be applied elsewhere. ENWORKS is keen to share its knowledge and experience and launched its ‘ENWORKS in a Box’ website last year to allow others delivering environmental support to businesses to access its information, practical tools and guidance. ENWORKS is supported by the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). Its work has won many accolades, including the internationally renowned Ashden Award for Sustainable Energy in 2007.
Green Building Page 56 - 61 - The Green Deal - Jonathon Porritt, Forum for the Future Page 62 - 63 - New Homes - Jackie Sadek, Chair, UKregeneration Page 64 - 67 - Realising Green Roofs SUDS Potential - Simon Poë, Alumasc Page 68 - 82 - ECOBUILD 2011 Preview
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Of all the rotten jobs in the world today, you’d have to put Energy Secretary of the United States of America quite close to the top of any list. The current incumbent is Steve Chu, an eminent scientist, winner of the Nobel Prize for Physics, and a wonderfully reasonable and humane man. But faced with an implacably hostile Republican majority in the House of Representatives, ignored by the majority of gas-guzzling US citizens, hemmed in by the still redoubtable coal and oil lobbies, and reviled by the rest of the world for blocking (all over again) any serious progress on international Climate Negotiations, he must yearn for the relatively untroubled groves of academe. So the speech he gave in the runup to the Cancun Climate Change © Forum of the Furture Conference in December last year struck a particular note with me. Shifting the focus away from climate change as such and on to the whole question of economic competitiveness (in which even the somewhat deranged Tea Party has an interest!), he made a fascinating comparison with what he called the ‘Sputnik Moment’ back in the 1960s – when the Russians beat the United States to be the first nation in space – and the threat to the US economy today from the burgeoning growth of ‘cleantech’ industries in China. Outraged by
THE GREEN DEAL By Jonathon Porritt, Founder, Forum for the Future
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Russia’s lèse-majesté at that time, the US went all out to win ‘the space race’. Fifty years on, will we see a similar response to the cleantech threat from China? I am sure there will be some of you thinking that I’ve lost my marbles in offering up China as the benchmark for cleantech ambition. After all, they are still building dozens of vast new coal-fired power stations, and have one of the most degraded environments in the world. But they are also investing around $40billion a year in cleantech businesses (renewable energy, storage technologies, water and waste, smart grids and so on), and already lead the world in five different types of renewable energy. Their new Five Year Plan (out in April) tells us two things we should be very clear about: they know that accelerating climate change is going to have a devastating impact on their people, and they know that the future will be an ultra-low-carbon, hyper-efficient future – which is why they are going all out now to build the industries that will allow them to thrive in that very different world. As it happens, that isn’t necessarily China’s biggest challenge. Dealing with its built environment may prove to be a much tougher nut to crack. China’s cities have grown at an astonishing rate over the last 30 years, with at least 350 million people migrating in from its rural hinterland. The vast majority of those buildings (and of the new schools, hospitals, offices, factories, retail centres that accompany them) were just thrown up as cheaply and cheerfully as possible, with little if any thought for energy efficiency let alone emissions of greenhouse gases.
That’s now changing. The building standards for new buildings in China are as demanding as any in Europe, and infinitely more ambitious than in the United States. They’ve developed their own version of LEED, and few doubt that these new standards will be enforced with a much greater sense of purpose than has been the case up until now. This is crucial, as the projected volume of new build in China over the next 20 years is mind-boggling. But that still doesn’t get them out of the retrofit challenge. This is something we now understand only too well here in the UK. The Labour Government never got it, obsessing about new build to the exclusion of all else, despite being reminded time after time that between 75 and 80% of the buildings that will be in use in 2050 already exist today. Ministers frittered away an entire decade. Happily, the incoming Coalition Government would appear to have learnt that lesson and in early December launched its plans for the so-called Green Deal:
“The Green Deal is the Government’s new and radical way of making energy efficiency available to all, whether people own or rent their property. We want Britain to say goodbye forever to leaky lofts and chilly draughts. It’s also a massive economic and job opportunity which could help Britain’s economy turn the corner.” For once, the rhetoric is just about justified. The Green Deal could indeed be a very big deal; the ambition level (covering all 27 million existing homes in the UK) is startling, and the basic principle (that the upfront capital cost of the retrofit will be funded via a charge on that household’s energy bills) is sound. It means that the many different reasons people have not to invest |58| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
in warmer, less leaky homes are, for the most part, removed. There’s many a slip between plans and practice, and there are some hugely complex issues still to be worked through, both on the mechanics of funding and on operational detail. But the example of Birmingham City Council (with its Energy Savers scheme) and a small number of other initiatives has already started to show the way. At the same time, the British Gas Green Deal has allowed one of the UK’s ‘Big Six’ energy companies to steal a march on its competitors. Of greatest importance to the Government is British Gas’s commitment to employ up to 3,700 on retrofit work over the next two or three years. Ministers are excitedly talking up the prospect of up to 100,000 ‘green collar jobs’ of this kind. They desperately need these jobs; even though the ‘green economy’ will create many new jobs over the years, there are few opportunities to do thousands of jobs rather than hundreds. So the Green Deal could just be the game-changer for the whole built environment agenda. Once people start to realise how mind-bogglingly inefficient most of our buildings are, the practice of sustainable construction should become mainstream rather than the preserve of a few passionate architects and developers, represented by a few dozen ‘iconic’ buildings. That’s certainly the thrust of the 2010 Report from the Low Carbon Construction Innovation and Growth Team:
“Over the next forty years, the transition to low carbon can almost be read as a business plan for construction, bringing opportunities for growth at every scale. The construction industry’s pivotal role in any carbon reduction program creates the opportunity, almost the obligation, for it to take up a position of leadership”.
of our public finances simply doesn’t allow it. However, without the opportunity to leverage the scale of private sector funds now required, anything less will be seen as a very damp squib indeed. So whilst Chris Huhne continues to talk it up, all the smart money is on the Treasury talking it out.
Image supplied by www.bluesky-world.com © GeoPerspectivesTM
Sounds great – but how many of these fine ideas (captured in no less than 65 recommendations!) are genuinely deliverable? For the construction industry, the reality on the ground looks very different. Capital budgets have been ruthlessly hacked back (by as much as 45% according to some commentators), despite lots of warm words from the Coalition Government that they would be protected. Not only has the Building Schools for the Future programme been swept away but the number of schemes for refurbishments let alone new schools has been pruned drastically. Capital costs per metre2 are shrinking by the month, along with any residual sustainability ambitions. It’s the same with the NHS, with both Higher Education and FE, with the Prison Service and so on. Against that kind of backdrop, the idea of this being the “Greenest Government Ever” is beginning to look patently implausible. Which means there’s a lot riding on other policy interventions such as the Carbon Reduction Commitment (which is now in effect a carbon tax – and this Government’s very first stealth tax! kicking in at £12 a tonne of CO2 from 2012 onwards) and the proposed Green Investment Bank. But even this flagship policy is already at risk. The Treasury remains implacably opposed to creating a new financial institution with its own balance sheet, arguing that the state |60| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
This kind of contradictory positioning is absolutely par for the course. This is not a government which is comfortable with the concept of sustainable development. Indeed I would argue that only Chris Huhne and Oliver Letwin really ‘get’ SD, amongst senior Ministers, and the rest are struggling even to see the importance of completely conventional environmental policy. DEFRA is a complete mess, with thousands of civil servants to be made redundant across all its agencies; DECC is doing well, despite being targeted by Treasury at every step of the way, but DCLG has become probably the most dysfunctional Whitehall Department of all.
Image below © Eco Roofing Services
Its Secretary of State, Eric Pickles, is an out-and-out ideologue, genuinely persuaded that ‘localism’ is the answer whatever the question may be! As he says:
“we’re going to shake up the balance of power in this country. We’re going to change the nature of the constitution. Be in no doubt about our commitment to localism. I know I look like an unlikely revolutionary, but the revolution starts here”. This revolution has yet to make its mark. Even in Whitehall, there is considerable uncertainty as to what the implications of a localism revolution might be for sustainable development. The renewable energy industry, for instance, is convinced that localism both looks and sounds uncannily like ‘nimbyism’, and is fearful that local planning committees will be even less inclined to respond positively to new applications than they might once have been. In that regard, it will be interesting to see just how enthusiastic the newly-elected Tory MPs really are about the Coalition Government’s low-carbon agenda. There is a distinct sense that many backbenchers are holding their fire on climate change, even though pre-election surveys back in 2010 revealed that large numbers remained deeply sceptical (and even hostile) regarding the broad scientific consensus on man-made climate change. That may cause considerable problems both for Chris Huhne and the Prime Minister. It must be said however, that their problems in that regard are as nothing compared with Energy Secretary Steve Chu in the United States. Back in November 2010, Republican Congressman Fred Upton was appointed as Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce – perhaps the single most important person in the House of Representatives that the President has to deal with on climate change. Here is Fred Upton’s considered view of the matter:
“God created the Earth and he will take it out when he wants to. That’s all you need to know about climate change”. Chris Huhne should think himself lucky that all he has to deal with are the likes of Jeremy Clarkson, Nigel Lawson and The Daily Mail.
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NEW HOMES: WHAT
WILL THE BONUS DELIVER Jackie Sadek, Chair, UKregneration to comment on that you had to do so by Christmas Eve. Predictably there has been debate about each of the elements in the proposition: Is this really what is stopping house building? Are the financial disincentives from growth in a local area that significant? How will we know where to build homes without the targets? The political rhetoric is fairly predictable:
“Incentives will be a powerful driver. Communities could see reductions in council tax, or a redeveloped town centre or a new community centre in return for accepting new homes.” Grant Shapps Ministerial Foreword Consultation Document When Harold MacMillan was given the job of meeting the target to build 300,000 houses a year he was told by Churchill that it would “make or mar his political career”. He met the target. Housing has always been a hot political topic and the Coalition Government has made this a key priority based on the policy in the Conservative Manifesto
“Communities should benefit when they choose to develop sustainably, so we will match pound-for-pound the council tax receipts that local authorities receive from new homes to encourage sensitive local development.” Grant Shapps announced the new system in August 2010 and the consultation paper was issued on 12 November. In essence the proposition is simple. House building doesn’t happen because local authorities get in the way. This is not just a kneejerk NIMBY response but based on a rational assessment that there are adverse consequences of a growth in population for the financing and delivery of local services. Therefore government should give local authorities a financial incentive which clearly makes it worthwhile for them to support local building. The consultation document sets out in much more detail how this will work including what counts as “new” (bringing empty homes back into use for example) and how and when the payments will be made. If you wanted |62| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
“The Government is right to want a strong incentive system for councils and communities ready to see new homes built. But this isn’t it.” John Healey at the Labour Party Conference As UK Regeneration we come to this debate with a sceptical eye, discounting that political rhetoric on all sides and focusing on the practicality. What should we all do now? Don’t expect a miracle The consultation paper makes assumptions of around 140,000 homes a year being built in the near future, although this appears to be mainly for the purposes of calculation rather than any form of target. It seems Mr Shapps is not expecting to emulate MacMillan. Within that total the Bonus is assessed as generating roughly 14,ooo additional homes a year beyond what will happen anyway. Clearly this is not huge but the priority is much more about making sure that homes get built in places where there is demand. Housing and Planning Delivery Grant was a smaller, more complex and less certain addition to local councils’ budgets often dealing more with process than outcomes. The Bonus is simple and predictable and reflects outcomes rather than processes. The affordable housing element, the empty homes calculation and the scaling according to the Council Band are designed to favour homes of the right scale and the right type.
The Bonus looks to be a worthwhile contribution rather than a major transformation. You win some, you lose some Within the tight framework for local government spending does the Bonus offer new money? As the Leaders of South East Council said:
“We .. believe that the NHB will be more effective if it represents additional funding over and above existing sources of revenue.” However the consultation document sets out the position:
“This policy redistributes a portion of formula grant on the basis of housing delivery. As a result – in the long run – there are no additional cost implications to central Government. However, over the course of the Spending Review period, additional funding (over £900m) from central Government will be provided from the abolition of Housing and Planning Delivery Grant. This will fund the total cost of the scheme in year 1; with the remainder spread across years 2-4.” Plain enough then: all the money comes from resources that local government already had. Abolition of Housing and Planning Delivery grant means rebadging money. By the end of year six when the peak payments are reached NHB will be running at about £1.2bn annually if house building does reach 140,000 a year and it will be redistributing between 3 and 4% of Formula Grant. Whether the specific funding allocated in the Spending Review is genuinely new or not (maybe it is just having less taken away) this notional allocation for year 1 – and through into the later years – will make sure that the first tranche of payments of NHB do not impact on the formula grant otherwise available. Of course in the longer term this all gets swallowed into the overall distribution. But this looks like a way to help get things started. Another layer of complexity The Bonus is being added to the already complex local government finance system. Working out who will win and who will loose is tricky. Last summer John Healey was estimating that 103 town halls would lose out by an average of £2 million each, while 222 councils would gain by an average of £400,000. Other calculations suggest that there might be a few big winners and lots of small losers. The Government has yet to offer a definitive exemplification although we had hoped to see one alongside the financial settlement in December. Maybe there will be some simplification to look forward to in the near future. The Government’s promised “local government resource review” is getting underway and the benefits of the NHB may get swallowed up in bigger changes.
Not the whole answer Increasing the rate of new development is only one aspect of housing policy, although it is a critical underpinning to many other desirable outcomes. While we cannot therefore expect the New Homes Bonus to secure other objectives we do need to establish whether it will make their achievement more difficult. Here are two key questions that are important for regeneration, both about dealing existing places: How do we redevelop areas of low demand? A recent report from Centre for Cities implicitly criticised the public funding of new homes in areas of population decline. But we cannot assume that new homes are only built in areas of net growth. We need to refresh the stock. Will the loss of grant in such areas to fund the NHB contribute to an implicit spiral of decline? How do we improve the quality of existing housing? Despite considerable gains in both the public and private sectors over the last few years there is still much poor quality housing often concentrated in areas with other social and economic challenges. Do we need a “Better Homes Bonus” as part of the new local finance system? NHB is designed to be a simple way of unlocking the NIMBY tendency where that is stifling demand. There is an advantage in staying simple – local councillors will know what they can get if they adopt policies which encourage builders to deliver. There is a disadvantage in having a single minded focus on growth potentially at the expense of other needs. A bonus best for early birds The Government is keen to get the first payments of NHB made soon and these inevitably will reflect activity already underway. Given that payments for each additional home last for six years and could total over £7000 it is possible to win big on NHB. Some local authorities could make a real difference to their financial position for the rest of this parliament if they act quickly and sustain delivery over 2 or 3 years. A few London Boroughs have seen 2000 to 3000 homes a year built recently and could therefore secure a gross total bonus of £20m. And now… We can expect developers to be making persuasive pitches to some key local authorities explaining how the Government will reward them. Perhaps some developers will be saying to authorities that they need to help deliver new homes to minimize their losses. During this year we should be able to see how far these arguments have changed attitudes, where new homes are being built and whether that focus on supply has been at the expense of the more complex regeneration of our cities.
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Alumasc ZinCo - realising green roofs’ SUDS potential By Simon Poë
Green roofs have long been heralded as potential SUDS solutions. However the requisite data to substantiate performance to urban drainage engineers has been less forthcoming – until now, writes Simon Poë of Alumasc. Drainage engineers are charged with reducing the burden on the existing drainage infrastructure, with a particular emphasis on reducing the peak rates of runoff that can cause the sewer network to overflow, leading to localised flooding. Green roofs help this cause by: Retention: Reducing overall and peak runoff volumes that discharge directly into watercourses; attributable to plants’ interception of rainfall (for subsequent evaporation back to atmosphere) and the storage of matric water in the substrate (depleted by plant transpiration and evaporative capillary movement); and Detention: A delay in peak runoff rates associated with the time for rain to infiltrate the green roof build-up, discharging at a later time and/or over an elongated period. Previous research has highlighted vast discrepancies in average runoff reductions (typically anywhere between 30 and 100%), hindering green roofs’ incorporation into SUDS strategies. Yet, as will become evident, these variations simply reflect the different test conditions and configurations. Recent research into Alumasc ZinCo’s green roof hydrologic performance, carried out at the University of Sheffield, has highlighted that green roofs not only reduce runoff volumes but, more importantly, that they can help to alleviate flood risks during even the largest storm events. Long-term Retention Long-term reductions in stormwater volumes entering UK watercourses are relevant and desirable: • Managing river levels to minimize susceptibility to flooding; • Reduced runoff velocities reduce erosion, sediment transport and water pollutants; and • Lower volumes reach water treatment plants, thereby lowering water management costs. A long-term research programme highlighted that a ZinCo extensive green roof (comprising a sedum carpet on 60 mm of substrate) significantly reduced runoff volumes: • 2007: 48.5% of 622.4 mm measured rainfall was retained, reducing runoff to 320.4 mm. • 2008/9: 56.7% of 678.2 mm measured rainfall was retained, reducing runoff to 293.2 mm. However, it must be acknowledged that this average data has limited value – engineers’ primary concern is the response to potentially floodinducing storm events. Response to Storm Events Previous research has suggested that green roofs typically retain the first 5 mm of an event’s rainfall. 30 events exceeded this 5 mm threshold and were treated as ‘significant’ events in this analysis. Averaging the responses to these 30 events, green roofs’ SUDS potential is clear:
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• Average retention: • Average peak runoff reduction: • Average peak runoff delay:
37.1% 61.8% 47.2 minutes
Some of the most extreme rainfall events in recent memory occurred within this period of analysis, notably the June 2007 events that caused localised flooding in Sheffield: having retained 100% of the 12.8 mm that fell on 12th June, the subsequent 42.5 hour event (13 - 15th June) saw 99.6 mm of rainfall (peaking at 19.2 mm/hour). Yet runoff volume was still reduced by 12% and importantly peak runoff was reduced (by 26%) and delayed (by 30 minutes). Importantly, the ZinCo green roof provided stormwater management benefits to every one of the 30 events; either reducing volume or reducing and/or delaying peak rates of runoff. It is easy to see why green roofs are increasingly specified in urban developments: occupying otherwiseredundant urban roof space to improve the building’s performance (e.g. SUDS, thermal and acoustic insulation) and the environment (e.g. Urban Heat Island mitigation, biodiverse habitat). With green roofs tailored to deliver such diverse objectives, variable SUDS responses are inevitable. Performance Differentials All drainage systems have a finite hydrologic capacity. However, a green roof’s capacity available at a storm’s outset (the Available Water Capacity or AWC) varies according to the antecedent storage volume. Evapotranspiration (ET) is critical in regenerating AWC, with the rate at which ET losses occur governed by (1) soil-water volume; (2) energy driving evaporation and transpiration; and (3) resistance to soil-water movements. The climate affects two key determinants of ET losses: 1. Soil-water volume: influenced by rainfall volume and frequency; and 2. Energy driving evaporation and transpiration: dependent on solar radiation intensity. Research findings will inevitably reflect the climate prevailing at that geographical location and/or at that time of the year. Such trends are evident in our 2008 research findings (as demonstrated in the graphs), with retention levels of 82% (of 80.3 mm rainfall) in the warmer summer months exceeding the 37% (of 88.5 mm) witnessed in the cooler, autumn months. Yet, the incidence of precipitation can significantly affect the response as witnessed in June 2007, where significant monthly rainfall
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of 230 mm was largely concentrated across a small number of events, including one with 99.6 mm of rainfall. The retention percentage (22.7%) suffered as a result, however retention volumes (52 mm) remained high, relative to autumn and winter months. The green roof specification - notably the substrate and the plant layer - largely governs the resistance to soilwater movements. Whilst maximum water-holding capacity defines the limits of the finite storage, the retention and release properties are most critical to the hydrologic response. The tenacity with which water is held in the substrate is a function of its structure and texture: Texture: In relatively dry soils, thin films of water adsorb to the soil particles due to the very strong intermolecular forces between water and soil. Generally held with such tenacity that it is not available to plants, the scale of this force depends upon soil texture, with lower bonds formed with mineral aggregates than with organic matter. Structure: Soil structure affects volumes held as porewater. Pore-water is held by the greater intermolecular forces between water, compared to the water-air interface. These forces can be sufficient to resist gravity, but vary with pore-size – the greater forces being evident in smaller pores – and with soil-water volume – gravitational mass of higher volumes being most likely to induce downward flux. Substrates should therefore be engineered with the appropriate balance of organic / mineral content and granular distribution to meet plants’ needs and benefit stormwater management. The choice of planting also affects the hydrologic response due to its impact on ET losses. Firstly, the plant’s architecture (i.e. the leaf surface area, exposure and shape) affects the amount of rainfall intercepted by the vegetation for evaporation back to atmosphere.
Secondly, the plant’s physiology affects the rate of transpiration of pore-water. For example, succulents such as sedum species, with Crassulacean Acid Metabolisms (CAMs), regulate their water demands in line with its supply – closing their stomata to conserve water during warm, dry conditions and consuming significant volumes when supply is plentiful. Research highlights the importance of specification The wide variance in the response of 9 different green roof configurations to the same storm event is highlighted in the graph, where Beds 1 to 3 are vegetated with sedum, 4 to 6 with meadow flower and 7 to 9 nonvegetated. Beds 1, 4 and 7 have ZinCo H&L substrate; 2, 5 and 8 have ZinCo Sedum substrate; and 3, 6 and 9 have a LECA-based substrate mix.
The importance of an engineered approach is evident in the research data set – with retention levels seen to increase by as much as 39% when ZinCo’s engineered substrates were used. Indeed, ZinCo’s ‘Sedum substrate’, displaying a similar maximum water-holding capacity as the horticultural, LECA-based mix, increased retention by more than 34%. This can be attributed to the blends’
different retention and release tendencies. Equally apparent was the beneficial impact of a sedum carpet layer – attributable to controlled water consumption and 90% vegetated coverage – with retention increased by as much as 28% (compared to the same configuration without vegetation) and 19% (compared to a meadow flower planting strategy). This differential is expected to further increase in cooler, dormant seasons, when the sedum coverage will remain relatively unchanged, yet the meadow flower will shed its leaves and reduce its coverage before reproducing from its root stock the following spring. Summary If green roofs are to become integral components of SUDS strategies, increasingly accurate performance predictions will be required. A physics-based approach would appear the only apparent means to account for all of the influential variables introduced above. As our research into green roof hydrologic performance continues to this end, it is important to stress that engineered green roofs, such as ZinCo systems, have been seen to retain and detain rainfall in all events – including even the largest events. The extent of the benefit will vary geographically and seasonally, but also critically according to the specification of the green roof. Alumasc, as ZinCo’s UK supply partner for nearly 20 years and a founder member of GRO, is at the forefront of the green roof industry, developing long-term engineered solutions for a sustainable built-environment. For further details on ZinCo green roof systems, please call 01744 648400 or visit www.alumascgreenroof.co.uk. Below: Rockliffe Park Clubhouse, Hurwurth, Near Darlington
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Ecobuild 2011 – The Future of Design, Construction and The Built Environment Plans are taking shape for this year’s Ecobuild which, having outgrown its former venue, will be taking place at London’s ExCeL on Tuesday 01 – Thursday 03 March 2011. Against the background of economic uncertainty over the last few years, and the current spending cuts, Ecobuild represents the construction sector’s most important challenge, and its greatest opportunity, that of creating a sustainable built environment. And the sector meets that challenge - and that opportunity - with ever-growing enthusiasm. Over 1,300 exhibitors, 600 speakers and 50,000 visitors are expected to attend Ecobuild 2011, exceeding the record attendance at last year’s event. Many exhibitors have taken advantage of the extra space at ExCeL to expand the range of sustainable construction products and materials they’ll be displaying at the exhibition. Regular exhibitors Daikin, Saint-Gobain, Schueco, Ideal Standard, Tremco Illbruck, Interface, Velux, Lafarge, Fronius, Forbo Flooring Systems, ACO Technologies, E.ON, and ICI Paints are just some of the internationally recognised names you’ll see at Ecobuild next year, along with hundreds of suppliers exhibiting for the first time, including Dorma, ArcelorMittal, IBC Solar, Edgetech, CR Lawrence, Roto Frank, UPM, LG Electronics, Hyundai, Stora Enso and Pilkington Building Products. Ecobuild is the platform for major launches including, for 2011, Bill Dunster’s straw house, StramitZED. It’s the very latest in his eco housing stable - a straw board home that can be built for £135,000; £20,000 less than the normal cost of constructing a code level 6 house. The StramitZED house is a joint venture between ZEDfactory and Stramit Technology Group. The straw boards are combined with timber and insulation from recycled newspaper and made into cassettes to build the homes. They will be marketed to developers, housing associations and self-builders. |68| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Modcell will be launching their Renewable Retail solution which aims to resolve the heat energy battle being fought in supermarkets, to keep customers warm and produce cool. Using prefabricated panels fabricated from straw bales to build super-insulated, high-performance and low energy ‘passive’ buildings, ModCell’s Renewable Retail delivers a turnkey building solution that reduces energy, saves money and carbon emissions, and allows shorter build times. Leading the line up in Ecobuild’s free conference are headliners Chief Construction Advisor, Paul Morrell, Construction Minister, Mark Prisk, Sir Terry Farrell, Baroness Susan Greenfield, Tim Smit of the Eden Project, Bianca Jagger and Professor AC Grayling taking on subjects as diverse as the radicalism of localism, the age of unreason, the psychology of climate change and Ending our love affair with more. The 2011 seminar programme, also free to attend, is Ecobuild’s biggest ever, with over a dozen streams and more than 130 seminars covering the most pressing concerns for built environment professionals:
• future energy • energy in buildings • regulations revealed • simplifying standards guides and tools • refurbishing Britain • sustainability and the city • sustainable by design • sustainable small projects • from grey to green • sustainable architecture & design • beyond construction • installer business • installer skills Seminars are brought to life through a series of interactive attractions and live demonstrations taking place on the exhibition floor, from how to install a solar
panel or a green roof, to timber frame construction and applying exterior wall insulation. Highly topical is Ecobuild’s Solar Hub which will explain the fundamentals of photovoltaic systems – how they work, what components they include, and how and where to install them, with daily demonstrations and talks on building integrated photovoltaic tiles (BIPV), photovoltaic systems (PV), benefitting from the feed in tariff. Renew provides practical advice on achieving one of the most important aspects of an energy efficient building – a highly insulated, air tight building envelope – with daily live demonstrations of internal and external insulation for solid walls, loft insulation, insulated floor bases and glazing solutions. The enormously popular Cityscape returns in 2011 to focus on the greening of the built environment, and the encouragement of biodiversity. Comprising live demonstration areas and a variety of case studies and installations explaining the practicalities of greening and enhancing biodiversity, it will take the learning from Ecobuild’s From Grey to Green and Sustainability and the city seminars and help visitors gain experience of the practical skills required.
twisting glulam structures - one inverted to form a roof – demonstrate the extreme design possibilities of engineered timber for spectacular and sustainable structures. Another favourite with regular visitors to Ecobuild is the Natural, traditional sustainable attraction, where daily interactive demonstrations will cover a wealth of natural materials and traditional techniques including dry stone walling, straw bale construction, rammed earth, cob brick making, traditional carpentry and lime rendering. Certain to provoke interest is Capita Symonds’ Cool Workspace attraction which showcases leading-edge materials, technologies and design solutions, demonstrating how they can help provide low-cost, low-carbon, but high impact solutions to adapt and re-use space and materials to create a flexible, adaptable and ultimately more sustainable workplace. Constructed using phase change wall panels and ceilings which store and release heat according to the internal and external temperatures, Cool Workspsace will feature heat recovery ventilation systems, smart meters, occupancy detecting lighting controls, smart phone technology and energy usage monitoring systems. It will be fitted out using recycled carpets and surfaces, and furnished with environmentally responsible office furniture.
And of course it wouldn’t be Ecobuild without a whole host of new and surprising events, and the 2011 event certainly won’t disappoint. On Tuesday, 02 March ‘Rock star physicist’ Professor Brian Cox will be presenting an award to the winner of the CIOB’s Inner Space 2050 competition for students aged 11 – 12 years to design sustainable work and living spaces in orbit. Back in the exhibition, visitors will be invited to sink their teeth into some BRE Bites, a series of 10 minute ‘tasters’ on a range of New for 2011, Ecobuild’s Water Wise will be bringing topics including BREEAM In visitors up to date on the changes to Part G of building Use, Passivhaus, and Feed in regulations, understanding the water efficient systems Tariffs taking place daily and appliances that can now be installed into buildings. It on the BRE stand, and will also explain the measures that can be put in place to the Ecobuild Fringe significantly reduce our water footprints by fixing leaks, using is gearing up to water efficient white goods and other deliver an eclectic water-saving technologies, programme again as well as implementing in 2011. simple but effective behavioural changes, and An innovation demonstrate that not only that’s bound does a reduction in water to be popular consumption save energy for Ecobuild and carbon, but that it 2011 is the brings financial savings for introduction businesses, the public sector of an online and consumers too. itinerary planner Elsewhere, the aesthetic qualities which allows of glulam are demonstrated in visitors to Extreme Timber. A hyperbolic plan paraboloid, with two large curved and |70| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
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Also at Ecobuild 2011….. NaturalZED – Dunster’s straw house comes to Ecobuild. Bill Dunster will be back at Ecobuild to show the very latest in his eco housing stable - a straw board home that can be built for £135,000; £20,000 less than the normal cost of constructing a code level 6 house.
their visit in advance, including the times and locations of conference and seminar sessions, and live demonstrations, as well as listing exhibitors and products of interest. The exhibition will be organised in technology zones, with similar products, relevant seminars and attractions, all located in the same area. Getting around Ecobuild 2011 will be easier still at the new venue of course. ExCeL’s straightforward layout, with seminars taking place in rooms along the perimeter of the exhibition halls, and the conference located off the central boulevard, is simple to navigate. And getting there is easy too. ExCeL is easily accessible by public transport, offers free cycle parking and has ample car parking on site. The nearest rail station is Custom House for ExCeL, approximately 10 minutes from Canary Wharf. Key interchanges for the DLR are Bank, Tower Hill, Canning Town and Shadwell. During Ecobuild shuttle buses will run from the Thames Clipper river taxi stop at Canary Wharf (10 minutes) and from London City Airport (5 minutes). Get your free ticket now at www.ecobuild. co.uk
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Expanded BREEAM awards The BREEAM Awards return to Ecobuild again in 2011 to recognise the highest scoring buildings under BREEAM. Independently assessed, and representing genuinely sustainable buildings, categories for the 2011 awards will include best buildings in the office sector, education, health and residential, as well as more specialist buildings including prisons, courts, datacentres, multi-residential buildings and leisure. There will also be a number of international awards, reflecting BREEAM’s growth outside the UK, and special awards for the management of existing buildings (BREEAM In-Use) and the Government sector. The BREEAM awards will take place at 18.00 on Wednesday 02 March in the Platinum Suite, level 1.
TRADA’s student competition at Ecobuild promotes high quality timber design The winning entry in TRADA’s competition for students at Oxford Brookes University School of Architecture will be displayed at Ecobuild. Students were encouraged to experiment with form and space, and tasked to design a timber pavilion with a footprint of 20 sq. metres which would exploit timber’s architectural, aesthetic, structural and sustainable attributes. The winning entry will then be constructed off-site for installation at Ecobuild 2011, with support from TRADA and engineering support and materials provided by Timbmet, and will showcase 3D models of all the shortlisted entries.
Professor Brian Cox to present prize for designs in space at Ecobuild on Tuesday 02 March. ‘Rock star physicist’ Professor Brian Cox will be presenting an award to the winner of the CIOB’s Inner Space 2050 competition for students aged 11 – 12 years to design sustainable work and living spaces in orbit. Professor Brian Cox will be asking ‘Can science save us?’ in his lecture during the Ecobuild conference on Wednesday 02 March 2011. Isover international architectural design competition comes to Ecobuild UK architectural students are being invited to take part in an international competition to design an energy efficient New York skyscraper according to the Isover Multi-Comfort House definition, and with Passive House components. The UK finals of the competition will be judged at Ecobuild 2011 – where visitors will be able to attend presentations of the entries and see models of the students’ schemes in situ at the site in Greenwich Village – after which the top three entries go on to compete in the final in Prague next May. Innovation future zone returns to Ecobuild The Technology Strategy Board, Modern Built Environment KTN and EPSRC are joining forces to bring their Innovation future zone competition back to Ecobuild for a second year. The zone will showcase shortlisted
entries of new or near-to-market technologies relevant to the priority areas of energy efficiency, refurbishment, climate change adaptation and process efficiency, and the winning entry will be announced at Ecobuild on Thursday 03 March. Rematerialise – launch of sustainable materials library at Ecobuild Kingston University will be launching Rematerialise at Ecobuild, their library of 1,200 samples of sustainable materials that use fewer virgin resources, and that are easily renewed. Rematerialise will also bring to designers’ attention sustainable materials used in other sectors but little used in design and construction. Part of the collection – including finished products manufactured from sustainable materials - will be showcased at Ecobuild with the intention of inspiring further collaboration between academia and industry, such as Kingston’s recent project advising Marks & Spencer plc on the use of appropriate sustainable materials for their new headquarters. Space of waste – Speedos put to good use at Ecobuild In a celebration of waste materials, students from Chelsea College of Art & Design’s BA in Interior & Spatial Design degree course will be creating a structure and architectural furniture at Ecobuild using obsolete Speedo swimsuits and their packaging.
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Ecobuild 2011 – new product launches Ideal Heating The Logic Heat and Logic System models are the latest expansion of the Logic range of boilers from Ideal Heating, introduced to meet demand from installers to fit like-for-like replacement appliances in older housing stock. Available in outputs of 15kW, 18kW, 24kW and 30kW. MIMOA MIMOA has launched a new iPhone application which allows you to discover the modern architecture around you while travelling overseas, or exploring your own city. Recticel Insulation Products Recticel Insulation Products’ new Eurothane GP insulation board, with improved thermal performance, does the job of three of the company’s previous products, replacing Recticel’s Eurosarking, Eurowall TF and Eurofloor boards with a single product suitable for all the applications covered by the original three. Inwood Inwood’s new semiautomatic finger-jointer is capable of producing a wide range of cross section board from approximately 50x15mm to 210x50mm up to 12 metres in both hardwood and softwood. NIBE The NIBE F370 is part of a new generation of heat pumps, introduced to supply homes with inexpensive and environmentally friendly heating. The heat pump can be connected to an optional low temperature heat distribution system, e.g. radiators, convectors or under floor heating, and is also prepared for connection to several different products and accessories. Jewson Jewson’s new Sustainable Building Guide, endorsed by BRE and The Energy Saving Trust, will be showcased first at Ecobuild. Adey Solutions MagnaCleanse, the latest power-flushing product from Adey Solutions improves efficiency, and saves time and money for installers. MagnaCleanse removes all black iron oxide in one pass, reduces power-flushing process times by up to two-thirds and saves up to 90% on water. |76| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Hanse Haus Hanse Haus will be bringing their low-energy, Code 6 compliant Passivhaus design to Ecobuild. A 180 square metre property can be completed in just 5-6 weeks.
ICS Heat Pump Technology ICS Heat Pump Technology will be introducing the latest in DeLonghi’s inverter-driven heat pumps. The DeLonghi-Professional i-KI 9kW Inverter unit will provide an output temperature of 55°C in ambient temperatures as low as -20°C whilst operating with a very low noise level of 50dba at 1m.
Baxi Group Baxi Ecogen is the first, commercially available microCHP (Combined Heat and Power) unit for the home. Its free Piston Stirling Engine (FPSE) can generate up to 1kWh of electricity, whilst providing abundant supplies of space heating and hot water for the home, reliably generating up to two thirds of a typical dwelling’s electrical requirements Cyclepods The new Streetpod from Cyclepods offers protection for bikes parked in public spaces by securing the bike frame and both wheels with a single lock.
Black Millwork Black Millwork will be launching a new line of triple glazed products, designed for builds in extreme weather conditions or where maximum thermal efficiency is required. A popular specification choice in Scandinavia, triple glazing will be available for a number of products, including the H Frame, tilt and turn, sliding sash and flush casement windows, as well as the hinged, sliding and bi-fold French doors.
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Cygnum Cygnum will be launching an innovative new closed panel construction system which guarantees improved thermal and acoustic performance as well as excellent air tightness.
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Baxi Group The new Baxi Bioflo is a free-standing, pellet fed boiler which can be installed in living areas, making boiler specification and installation much simpler on new-build and retrofit housing projects. Designed to operate at 94% efficiency, the Baxi Bioflo can deliver an energy reduction of up to 62%. This represents 37% more than is needed to meet Level 3 and 18% more than is required to meet Level 4 under the CSH. Iso-Chemie ISO-BLOCO One Control is a new one-tape solution for window sealing. It meets all the demands of the EnEV- (energy saving regulations) and RAL-installation guidelines in one three-layer sealing product which provides superior driving rain resistance, thermal and acoustic insulation and absolute air-tightness. Steico New natural wood fibre insulation and construction solutions from Steico will include Steicoflex, Steicotherm and Steicouniversal flexible and rigid insulation panels suitable for walls, roofs and floors, providing both thermal and acoustic insulation. Reynaers The new high insulation window system from Reynaers, the CS104, will make its debut at Ecobuild. With a Uw value of 0.78 W/m²K, for complete window frame, it meets and will be certified to the PassivHaus standards. Other new Reynaers products to feature will include the new sliding system CP130 and the innovative curtain walling system CW60 Solar that incorporates photovoltaic panels. |80| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Mitsubishi Amongst the new products from Mitsubishi being showcased at Ecobuild is the City Multi YJM-A range, Mitsubishi Electric’s answer to large scale VRF (Variable Refrigerant Flow) applications which offers a substantial increase in energy efficiency alongside complete design flexibility. Also on display will be Mitsubishis new range of heat pump technologies.
Ravenheat Manufacturing Ltd Ravenheat’s new generation gas boilers: Combiplus and Combistore (including Energycatcher technology) are designed to deliver improved heating and hot water performance and can be used as a solar module which combines a 97% efficiency gas boiler with solar configuration, to offer even greater efficiency and cost savings.
Fronius The new Fronius CL central inverter series has been developed to ensure continual optimum performance and is suited for PV systems of up to several hundred kilowatts.
Stommel Haus German manufacturer, Stommel Haus will present their new generation of energy efficient timber houses and their latest timber wall construction at Ecobuild.
Terrapin Terrapin’s exhibition stand at Ecobuild will be built and transported just as they would any other building, using their new Hybred system and demonstrating how offsite construction has evolved to allow a huge variety of technologies and systems to be incorporated into their modules and panels. Opella New from Opella, the water-saving Opella EcofilŽ Cistern Inlet Valve , Opella Ecocistern and the Opella Hydraflush Cistern systems. Caribbean Blinds (UK) Ltd Caribbean Blinds (UK) Ltd will be launching their new, high specification interior rollerscreen aimed primarily at the contract market at Ecobuild 2011, and will be shown in near real sunlight conditions to demonstrate its automatic light sensors.
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EMMVEE Photovoltaics GmbH From EMMVEE Photovoltaics, a new range of monocrystalline and polycrystalline solar modules suitable for use in grid-connected and off-grid applications.
Save & Generate The S&G Map is an interactive GIS display for installers and manufacturers of sustainable energy systems. It allows the user to plot installations and projects along with system details, photographs, case studies and customer satisfaction surveys.
TIMBER Page 86 - 90 - American Hardwood: Environmentally Friendly Building Material? - Rupert Oliver, Director, Forest Industries Intelligence Limited Page 92 - 93 - The Green Agenda - Joe Martoccia, Director, UKTFA
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American hardwood: could this be the most environmentally friendly building material on the planet? By Rupert Oliver (image below), Director, Forest Industries Intelligence Limited. The American hardwood industry believes it has an environmental profile that is hard to beat. In fact it’s so confident of this claim that it is subjecting its production and distribution chain to independent environmental assessment. It also wants its major buyers around the world to impose tough measures requiring the removal of environmentally risky materials from supply chains.
American hardwood forest is composed of hundreds of species, of which at least 30 are of significant commercial value. In the Eastern states, red and white oak species are the most prevalent hardwoods, followed by hard and soft maples, tulipwood, hickory, sweetgum and ash. Red alder is the main commercial hardwood species produced in the North-Western states.
Of all the numerous environmental benefits of American hardwoods, just one should make many users and specifiers of building materials sit up and take notice. This is the fact – supported by national forest assessments undertaken by the U.S. federal government every ten years – that between 1953 and 2007, the volume of hardwood standing in U.S. forests more than doubled from 5 billion m3 to 11.4 billion m3. This huge expansion of the resource – which actually coincides with a period of significant increase in U.S. and international wood demand, is testament to a long term commitment to good forest governance and sustainable hardwood production in the United States.
While softwood tends to be used for structural applications in construction, where the need for volume supply at low cost outweighs the need for good appearance, hardwoods are valued for finishing applications such as cabinetry, flooring, mouldings and trim, kitchen tops and shop-fitting.
Hardwoods make up a very major component of the U.S. forests and wood products industry. They represent 43% of the nation’s forest growing stock (softwood represent the remaining 57%). Around 25% (60 million m3) of total annual U.S. production of lumber, plywood and veneer (250 million m3) comprises hardwood. The main expanse of hardwood forests stretch from the Northeast corner of the continental United States to the Southern coast and west to beyond the Mississippi River. There is also a smaller area of hardwood production in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. The U.S. hardwood resource is significant not only for its size, but also for its rich diversity. The |86| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Backed by a diverse and expanding resource and with rising international concern for sustainability, U.S. hardwoods are playing an increasingly important role in the supply of raw materials to the world’s building and furniture industries. The U.S. contributes nearly one fifth of the world’s production of hardwood saw and veneer logs. It is also the largest external supplier of hardwood to the EU, accounting for one quarter of all imports of hardwood lumber and veneer. Around 20% of all hardwood consumed in the UK derives from the United States. Despite its global significance, the U.S. hardwood industry is not made up of big faceless industrial conglomerates. It is very much a community affair. Some four million individuals and other private entities own the 110 million hectares of hardwood and mixed oak-pine forest types in the U.S. Of the private hardwood timber produced in the U.S., only 17% derives from company owned lands and the remainder comes from noncorporate, family forest owners. There are over 14,000 hardwood businesses in the U.S., mainly small and family owned. This ownership structure has major implications for forestry practices and environmental impacts. The main motivation for owning hardwood forests in the U.S. is usually not timber production at all, but simply the
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enjoyment of forest ownership. In contrast to softwoods which mainly derive from fast growing plantations, nearly all U.S. hardwoods derive from slower growing and more diverse natural forests. Because timber production and economic return to shareholders are not primary objectives, the owners of American hardwood forests tend to manage less aggressively and to grow their forests on long rotations. Selection harvesting, involving removal of only a few trees per hectare, rather than clear-felling, is typical in American hardwood forests. The size of harvesting operations is limited by the small size of forest holdings which rarely exceed ten hectares. After harvesting, forest owners usually rely on natural regeneration, which is abundant in the deep fertile forest soils of the U.S. There is little need or incentive for addition of chemical fertilisers. No non-native “exotic” or genetically modified species are used. Long term management of U.S. hardwood forests for sustainable timber production makes a significant contribution to carbon storage. Each year for the last 50 years American hardwood forests stored around the equivalent of 165 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (excluding all harvested material). That’s enough to offset about 14% of U.S. annual residential emissions in 2006, or 9% of U.S. annual transport emissions in the same year. This direct contribution of America’s hardwood forests to carbon sequestration excludes the carbon held in long term storage as a component of American hardwood products. With useful lives spanning generations, furniture, flooring, cabinetry and trim crafted of American hardwoods act as an additional carbon store for many decades. American hardwoods are very energy efficient. The process of converting wood into usable building products requires considerably less energy than most other materials. Furthermore, much of the energy needed to produce American hardwood products is bio-energy. A 2007 study of 20 hardwood sawmills in the North Eastern United States revealed that 75% of the energy required to manufacture kiln dried lumber derived from biomass (such as tree bark, saw dust and wood offcuts). As a result, even less carbon dioxide is emitted when producing American hardwood lumber than when producing many recycled materials.
A preliminary assessment by the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC) of the carbon footprint of American hardwoods from forest to European distributor suggests that carbon sequestration during forest growth of the tree will more than offset the total carbon emissions resulting from harvesting, processing and transport. The AHEC assessment also suggests that transport is a relatively minor factor in the overall carbon footprint. This is particularly true of ocean transport. Transporting American hardwoods by ship across the Atlantic, a journey of over 6000km, requires little more energy than an overland journey of 500km. In fact, even a complete circumnavigation of the world by sea (40,000km) is likely to be readily offset by the carbon sequestered in the wood product. With such a strong story to tell, the U.S. hardwood industry has every reason to engage in efforts to increase scrutiny of the environmental impacts of materials and the transparency of supply chains. AHEC led the way in 2007 by commissioning an independent assessment of the risk of illegal and unsustainable wood entering U.S. hardwood supply chains. The report was prepared by independent consultants Seneca Creek Associates with a team comprised of well-regarded and independent experts in the field of U.S. forestry. It concludes that there can be high confidence regarding adherence to national and state laws in the hardwood sector and that stolen timber is likely to represent, at most, 1% of total U.S. hardwood production. The authors of the Seneca Creek study also have high confidence that U.S. hardwood be considered Low Risk in all five “risk categories” of the FSC controlled wood standard. In other words, in addition to low risk of illegal logging, it is very unlikely that any American hardwood is derived from forests where human rights or high conservation values are threatened by management activities, or from forests being converted to plantations or non-forest use, or from genetically modified trees. Building on the results of the Seneca Creek study, the American hardwood industry is a strong advocate of regulations which aim to eradicate illegal wood supplies
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from the international trade. In 2008, the U.S. Hardwood Federation, the industry’s representative association, joined forces with environmental groups in a successful effort to extend the U.S. Lacey Act to include coverage of wood products. The amendment makes it an offence within the U.S. to possess any wood product “taken, possessed, transported, or sold” in violation of any relevant foreign or state law. Any U.S. companies trading in wood products that does not take due care with respect to their wood supplies could face criminal sanctions. AHEC has been advocating the introduction of similar legislation in other major wood consuming regions, including the European Union.In response to campaigning by environmental groups and responsible timber trading organisations like AHEC, the EU’s “Illegal Timber Law” (ITL) which “lays down obligations of operators who place timber and timber products on the [EU] market” was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 12 November 2010. This law, due to be fully enforced from March 2013, will make it a criminal offence to place timber illegally harvested under the laws of any country onto the internal EU market.The law also requires European timber importers to implement due diligence procedures to minimise the risk of any wood being derived from an illegal source. This regulation will be to the benefit of the whole European wood trade – finally putting to bed any lingering uncertainty over the legal provenance of wood consumed in Europe. AHEC is now encouraging the on-going movement towards a more science-centred approach to green specification and design using environmental Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). Although there is some way to go before LCA becomes a deciding factor in material specification throughout the UK and wider European market, there are clear signs of movement in this direction. Green building rating systems like BREEAM in the UK, HQE in France, and DGNB in Germany are becoming more widely used and all draw on LCA for allocating credits for building materials. In line with this market shift, in 2010 AHEC commissioned the largest LCA study ever undertaken in the international hardwood sector. The independent assessment is being undertaken by PE International, a leader in the field of LCA, in accordance with the ISO14040 series of standards for LCA. It will include, as a discrete component, independent assessment of the “carbon footprint”
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of American hardwoods in line with carbon footprint standards such as the UK’s PAS 2050 standard and the international Green House Gas (GHG) Protocol. The study involves the compilation of environmental life cycle inventory (LCI) data on the main American hardwood species from point of extraction in the US through to point of delivery as kiln dried sawn lumber or veneer in the EU and Asia. This will enable the industry to identify “hot spots” of higher environmental impact and to better target improvement measures. The study also includes a full life cycle impact assessment for a number of high priority finished construction and furniture products manufactured from American hardwoods in the EU market. A major output of the study will be the preparation of Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for American hardwood products. EPDs look set to become an important tool for communication of product-specific LCA data to specifiers and end-users. EPDs are designed to allow fair comparison of the environmental performance of products through provision of structured, science based, and verified information. EPDs provide information along the product’s entire supply chain, are designed to be neutral with no value-based judgements, and are required to be verified for accuracy by an independent third party. An international standard - ISO 14025 – has been prepared providing guidance on the structure and content of EPDs. So is American hardwood the most environmentally friendly building material on the planet? Well, the truth is we don’t know – yet. We’ll just have to await the results of the PE International study and more widespread publication of EPDs. But American hardwoods must be a contender – given their unique ability to combine a vast and rapidly expanding resource base, low intensity extraction, carbon sequestration properties, low emissions during processing, strong performance in-use, and an industry with demonstrable commitment to transparency and improved environmental performance.
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Drowning in another industry report - a plain talking perspective on the green agenda by Joe Martoccia, Director, UKTFA
You don’t need to search very far to uncover a mountain of policy, regulation, debate, opinion and recommendation on how the UK will achieve zero carbon housing stock. Add to that the continual changes to Code for Sustainable Homes courtesy of Mr Shapps and suddenly the construction industry, and more specifically the housing developers, are struggling to see which side is up.
The recently published final report of the Low Carbon, Innovation and Growth Team (IGT) would suggest that the construction industry has engaged positively with the issue of sustainability. I would challenge the Low Carbon Construction report. With over 60 recommendations it seems to point once again to the ‘too difficult to achieve box’ – it’s another report that underlines the issues without actually telling us anything new. It highlights the perceived issues of an enlightened group of people but once again fails to deliver tangible outcomes that are a true and real reflection of the UK construction industry. Did the Innovation and Growth Team visit a timber frame housing development? Will we remember the report in years to come? I doubt it. I read the word collaboration in most industry/Government reports, but I see no real evidence.. What the report fails to recognise is the realities of the construction industry. It’s fragmented, it’s disenchanted and at best it’s just about clawing its way through the recession. But instead of strong practical leadership from the front, almost daily the sector is faced with the likelihood of a changing regulatory framework. It’s incredibly challenging for the housing sector to know which way to turn in terms of delivering Code compliant homes. If we look at the proposed Local Standards |92| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Framework for a moment. On paper it might seem like a great idea to empower local councils to demand certain standards of housebuilders. Wouldn’t local councils love that? But it doesn’t work in practice. How can a national housebuilder deal with such localised standards without significantly increasing the costs of building a home? On the other hand while it seems to be a common sense move to reduce the compliance burden of achieving Code Level 4 homes in certain situations it’s a huge challenge for the industry to continually switch its build methodology when faced with regular changes to policy and compliance. For me the industry is faced with three principle issues. Number one is the issue of dealing with the here and now. How do you build a home that meets today’s standards? The second issue surrounds the anticipation of what’s coming next impacting heavily on the burden of planning a housing scheme. The third issue surrounds the construction industry’s ignorance of build solutions that limit the need for technology-led, top drawer green solutions costing an arm and a leg to install and costing even more to maintain. For me, and more specifically the UKTFA, these issues can be dealt with now without the need for endless reporting and time consuming navel gazing. If we look at new housing in the UK there are a few notable examples of leading edge practice, but by and large the mainstream construction industry is lagging way behind where they should be well on the road to 2016. The industry is being dragged kicking and screaming into the brave new world of sustainable construction and if it really wants to play its part in responding to the challenge of carbon reduction, I would suggest there needs to be a quantum shift in the way the industry operates to enable it to face that challenge. But in truth the Low Carbon Construction report completely misses the opportunity to look at an exemplar segment of the housing industry that is already setting the standards by which the entire industry should be following. The UK timber frame industry has been leading the way in sustainable construction for years. It’s no accident that our market share has been steadily growing in the affordable housing sector, with social landlords appreciating the low carbon, low maintenance nature of a sustainability strategy based on a high performance building envelope. Their tenants appreciate the low heating bills a well insulated home can deliver, day in day out.
For me, it’s not about the construction industry being in denial of the 2016 targets which is a common and misguided accusation at best. I believe the construction industry is just worn out and confused by the myriad of existing and proposed guidance. But we’ve got a big old wakeup call coming our way, like all industries, commitments of the Climate Change Act will have to be met. With the exception of a handful of enlightened businesses, there still appears to be a reluctance from builders and developers to fully engage with the supply chain – perhaps that’s all about the 2011 buzzword of collaboration. But whatever it’s called, I believe that working together is a critical success factor in delivering sustainable construction. Modernising the industry is essential, unlearning the past and embracing new ways of working is paramount. By involving the supply chain at the earliest opportunity can eliminate waste, speed-up construction times and deliver true lean, sustainable construction. This view is echoed in the IGT report, which states that the industry requires new ways of working and the acquisition of knowledge and skills that will provide competitive advantage at home and internationally, building on the UK’s reputation as a world leader in sustainable design. But when in reality the UK construction industry still operates in silos, preferring an elemental building approach to a holistic team effort - this really does have to change. The IGT report contains three principle tasks to which the industry needs to respond: 1. 2. 3.
to de-carbonise their own business to provide people with buildings that enable them to lead more energy efficient lives to provide the infrastructure which enables the supply of clean energy and sustainable practices in other areas of the economy
disheartened. We need to continue to make sure that every new house that is built in the UK, regardless of its ultimate owner, is world class in every way, it is achievable. The simple approach of building a thermally efficient and air-tight envelope with the most sustainable, renewable raw material has to be the most sensible approach. Add to this the “fit and forget” principle of timber frame, the zero maintenance appeal only enhances the credentials of timber frame as a build method. So when we review the IGT report which claims that the UK lacks skills and technology, I have to ask the question – did Morrell have his eyes closed to 25% of the UK housing stock built in timber frame? – it’s a big percentage of the UK housing stock just to ignore. The award winning Cala Homes development at Newhall, Harlow which showcases timber frame housing at its finest is evidence that the construction industry is achieving everything that is being asked of it and more and kicks the IGT report into touch. The UKTFA is showcasing the Newhall development at Ecobuild to demonstrate that timber frame isn’t a wacky green invention, it’s happening up and down the country and answers many of the concerns of the industry. The UKTFA is fully behind ‘The Green Deal’ designed to make Britain’s homes and businesses warmer and more environmentally friendly but we urge the broader construction industry to engage with UKTFA members to learn how, by working together, the sustainable construction needs of the future can be met. The industry doesn’t need a new report – we just need to recognise that the skills, expertise and know how is here – it’s all around us, we just need to get on and do it and quickly – perhaps even collaboratively.
Let’s ignore the policy that sits above these broad ambitions and concentrate on what we have to work with today. Specifically the greatest challenges will come from the refurbishment of our existing housing stock but that still leaves the new build programmes up and down the country in both the social and private housing sector. Despite commentary from certain quarters declaring ‘new build is no longer where it’s at’, it’s a simplistic and naive view when dealing with the real housing situation. Are we supposed to give up on new build? Would someone like to share that with the local and national house builders? We must not be
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LAND MANAGEMENT Page 96 - 98 - Contaminated Land Post 2010 - Cecilia Macleod, Technical Director, Arcadis Page 100 - 102 - SUDS and the Danger of Land Contamination - Brian M Back, Chair, Environmental Innovations Limited
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Contaminated Land post 2010. Where might we be headed? By Cecilia Macleod, Technical Director, Arcadis The past 2 years have been tough for the contaminated land industry in the UK. The economic downturn saw a dramatic slowdown in Brownfield redevelopment and many industrials cut back on their planned environmental programs. Following the change in government there was further stalling in growth due to the announcement that the government desired to make revisions to the contaminated land legislation and would in particular redefine Contaminated Land. In December 2010, DEFRA released the consultation document on the proposed changes to the Statutory Guidance for the Contaminated Land Regime under Part 2A of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. The definition of contaminated land is not significantly changed it is strengthened with respect to the contamination of controlled waters :
“Section 78A(2): “contaminated land” is any land which appears to the local authority in whose area it is situated to be in such a condition, by reason of substances in, on or under the land that – (a) significant harm is being caused or there is a significant possibility of such harm being caused; or (b) significant pollution of controlled waters is being caused, or there is a significant possibility of such pollution being caused;....” There is discussion of harm and the need for the regulator to show that harm either is being caused or likely to be caused. There is really no softening or hardening of the actual legislation. However, in reading through the guidance, with particular reference to Controlled Waters, it appears that the Local Authority, not the Environment Agency is determining if significant harm to controlled waters is occurring. This is an important change within the guidance as Local Authorities are unlikely to have hydrogeologists on staff who can make this assessment and they will have to rely on advice from a reduced Environment Agency or seek assistance from outside experts. There is a statement within the guidance that the Local Authority needs to ensure that the experts it uses are suitably qualified but gives no further information on how the Local Authority should determine this. The guidance points out that the Risk Assessment process should not be taken as giving an absolute answer and that the regulator should understand the uncertainties associated with risk assessment and |96| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
should use where appropriate an external expert to supply advice and guidance. Within the accompanying consultation document DEFRA makes it clear that there may have been sites which have been determined under Part 2A which with further investigation and a better understanding of risk assessment may not have required that the whole site be determined. For environmental consultants and our clients, we should see the requirement for assessing uncertainty as a need to provide within our reports our data quality objectives. We also need to assess the uncertainty within our data and to show the regulator where the uncertainty lies within our assessments. All too often, there is a reliance on stating that samples were analysed at an MCERTs accredited laboratory and little to no analysis of actual uncertainty which should include an assessment of sampling. We need to make sure our clients who may be cash limited local authorities, understand that in undertaking an assessment of uncertainty there may be a need to increase the number of samples in the sampling program. The new guidance also introduces the use of background data for assessing contamination in areas where a contaminant such as As might occur naturally or such as where PAHs may be elevated in the local environment for factors not associated with any industrial process. Using Background as an assessment tool can be contentious as defining background is not straight forward and while it is clear that DEFRA is hoping that using Background will assist those sites where the levels of contaminant are above Generic Assessment Criteria but are not due to industrial processes, there could continue to be issues associated with how background is determined and which method is appropriate. While the BGS has mapped a number of metals and some organic contaminants across the UK to create geochemical maps, there are issues with using them to emphatically define background. Sample spacing may not be fine enough, methods of analysis different from those used in environmental testing labs and sample collection may be limited to specific geologic horizons which do not correlate to environmental sampling programs. There are a number of methods and tools which are used to assess background. These will require that an appropriate number of samples be collected and analysed in order to be able to assess the population distribution and to separate overlapping populations. Some methods for assessing background of heavy metals require the analysis of certain major elements such as Fe, Al and Si in order to normalise the data to the elements and again assess the distribution and identify background and anomalous populations. It is likely that Local Authorities will desire outside advice on
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interpreting background information and just as likely that Environmental Consultancies will use different approaches. The arguments with respect to assessing background have been going on in the Academic community for over 30 years and are likely to continue. I can see the need for CIRIA or CLAIRE to undertake a review on how background is assessed and develop guidance that can be used by regulator and industry alike. The guidance also contains a discussion on the appropriate use of Generic Assessment Criteria, which should not be used to determine a site but rather in a first stage assessment. It is important that if a site is being considered for determination that a full detailed quantitative risk assessment be undertaken. It is quite clear in the guidance that remediation should not be based upon Generic Assessment Criteria but rather a risk derived remedial target that has been assessed and determined to be achievable through a pragmatic remedial approach. In discussing remediation, the guidance encourages local authorities to allow innovative remedial approaches to be employed provided there is a back up plan if the new technique does not work. In reviewing the proposed Guidance it become pretty clear that the responsibility for identifying, assessing and managing the remediation of contaminated land will move firmly to the Local Authority. The Environment Agency may provide some advice or guidance but actually determining if soil or groundwater has been remediated will be within the remit of the Local Authority and not the Environment Agency. I have reviewed this guidance document looking to see if I have missed something, but it looks to me as though the EA will only be involved so far as licensing is concerned and otherwise the Local Authority will be the primary regulator. The EA only appears to be responsible for Special Sites. This will probably have a significant impact on Environmental Consultancies and industrial clients as there will be differences in capabilities between local authorities and a contaminated land officer cannot be expected to also be an expert in the vast number of remedial technologies and the verification process. There will be a need for external advice which may come from another consultancy which in turn can lead to issues surrounding proprietary technology. There could be a scenario where a client has two sites in different local authority areas with similar geologies and similar issues and that one local authority accepts a proposed remedial technology and another rejects the same technology. Industrial Clients or Local Authorities may find that there is a need for appointing a second consultancy to act as a Monitor to review the investigation and remediation works and to provide sign off to the client that the works |98| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
have been conducted according to the proposed scope of work and used best practice techniques. This is already happening on some large development sites. It will be necessary to show that the Monitor is experienced and competent to undertake this work. While the above discussion may be taken as doom saying, it cannot be ignored. The guidance as it currently stands is not perfect. DEFRA rightly identifies it as being too long and vague in places. However, in devolving all responsibility to the Local Authorities, it is necessary to ensure that the guidance that will be needed for the Local Authorities and their advisors exists and is in place in order to be sure that this Guidance is implemented appropriately. It is interesting to note, that while the Guidance brings Controlled Waters firmly into the regime, there remains a void with respect to sediments within UK legislation. Sediments have only been considered in legislation associated with dredging activities, yet in order to achieve higher water quality status in some water courses sediments will have to be addressed. It is possible as we move through 2011 that issues surrounding sediments and water quality will become more widely discussed. There is a reference to sediments within the Environmental Liability legislation and within the proposed EC Soil Framework Directive. This directive will probably eventually be adopted and we should be looking at what tools we will need in order to evaluate soil structure and biodiversity. Rather than wait for the directive to be adopted, legislation to be put into place and then want guidance, we should be reviewing the directive and looking at what tools we need and what we think would be best practice for implementation. In this way we could be assisting in preparing any associated guidance as the legislation is introduced rather then demanding that the government now tell us how they want us to do it. It is my belief that as we come out of the recession, the changes to the contaminated land regime will not halt the process of evaluating and remediating contaminated land. Local Authorities will require more assistance in their program of site evaluation. There will also be a need for assistance in evaluating proposed development projects on Brownfield sites. Owners of problem sites will find that both the consultants undertaking work on their behalf and the regulators have a requirement to assess uncertainty which will provide the site owners more certainty in the investigations and risk assessments. However, there will be a need for more Non Statutory Guidance and this needs to be developed quickly.
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SUDS and the Danger of Land Contamination from Spills and Firewater By Brian M Back, Chairman, Environmental Innovations Limited Sadly, polluted streams and rivers are daily news stories, however, the sudden or gradual contamination of land seldom makes the headlines. Scandalously, according to a recent string of surveys, very few people seem to be aware of the risks and obligations that their business has under the various Environmental Directives with respect to protecting the environment from uncontrolled spills or leaks of oils, chemicals and firewater. Even fewer had any idea as to the long-term environmental and financial damage that can result from spills or leaks seeping/entering the actual soil. If you pardon the pun, the deeper you dig, the worse the story gets. Many people you speak to, especially farmers, readily admit off the record that they have in the past buried the odd leaking barrel of chemicals, the carcasses of dead animals, contaminated soil or demolition waste on their land etc, with little thought of the long term consequences. Under the new Civil Sanctions and the Environmental Liability Directive (ELD (2004/35/EC) the polluter pays principle applies. As we have all recently witnessed with the United States regulations following the Deep Water Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, remediation and compensation costs can dwarf the fines and can be financially devastating even to the largest of businesses. The European laws are exactly the same, simply there is no cap and no escape with the ELD. Also be warned, the Directive clearly states in one of its opening paragraphs that ignorance is no defence. Directors and owners of polluting businesses can also be ultimately made personally liable and can even be jailed. Finally, the liability will follow you and your business, with apparently no time limit should you decide to vacate the site and leave the pollution behind. |100| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Findings that form part of a comprehensive report we are currently compiling, backed up with direct across the table discussions with the Environment Agency that took place this month (January 2011), demonstrate clearly that ignorance is rife across industry. A drastic education programme is required at all levels, across virtually every sector and that even includes environmental consultants and bodies conducting ISO14001 audits. This is especially most evident when you consider the increased risks that have arisen since the introduction of SUDS (Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems). We can testify that, from the recent planning application for the construction of our new offices and research facility Local Authorities insisted upon the installation of SUDS drainage. However, their notes made no mention of pollution risks, other than suggesting that a small oil interceptor may be a good idea to collect the roadway runoff. For readers who are not familiar with SUDS, the idea is that rain that falls on your site should no longer be directed to the public sewers, streams or rivers, but rather dissipated within the land of the site via soakaways. By using soakaways the natural rainwater cycle is restored, with its inherent time delays, substantially reducing the risk of flash floods and sewer spills from storm overloads. That was the positive side of the story, now for the negative. Just imagine the situation where you have a major spill or fire on your site where you have just installed a 200 cubic meter soakaway for SUDS. Those of you that turn around and say, “but we have a spill kit�, should think again! Have you really considered the probability of being able to cope with a major spill of something soluble that will pass clean through your oil interceptor (if you have one) or, worse still, the runoff from a fire, referred to in the industry as firewater? Firewater inevitably contains a cocktail of substances. This can include released materials and chemicalS that
were stored in the building, fire fighting foam (PFOS), as well as dissolved and particulate materials formed from the combustion process itself. Firewater can be particularly polluting when the building or site contains materials like pesticides, chemicals, plastics, foams, oils and detergents. However, any type of building has the potential to produce toxic materials in the event of a fire. Parcel warehouses for example are considered to be a particularly high risk. Packed with boxes, the contents of which are generally unknown means that the resultant cocktail could contain virtually anything, which ultimately the site owner/operator will be liable for. The Fire Services estimate that they use approximately 500,000 litres of water per hour to fight an average fire. If unabated this could simply pass straight through a drainage system into the SUDS soakaway, creating a second and potentially even more expensive disaster. And before you ask, it is the site owner’s responsibility to identify the risk and to contain the firewater, not the Fire Service, their job first and foremost is to save lives, extinguish the fire safely and finally to consider pollution. Ultimately this may mean that if you don’t have adequate firewater containment they may decide quite rightly not to extinguish the fire but to let it burn out – something they call a controlled burn. You end up with a pile of ashes if you are lucky! Under the Environment Agency guidelines the fitting of an oil interceptor is recommended to SUDS soakaways. However, oil interceptors have a finite capacity, must be regularly serviced and will not stop soluble pollutants such as firewater. With soil contamination fines, clean up costs regularly reaching seven figures, plus the massive devaluation of land value that follows, plus the on-going cost of continuous monitoring for perhaps 20 years and the insurance blight, businesses need to urgently reassess their risks associated with uncontrolled spills of all types, just in the same way as they would for their IT system as both affect business continuity. Simply speak to most insurance underwriters and they will clearly state that easily identifiable risks that have not been adequately mitigated are not covered. Certainly the facts speak for themselves as you don’t need to be a CHOMA site to create a pollution incident. The EA acknowledge that over 75% of the major pollution incidents in the UK come from non-regulated sites.
pollution mitigation environmental consultant. a) Does your site handle or store, deliver, take delivery of, transfer, process, handle any liquid, powder or soluble substance other than water? (If so, then there is a risk of pollution from spills.) YES/NO b) Does your site store, deliver, take delivery of, transfer, process or handle any flammable items from paper through to chemicals? (If so there is a risk from firewater.) YES/NO c)
Does your drains lead to a river, stream, ditch, dyke or SUDS soak away? (If so you have a direct path for pollution to either escape from your site and/or to enter the ground.)
YES/NO If you have answered yes to any of the above then you should consider one of the following mitigation techniques, which are presented in no particular order of preference and are recommended by the Environment Agency and SEPA in their publication PPG18. a)
Install full containment oil interceptors – this can be expensive as it means that all rainwater is trapped on site and has to be removed by tanker. This may have a negative impact on your business’ carbon footprint.
b)
Install a bund wall around the site – this can be impractical if the site is not level and has porous surfaces. Similarly to the full retention interceptor, rainwater has to be removed using bund pumps, passed through an oil separator and filters before entering the drainage system.
c)
Utilise the site’s drainage system converted into an emergency pollution vessel and fitted with an automatic pollution control / containment valve. To be effective however this valve needs to be fully automated to give round the clock 24/7 protection.
Following is a simple 3-point checklist that should help you identify if your business is at risk. If not already, it should become a key part of your EMS and certainly should be included in any ISO14001 audit. Put simply, if you answer YES or are in any doubt to any one or more of the following questions, your business may be at risk and you should seek professional advice from the Environment Agency for businesses located in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, SEPA for Scotland or a ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |101|
Fig 1: Protection of SUDS system using a Pollution Control Valve A decision matrix highlighting the various considerations associated with the three techniques is given below in Table 1. Table 1: Decision Matrix for Spill and Firewater Containment
Cost
Total Retention Interceptor
Full Site Bunding
In Drain Containment
£££
£££££
£
Disruption
Medium / High
High
Low
Installation Time
1-2 weeks
2-months +
1 Day
Maintenance / Running cost
Requires regular emptying plus annual leak testing
Require bund pump/s and filter systems
Annual inspection and monthly test
Pre-Installation
Survey Soil stability test. Soil contamination test, site levels, falls and flow directions survey
Porosity mapping of site required. Site levels, falls and flow directions survey.
Drain volume needs to be measured and drain checked for leaks.
Capacity
Interceptor capacity must scaled to hold both rainwater and firewater/ spill level.
Wall heights must be set to allow for 110% of the theoretical firewater /spill level.
The drain capacity must exceed 110% of the theoretical firewater / spill level. This can be increased by deliberately including surface areas that are allowed to pond. The fire service can be provided with access points from which they can re-cycle firewater from within drains to quench the fire.
Drains and bund pumps need to be closed off during an incident.
Conclusion: The land occupied by a large number of businesses is currently at risk from contamination through spills and firewater entering through their SUDS drainage systems. Oil interceptors, if fitted, are seldom adequate as they will not contain anything other than oil and have a finite capacity. Interceptors certainly cannot stop spills of water soluble chemicals, bio-diesel, cleaning products such as detergents, denser than water liquids or firewater. The risk of pollution and subsequent land contamination via SUDS is real and, if unmitigated provision should be made on balance sheets for the potential consequential financial losses. SUDS associated pollution risks should be assessed alongside those associated with all the other drainage systems on your site including those that enter the public sewer. Collectively these risks need to be included within your businesses EMS and the mitigation techniques and practices you install assessed in subsequent ISO14001 audits. The fitting of automated in-line pollution control valves within the drainage system at face value seems to offer most businesses a cost effective way of containing the risk with minimum disruption to the site’s operations and is worthy of further investigation. |102| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
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LABS AND TESTING Page 106 - 108 - Confidence and Competence: Accreditation - Jon Murthy, Marketing Director, UKAS Page 110 - 112 - Environmental Analysis - Hazel Davidson, Technical Manager, ALcontrol Labs Page 114 - 115 - Advancing in Accuracy in Gas Analysis, Gary Yates, European Product Manager, Air Products
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However, one of the issues faced by both consumers and businesses alike has been that of companies who are unable to back up their claims. Whether it is unreliable testing, faulty products or insufficient knowledge, inadequate goods and services risk wasting money at best and could have greater potential consequences. So how can customers have confidence that the goods and services that they are purchasing are reliable and fit for purpose? One of the main mechanisms that we have seen is the development of accreditation standards in environmental areas. How, then, does this work?
By Jon Murthy, UKAS Marketing Manager
How accreditation is helping industry to achieve environmental objectives
CONFIDENCE AND COMPETENCE
When environmental concerns entered mainstream public consciousness, there was a predictable growth in companies offering green products and solutions. In some ways this was exactly what environmentalists had hoped would happen – as the market demand for greener products grew, it would not only develop from a fringe concern into something far more widespread, but also it would bring down prices, making environmentally-friendly products more affordable and removing one of the barriers to purchase. This was mirrored in industry. The growth of organisations offering environmental services opened the way for competition, meaning that the end-user not only got a better deal but there was an increased incentive to engage.
reliable and consistent results and can demonstrate this. Accreditation also has a role to play in developing new technologies. For example, organisations that test the power generation of renewable energy sources – such as tidal power and wind farms – can also be accredited, demonstrating that they are delivering reliable and accurate results.
Accreditation and certification As the mechanism for checking the checkers, accreditation also helps to protect endWhat is accreditation? users. Where environmental technologies are Who checks the checkers? Or rather who concerned, this is vital – not only does it play tests the testers? It is vital to ensure that its part in ensuring that consumers get what organisations that perform any sort of testing they are paying for, it also underwrites the are competent, reliable and impartial. This is integrity of the process. If consumers do not especially true where environmental testing see the benefits of environmental technology, and management is concerned. Unreliable then they will be more likely to write it off as results could lead to incorrect decisions a bandwagon. For example, in the field of being taken and have potentially catastrophic microgeneration this means that it is crucial results. Accreditation is a method of providing there are standards against which producers assurance in the technical competence of a and installers are measured. Not only should person or body to undertake specific tests. Any accredited organisation has shown, against tough the products fulfil their claims but they should also be installed correctly and to high safety international standards, that it has technically standards. This is where the Microgeneration competent staff that are all appropriately Certification Scheme (MCS) has a role to play. qualified. It has established that it is impartial The scheme is in turn accredited, ensuring and independent. It has demonstrated that it has the appropriate facilities and equipment and that it is robust, transparent, and accountable. By ensuring that there is a chain of quality that the management and procedures are fit for assurance through accredited certification, purpose. end-users can have confidence that they are not being ripped off. So how is accreditation And finally, it has proven that everything is managed in the UK? underpinned by a Quality Management System ensuring that customer needs are met and that there are internal review procedures. Standards Introducing UKAS Under an EU Directive, each member state such as the Monitoring Certification System has to appoint a single National Accreditation (MCERTS) and PAS 2050 (Life cycle green house Body (NAB) which is responsible for assessing gases) exist for precisely this reason – they against internationally-recognised standards ensure that verification bodies are delivering
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and awarding accredited status. In Britain this is the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS). UKAS was appointed the UK NAB in January 2010 but in fact it has been the sole body recognised by government to accredit organisations since its inception in 1995 and has links going back to the 1960s. UKAS accredits against any kind of conformity assessment, encompassing testing, calibration, inspection and certification. A not-for-profit company limited by guarantee, it operates under a Memorandum of Understanding with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills but is a private entity, guaranteeing impartiality and removing the need for government inspectors. Becoming UKAS accredited is a rigorous process in order to deliver public confidence in quality assurance. The assessment cycle lasts four years, with two assessment visits and two surveillance visits to ensure that standards are maintained. UKAS draws on a pool of expert assessors in each field to ensure that the highest standards are met. Moreover, UKAS has ‘teeth’; organisations that fail to live up to the robust standards can have their accredited status suspended or even withdrawn. Being UKAS accredited is a serious and internationally respected statement of confidence in an organisation’s abilities. So what benefits can it bring? Benefits of accreditation As a mechanism for delivering confidence, accreditation has benefits for both providers and procurers of products and services as well as end-users. The first benefit to providers is that demonstrating competence is a proven way to offer differentiation in existing marketplaces and open new ones. This is especially true overseas – under Multilateral Recognition Agreements, UKAS accreditation is recognised in over 80 countries worldwide. Clearly, in a fast-moving marketplace such as environmental testing, being able to demonstrate competence will help in pitching for business. There are also internal benefits. As the assessment is undertaken by experts, there is a capacity for knowledge sharing. Robust assessments of management and quality processes make it much easier to identify duplication and increase efficiency, meaning that companies can save time and money. Finally, as accreditation is recognised as an indicator of best practice, insurance firms are starting to offer increased cover or reduced
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premiums to UKAS-accredited bodies, also having a beneficial impact on the bottom line. For companies sourcing testing or verification, there are also benefits. Using accredited organisations allows them to make an informed choice and removes some of the ‘unknowns’ from the procurement process. An organisation that holds UKAS accreditation has been assessed against rigorous internationally-recognised standards and pronounced fit for purpose. This means there is a robust trail of accountability demonstrating both best practice and due diligence. Knowing that the organisation you are considering is competent takes some of the risk out of the supply chain. For organisations that are having products certified, it is crucial to choose an accredited certification body. As with testing, this ensures that the certification process is impartial and accountable all the way through. Holding UKAS-accredited certification for products, or services such as installation, is a clear demonstration of quality and best practice. Delivering Confidence When someone purchases from an accredited source, be it an end-user or a purchaser for a business or organisation, they can have confidence that they are getting something best suited to their needs and that this has been assessed, and proven, to an internationallyaccepted level. Where environmental services and technologies are concerned, this not only means that procurers can be assured that they are getting ‘best fit’ but also that results will be reliable and processes will comply with best practice – essential where testing or sampling is concerned. For providers, gaining accredited status or accredited certification means being able to demonstrate competence. Ultimately accreditation is about delivering confidence, helping businesses to show that they are what they say they are.
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Hazel Davidson
In addition, accredited laboratories all participate in proficiency testing schemes such as Contest and Aquacheck, and this data should be available on request from the laboratory. Again, checking the range of parameters in which the laboratory participates is important – some will not submit data for the more difficult analyses because of the risk of a failed ‘Z’ score. Deviating (or non-conforming) samples A recent policy statement from UKAS now requires laboratories to highlight deviating samples in their reports. These are samples which are either not sampled correctly or experience analytical problems, for example:
Environmental Analysis recent changes and future requirements In this article, Hazel Davidson, Technical Manager at ALcontrol Laboratories, examines the dual impacts of the credit crunch and ever more stringent EU legislation in the environmental analysis market. She also outlines the most important issues to consider when selecting a laboratory, to ensure the most reliable, meaningful, and cost effective data. Accreditation Laboratories should be accredited to both ISO 17025 and to MCERTS (the Environment Agency’s Monitoring Certification Scheme) for the appropriate materials (soil, air, water). Methods are accredited individually and it is also important to ensure that the scope of accredited testing covers a wide range of parameters, because some laboratories are only accredited for a very limited number of tests. MCERTS for waters came into effect in July 2010, but only for urban waste waters (UWW) – wastewater treatment, sewage and some trade effluents. It is expected that the Environment Agency (EA) will extend this to more trade effluents in 2011 and possibly other environmental waters at a later date. An important component of this standard is the requirement for organisations performing the sampling of these waters to be accredited to ISO 17025 to ensure that the correct procedures are followed in a controlled and documented manner. |110| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
• • • • • • • •
No separate volatile container supplied Headspace present in volatile or BOD container No preserved bottles supplied Holding time exceeded Temperature exceeded No sampling date supplied (mandatory for MCERTS) AQC failed during run and sample cannot be repeated Deviation from method, e.g. limited sample size or matrix issues
The onus is now on the consultant/contractor to ensure that samples are taken correctly, because nonconforming samples may invalidate the integrity of the data. Legislation and Standards The Water Framework Directive seeks to ensure that all river basin management systems should achieve ‘good’ status by 2015 and has had a major impact on water monitoring. Various daughter directives have arisen, such as bathing waters, and a directive covering groundwaters was published in August 2010. The EA also recently published the updated version of Hydrogeological Risk Assessments for Landfills and the Derivation of Groundwater Control Levels and Compliance Limits, which replaces the 2003 version, and includes a tiered approach to risk assessment. Another standard recently published is the ‘UKWIR (2010) Guidance for the Selection of Water Supply Pipes to be used in Brownfield Sites’. Again, an extensive list of potential contaminants is listed. These documents include annexes listing the priority pollutants and recommended limits of detection, which may be difficult for laboratories to achieve, particularly with very contaminated matrices. Methods such as GCMS/MS or HPLC/MS are used to reach very low detection limits and larger sample volumes may be required. In the current economic climate, it may be difficult for smaller laboratories to obtain funding for the purchase of these very expensive instruments. This may cause an increased polarisation of the industry, with
some laboratories offering more routine analysis, and other laboratories specialising in the high-tech, nonroutine, more expensive analyses. The standard used for site investigations and soil sampling, BS 10175, is currently undergoing an extensive re-write and this will include an updated section on sampling and analysis. This will stress the importance of correct sampling and will lead to site engineers splitting samples into correct bottles and also filtering on site. This is more time consuming, but will be necessary to prevent non-conforming samples.
• • • •
location, site, date window, etc. Numerous reporting formats, plus vertical/horizontal conversion Access through website – no specific software needed Access to collection/container ordering – simple 3 step system Result notifications or alarm messages via SMS or email
DEFRA is currently amending Section Part IIA of the Contaminated Land part of the Environmental Protection Act, in an effort to simplify the requirements because it is considered that some sites are currently overremediated. They intend to implement a system of ‘red, amber/red, amber/green, and green’ for site classification, and that normal urban background levels (or some soil/rock types) for some compounds, will not be considered as contamination. This is likely to lead to reduced requirements for analytical site investigations and remediation, so may impact further on the numbers of soil samples sent for analysis.
A further important function offered by @mis is selfscheduling and this aspect should experience major expansion during 2011. Using @mis, site engineers can log sample data and schedule tests via a hand held PDA or laptop (as long as there is an internet connection). The container is scanned with a bar code reader, the information typed in and sent. This means the samples are registered at the laboratory before they arrive and can then be passed straight into the testing area, with no delays for logging in and scheduling. This can save 1 – 2 days (or longer) on the turnaround/holding times, and soggy, illegible Chain of Custody sheets will become a thing of the past. Currently, only 25% of sample batches are received with correctly completed Chain of Custody sheets and this causes significant delays in sample processing.
Electronic Data Handling This area has probably seen the most significant changes over the last two or three years and is likely to continue to grow. All laboratories now offer some kind of electronic reporting, and the requirement for hard copy reports has dwindled. However, it is not sufficient to only offer standard Excel reports; consultants and contractors require a variety of formats and do not want to spend time manipulating data to fit in with their reports. Examples of these are AGS, EQuiS and National Grid format, plus a standard csv file, as well as client specific formats.
Summary Environmental laboratories have experienced severe pressures over the last two years, with a large drop in sample numbers due to the contraction of the construction industry. This has led to increased competition between laboratories, with contractors and consultants putting pressure on pricing. As a result, it is important for laboratories to distinguish themselves from their competitors by making improvements in areas such as accreditation, sample handling and analysis speed, accuracy, and the simplicity and flexibility with which results are made available.
Certificates are usually supplied in pdf, but other formats are necessary if the data is needed for other reporting purposes. ALcontrol’s web-based ‘@mis’ system provides the freedom to extract such data or sub-sets such as time-series.
The use of autosamplers on all instruments means that they can work unattended at night and improvements to sample handling/preparation are essential for a laboratory to run productively. Shorter turnaround times with improved data handling can also assist in providing a better service.
Currently, many consultants and contractors use AGS v.3.1, but v.4 was released in May 2009, which has much greater functionality. Laboratories should now be working to offer this format to their clients.
Laboratories that focus on customer needs, offering additional capability such as electronic reporting and technical support, will emerge from recession in the strongest position to prosper during economic recovery.
The demand for additional functionality has increased significantly. For example, @mis offers many useful features, including: • • • • •
Data available 24/7 in real time Reporting individual or multiple batches Archiving data for up to six years Setting project specific acceptance values and automated flagging if these are exceeded. Advanced query search on sample, batch, project,
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Advancing accuracy in gas analysis By Gary Yates, Air Products European product manager for the analytical market
As environmental legislation continues to tighten, emissions testing and monitoring certainly doesn’t get any easier and demand for accurate gas analysis has never been greater. But how is the gas industry responding to the challenge to improve accuracy? The drive for accuracy is driven by the growing demands of environmental legislation. Industry is currently required to comply with a highly complex set of legislative emissions limits and targets, reporting their data at national and international levels. At the same time, the number of pollutants facing scrutiny is growing and advanced methods of gas analysis are increasingly required in order to measure multiple components at low concentrations. This legislative change is continuing. The EU Industrial Emissions Directive was approved on 7 July 2010, strengthening the pollution limits that industrial installations will have to comply with and introducing stricter limits on pollutants such as nitrogen oxides (NOx) and sulphur dioxide (SO2). Installations have until 2016 to comply with the stricter limits. There are also plans to extend the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). Launched in 2005, the scheme is in force across member states and covers carbon dioxide emissions from a range of installations. Airlines will join the scheme in 2012 and the scheme will also be expanded to the petrochemicals, ammonia and aluminium industries and to additional gases in 2013. |114| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
In addition, the EU’s registration, evaluation, authorisation and restriction of chemicals (REACH) legislation is progressing and the deadline for the first registrations passed at the end of November 2010. In 2011, the chemical industry is putting together a plan to review the legislation, which will be undertaken by the European Commission in 2012. The emissions testing industry realises that it cannot afford to watch and wait for these legislative developments to take shape. Demand for highly accurate and reliable measurements is ongoing and this has already led to developments in the world of specialty gases. Increasing shelf-life One of the most interesting developments to take place recently is a move to extend the shelf-life of the gas mixtures, which are commonly used in analytical calibration. Until recently, gas mixtures – some of which may contain up to 100 components – had an industry-wide maximum shelf-life limit of five years. Developments by Air Products in advanced cylinder treatments and in the way these mixtures are produced have now allowed this limit to be doubled to ten years, which means laboratory analysts can store and use them for longer, with total confidence of their stability.
The extended shelf-life of analytical gases is particularly useful in emissions testing and monitoring applications because such applications typically use small quantities of gas for each calibration. Analysts also benefit from increased peace of mind when purchasing calibration mixtures that stay stable for considerably longer. As well as increasing the shelf-life of gas mixtures, the specialty gas industry has expanded its range of top grade calibration mixtures. These mixtures provide an assurance of accuracy in even the most demanding analytical applications and come with ISO 17025 certification, fulfilling UKAS and other equivalent European standards. The extended range includes mixtures with components commonly used in emissions monitoring applications, such as nitrogen oxides, sulphur oxides or carbon monoxides, at ultra low concentrations, down to low ppb levels, in air or in nitrogen, in order to achieve the most accurate calibration possible. Making the right choice Choosing the right gas mixture for each analytical calibration can sometimes be difficult. Gas analysts need to ensure that the components that make up the mixture are high quality, as this will minimise uncertainties and ensure that the measurements taken are of the highest accuracy. With this in mind, an easy-to-use online tool has been developed, which enables the user to select bespoke mixtures comprising only the highest quality gases, which come with quality certificates and are fully traceable. All the analyst needs to do is specify some simple data including the preferred cylinder size, mixture type and composition. This kind of tool is increasingly vital in the fast-moving world of emissions monitoring and control, where fast and accurate analysis across a range of emissions is required. Today’s emissions monitoring systems are capable of making accurate analyses for all emissions regardless of their reactivity or their concentrations. Their improved accuracy is in part due to improved access to top grade calibration gas mixtures that stay stable for longer. In the field of emissions monitoring, it is now possible to achieve precise analyses for reactive gases such as HCl emissions, against average daily values of 10mg/m3, as specified in Annex V of the Waste Emissions Directive.
Selecting the right equipment In the drive to improve accuracy in the field of gas analysis, there is always room for further improvement. For example, care is needed when selecting the right equipment. While expert advice is sometimes needed to make the right choice, analysts can now use an online tool to browse and select the equipment they need. By completing the online criteria - requesting details of a variety of variables about the specific application - the analyst can select the right equipment and eliminate any possibility of error. For example, it may be necessary to maintain a precise outlet pressure throughout the use of the cylinder, even when inlet pressure varies. Taking account of such criteria is vital and can have a significant effect on the accuracy of the calibration and therefore of the measurements given. The right choice of material can also be crucial; for safety, purity or compatibility reasons. When using corrosive gases, for example, only stainless steel equipment should be used and when oxygen or oxidizing gas mixtures are being used, brass equipment is preferred. Of course, it can be easy to overlook one or more of the variables involved in equipment selection. Among the most common errors made when choosing equipment is failing to recognise that a double-stage regulator is needed or specifying equipment which will provide the wrong outlet pressure. Using the new online equipment selector, all the thinking is done in advance, so all the user needs to do is answer a simple set of questions and a recommendation for the best equipment model is made. Such smart solutions are performing an increasingly important role in improving the accuracy and reliability of gas analysis and they will continue to do so in the future. For more information about Air Products’ Experis® range of gases and gas handling equipment, ring 0845 777 8800 or email getgas@airproducts.com. For expert advice on the selection of gases and the equipment, the online equipment selector can be viewed at www. airproducts.co.uk/equipmentselector and the online mixture selector can be viewed at www.airproducts. co.uk/experismixtureselector.
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WATER Page 118 - 120 - 21 Years of Progress - Regina Finn, Chief Executive Officer, Ofwat Page 122 - 127 - UK Water Research - Rebecca Slack, Lee Brown, Mitchell & Joseph Holden, water@leeds
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21 Years of Progress By Regina Finn, Chief Executive Officer, Ofwat
pay out more than £500m, from their own pockets where they have failed their customers. New challenges ahead Our approach to regulation, with its combination of incentives and tough targets, has worked well. With these successes behind us, it might be tempting to simply crank the handle again when we come to setting price limits in 2014. But that approach will not keep delivering anymore. The solutions of the past won’t meet the challenges of the future. Because those challenges are different. We face a changing and more unpredictable climate and that is impacting on our water resource – for the last four years we have had either a drought or a flood every year, and last year we had both in the one year. And we are facing significant population growth, particularly in south-east England where water is already scarce – we must be able to meet the water needs of those people. At the same time we need to meet rising environmental standards, including the implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive. All of this, against a background of economic uncertainty and the consequent affordability issues this raises.
So we must start to do things differently.
We have come a long way since the water and sewerage sectors were privatised 21 years ago. In 1989 polluted beaches and rivers, and a neglected infrastructure meant we were seen as the ‘dirty man of Europe’. In 1990, less than 80% of England and Wales’s bathing waters met the required standards. The sector needed significant investment, yet taxpayers had little appetite for spending more. Water companies were seen as inefficient, and there was little incentive for them to improve standards of service. Privatisation of the sector tackled these challenges head on. And we have made significant progress. We now have salmon in the Mersey, more than 100 Blue Flag beaches, leakage is down a third since its mid 90s peak, and our drinking water is recognised as up there with the best in Europe. To get there, the water and sewerage companies have invested about £90 billion between 1989 and 2010. This is double the rate of investment before privatisation. Yet, we have been able to keep bill increases down by driving out inefficiencies from both sectors. Bills are 30% lower than they would have been without our regulation. A litre of tap water delivered and taken away costs less than a penny. And where customers have been let down, we have taken action. In the last five years water companies have had to |118| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Future regulation This is why at the end of 2009, we announced our future regulation programme. This is a root and branch review of how we regulate, considering whether there are better, more sustainable ways of doing things. We are lucky, we have the success of the past to build on, and we have a unique window of opportunity in which to develop our approach to future challenges. We need to make sure we are in the best position to deliver sustainable water – socially, economically and environmentally – both now and in the long term. 2010 was spent building consensus about the challenge we face, developing our thinking and gathering and incorporating feedback from our stakeholders. This has been invaluable, as we are still at the stage where we are looking to ask questions and explore options rather than deliver answers. 2011 is a crucial year. The Natural Environment White Paper is expected in the spring, along with the conclusions of David Gray’s independent review of Ofwat. His conclusions will feed into the Water White Paper in the summer. And by autumn 2011 we plan to pull together details of how price limits might be set and consult on high level framework principles. Although we are not at the stage where we have drawn conclusions, we can give you some idea of our direction of travel in two key areas.
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Reducing the regulatory burden From June returns to regulatory accounts, principal statements to charges schemes, the regulatory process has transformed into a formidable machine that demands to be fed. In 1990, the annual return had 16 tables in it, and 64 pages of reporting guidance. In 2010 there were 77 tables and 854 pages of guidance. And the man hours that go into checking, querying, analysing and quality checking this – by companies and us – are considerable. This is not sustainable.
environment and make decisions based on that value. A good example of our lack of understanding of water’s value is the perverse way we price abstraction rights.
So we set up our regulatory compliance project to look at how we need to change. With the successes we have under our belt, now is the time to focus just on the riskiest areas rather than analysing everything in sight. This means we will have to find new ways of identifying those risks – where is failure most likely? We could learn this from more sophisticated customer complaint analysis; from greater use of our whistleblower charter; from listening to stakeholders – environmentalists, investors or others. Or from targeted information requests.
Revealing the value of water through measures such as reforming the abstraction regime and water trading would encourage informed, long term decisions. It would give us better information about the relative value of water in different locations and at different times. We will be in a better position to make sure we are investing in the right place at the right time for the right price to the benefit of customers and the environment.
Companies would benefit from a reduced reporting burden, while we would be able to better protect consumers by focusing our resources on the areas where they are most required. And of course all our costs would be reduced.
At the moment it is cheaper to take water from the River Thames, where water is pretty scarce and you could be doing environmental damage, than it is to take water from the environment in Northumbria, where there is lots of water and abstraction is unlikely to damage the environment.
By valuing our resources in the right way we send clear messages, not only to companies about how they should plan and use resources more efficiently, but also to consumers about the care they should take in using those services. It will also offer an incentive for water intensive industries to make more sustainable decisions both on where they locate their business and on what facilities they invest in to abstract, treat, deliver and manage water.
We set out our initial thinking on how we might achieve this in our report “Getting it right for customers – How can we make monopoly water and sewerage companies more accountable?” And we have sent a clear signal on our commitment to reducing the amount of data companies need to provide us with. For 2010-11, we are not asking companies to provide extensive commentaries on each section of their annual June returns. One company provided us with 800 pages of commentary last year. This year they won’t have to do that and we won’t have to read and analyse those 800 pages.
A pivotal moment Our world is changing, and we need to adapt. Only by working together - Government, regulators, companies and consumers – can we deliver sustainable water. And make sure that customers continue to receive the safe and reliable services they expect at a price that is clear, fair and affordable.
But the most important thing of all if we are to move away from a one-size-fits-all to a more risked based approach is a change in culture. We are all used to having a lot of data to analyse in this sector. We all need to move away from that. Water companies will increasingly need to manage their risk. Regulators will need to let go, standing back where appropriate focusing on the areas that matter most to consumers.
Just as we were at the dawn of privatisation 21 years ago, we are at a pivotal moment – and we need to act with the decisiveness we did back in 1989 to ensure the continuing success of the sector.
Valuing water One key to doing this is understanding the value of water. Depending on time and location, water is a more or less scarce resource. Without a value of water that reflects this scarcity, those who use water have no way of understanding its true cost and so we have no incentive to manage or use it wisely. We need to understand the value of water to us as a society; its value economically; its value to the |120| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
We need to look beyond solutions that entail simply pouring concrete. We have time to develop new way of doing things, but cannot afford the luxury of delay.
Ofwat is keen to get as much input as possible from the sector. For more details on their future regulatory programme and how to get involved, please visit www.ofwat.gov.uk
UK water research – what do policymakers need to know?
Freshwater biodiversity - Katrina Hemingway
By Rebecca Slack, Lee Brown, Gordon Mitchell & Joseph Holden, water@leeds
Communicating water research - Yee Wei Kheoh
Water@leeds, the water research centre at the University of Leeds, was formed in 2008 with the aim of providing cutting-edge, interdisciplinary research on the grand challenges concerning water. Changes to the hydrological cycle as a consequence of climate and land use drivers, population growth, migration and the global economy are expected to have very significant impacts on people and the environment. The academic research sector is well placed to investigate the effects of different environmental parameters and policy decisions on water management but there is frequently a disconnection between research and policy development. While the last decade has seen the development of ‘evidence-based policy’ and a move away from ideological policies, there remains a critical need for more researcher-practitioner debate to stimulate attempts to find appropriate solutions. In the UK, there are a number of issues concerned with water resource management. The rising cost of energy for water treatment and distribution, as well as pressures for a low carbon economy, have underlined water utilities’ dependence on energy. The Pitt Review (2008) highlighted the uncertainties over future flooding, while the impact of climate change on water resources is still much debated, particularly if the recent freezing temperatures seen across the UK continue, resulting in pipes bursting and disruptions to the water supply. UK housing demand is such that the built environment will expand over coming years, potentially compounding problems of water pollution and flooding, as well as increasing demand for water. Rising demand leads to pressure to overabstract waters needed to maintain ecological health, a |122| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Freshwater pollution - Rebecca Slack/ water@leeds
problem that could exacerbate failures to meet EU Water Framework Directive quality targets. A further key issue facing the management of UK water resources relates to how the water sector is structured and governed. Within the water and sewerage industry, there are different structures of company ownership in each of the devolved nations of the UK (All Party Parliamentary Water Group [APPWG], 2008). With the wide range of other bodies responsible for water management (e.g. environmental protection agencies, internal drainage boards, planning authorities, etc), it is clear that the UK water sector is institutionally complex and this may hamper sustainable water management (Pitt, 2008). Financing of the water industry also has significant implications for innovation intended to promote water sector sustainability. For example, in England and Wales, regulators’ concerns over customers’ ability to pay for water services means that water utilities must renew an ageing infrastructure against a backdrop of tight budgetary constraints (APPWG, 2008), rising customer debt (Emaginating, 2009), and five year planning cycles which may be too short to promote long- range planning for sustainability. Since 2000, there has been a 60% decline in investment in research and development in the UK water sector (APPWG, 2008). These challenges, which focus on the sustainable use of water and associated factors, need to be addressed through strategic actions and decision-making that are driven by evidence-based policy. Research, however, needs to be clearly directed at issues that influence policies. It is in this context that water@leeds turned
to policy-makers and other water-focussed stakeholders to suggest what information and research they require from the scientific community to enable more effective policy decisions. Governmental institutes, non-governmental organisations, industry, business, academia and other policy stakeholders were asked to submit questions whose answers they and their organisations perceived as being key to the future of water in the UK. Over 700 questions were received and these were discussed at a subsequent workshop to which all questionnaire respondents were invited, with workshop participants discussing which questions possessed the greatest relevance to current and near future water policy. A total of 94 questions were finally identified and grouped into nine ‘themes’ based on similarity of content, although there is inevitably some overlap reflecting the systemic nature of water research. The full 94 questions are listed below, separated into the most appropriate theme. These nine themes reflect the thematic areas that emerged from the workshop but they, and the questions therein, are not presented in any ‘priority’ order. A subsequent priortisation exercise involving workshop participants and other stakeholders further identified the water research questions considered to be of greatest importance to UK policymakers (Box 1). Further details of the methodological approach which led to the 94 questions and the prioritised questions can be found in the recently published paper by Brown et al. (2010), which also includes a detailed discussion of the research topics and questions identified. Extreme events 1. How can we work with natural ecosystems such as wetlands, salt marshes, upland forests and moorland to reduce flood risk? 2. How much water will be coming through UK river networks under different climate change scenarios? 3. What are the best ways to retain more water upstream for supply purposes in times of drought or to prevent flooding events downstream during extreme precipitation events? 4. What are the risks to water supply infrastructure under future scenarios of extreme rainfall events? 5. How can we reduce uncertainty in the prediction of floods and droughts? 6. How can we efficiently and effectively plan adaptation measures to cope with extreme events given the uncertainty associated with model predictions? 7. How can we improve flood resilience and adaptation at the individual, community and population level to improve emergency planning and protect key infrastructure? 8. How can proper economic analyses be integrated into flood management budgets? 9. What opportunities exist for improving dissemination and communication of flood information, particularly
Extreme events - Lee Mason
10. 11.
on risk and flood warnings? Who is responsible for reducing risk from flooding, including economic loss from infrastructure damage? How far should we go with managed realignment of coasts and flood banks?
Freshwater pollution 12. Should we spend money on reducing pollutant input to water bodies to meet new standards if there is no evidence of change to the biota after the intervention? 13. Given the lack of unimpacted ‘reference’ systems in the UK, how can we develop a systematic approach that uses local ‘before-after controls’ to compare environmental response to remediation strategies? 14. How are upland lake and stream ecosystems responding to changes in water quality (e.g. rising dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen concentrations)? 15. How do water-substrate interactions in stream hyporheic zones or lake sediments influence ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |123|
16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22.
pollutant concentrations? What are the effects of pollutant loads versus concentrations on aquatic species, populations, community processes and functioning? How do the timing and magnitude of pollutant inputs affect freshwater ecosystems, and what implications do they have for pollution regulation to remain within environmental limits? What are the cumulative effects (synergistic, additive) of multiple-stressors? For example, how will changes in thermal dynamics due to climate change influence the mobility and effect of pollutant loads? Where should monitoring technologies be deployed to better detect environmental problems? Where, and under what conditions, could the remobilisation of historic pollutants threaten the status of freshwaters? How can we improve models to better understand and predict the impacts of effluent on river water quality? What impacts will targeted sediment management in catchment headwaters have further down the system (e.g. removing sediment supply to estuaries, changing niche space)?
Freshwater biodiversity 23. How will changing flow regimes affect freshwater and estuarine ecosystem structure and function? 24. What can be done to stop the spread of invasive alien aquatic species? 25. How can information on species traits and responses to environmental stressors be aggregated and disseminated to inform studies of biodiversity and ecosystem resilience? 26. How can functional redundancy in aquatic ecosystems be evaluated best, and can information on redundancy (or lack of) inform freshwater ecosystem management? 27. What is the role of freshwater biodiversity in freshwater ecosystem function? 28. How much ‘new’ knowledge could be derived from comparative analysis of all available long-term freshwater ecology datasets? 29. How are ecosystem function, functional diversity and water quality related? Valuing freshwater services 30. What is the total economic value of a clean water supply to the UK? 31. What is the full ecosystem service value (including regulating, provisioning, cultural and supporting services) of freshwaters? 32. When considering trade-offs between catchment ecosystem services (e.g. flood water storage versus food production; flood protection versus ecosystem function), where does the balance lie between human and environmental needs and how do you quantify it? 33. What impact do existing reservoirs have on the range of ecosystem services that would otherwise be provided? |124| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41.
If the public’s understanding of the Water Framework Directive’s concept of Good Ecological Status can be raised, will their appreciation of the value of freshwater increase? How can ecosystem service values be incorporated into development appraisal tools, and what new ecosystem service valuation tools do we need? How can the full value of water be integrated into stakeholder decisions? To what extent could the UK ecosystem service valuation exercises be used to levy pollution fines in line with the true damage to the receiving system and the human population reliant on the services delivered by that water body? How far should we go with improving the environmental quality of water? What is the true economic loss of leakage, what is an acceptable loss, and what is the most effective way to achieve such a level of efficiency? What tariff structures will best support sustainable management of water resources, recognising ecosystem services and human need? How can alternative charging systems, such as lifeline and marginal utility tariffs be efficiently and effectively implemented?
Water supply, treatment and distribution networks 42. Does the trade effluent system work, and are catchment-based risk assessments of sewer inputs possible? 43. How do we reduce effluent fluxes to sewage plants? 44. If water conservation measures reduce the flows to wastewater treatment plants, what sludge conveyance measures will be needed? 45. How can the quality of effluent to sewage plants be improved? (e.g. how do we influence the public on issues such as detergent use?) Valuing freshwater services - Josh Caudwell
46. 47. 48. 49. 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 59. 60. 61. 62.
What would we do with sewage and water supply networks if we started afresh (and considered all factors such as changing climate, population and policy); is current technology up to the job? What would a modern water/wastewater treatment plant look like if we could start afresh? How do we develop and implement low energy water and wastewater treatment processes? How do we optimise existing sewer networks (and what adaptations are needed to respond to changes in the type and volume of effluent)? Is local treatment more sustainable than a fully sewered system? How will hydrological regimes of lakes, rivers and ground waters change in response to climate change and how will this impact on water supply? Can we optimise water supply within catchments? What is the best long-term solution to water supply over periods longer than the next 30 years, and what are the potential barriers to success? Based on the drivers of the future, what is the right delivery mechanism for water in the UK? What water conservation and wastewater retrofit options for existing buildings are needed? How does public perception of water management affect their response to calls for water conservation? How can we improve people’s perceptions of re-use options such as grey water recycling? What are the effects of wasted energy, materials and resources on biodiversity? Do ‘soft engineering solutions’ such as constructed wetlands offer a cost-effective means of dealing with water treatment work problems (e.g. water colour, nitrate) and if so, where in the system could these solutions be sited? What are the marginal benefits of additional water treatments on public health? What are the environmental impacts of different uses of sludge as a product (e.g. energy source, fertilizer etc)? How can we re-use sludge so that it provides the best value to society?
Image above: Water industry governance - Rotork PLC
63. Should we be using treated water to recharge groundwater as well as rivers? Water industry governance 64. Could water exchange agreements between utilities work? 65. Would competition among water utilities deliver the right benefits for consumers and the environment? 66. How efficient does comparative efficiency between utilities make the water industry? 67. What would be the best way to modify the current five year Asset Management Plan cycle in England to incorporate dynamic changes and to achieve long-term sustainability of the water industry? 68. How could we use institutional processes to manage holistically the water cycle in the UK? 69. How do we ensure that innovation, particularly related to sustainable solutions, is maximised in the water industry? Image above: Water supply, treatment & distribution networks - Elizabeth Reather
Understanding and managing demand 70. How effective are current water demand forecasting techniques, and what developments are needed to better improve accuracy (e.g. addressing hidden usage from transient populations), and address changing drivers of, and controls on, water demand? 71. How do we change consumer behaviour regarding water (e.g. reducing the duration and volume of showers, minimising chemical use in the home)? 72.What are the best ways to analyze the relative risks of different water demand management measures? 73. What is best practice in residential and industrial water conservation? 74. How can we use technical solutions, novel tariff structures and communication for consumer engagement to make water metering more effective? 75. What are the implications of changing household technology for the water industry (e.g. impact of low flush toilets on solids transport; disposal of organic waste by sink maceration; water conservation technology rebound effects)? 76. What are the most appropriate mechanisms for dealing with water consumer debt? 77. Can income support be better targeted so that water and fuel poverty can be reduced? 78. How can ‘can’t pay’ water debtors be differentiated from ‘won’t pay’ debtors, and what ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |125|
pricing structures and measures are best able to deliver water justice and cost recovery? Communicating water research 79. How can researchers improve communication of water research to policy makers, practitioners, the public and lay audiences? 80. How can policy makers and regulators improve the flow of knowledge to scientists to ensure adequate pre- and post-monitoring of new policies? 81. How do we create the most realistic public perception of water security? 82. How do we improve knowledge transfer from research to the stakeholders with a view to implementation and practical benefits? Integrated catchment management 83. How do we change or align upstream land management to reflect long-term water quality, quantity and resource requirements and reduce the need for downstream technological fixes? 84. How do we trade-off the requirements of the Water Framework Directive with other global concerns (particularly growing demand for food and energy from biofuels)? 85. Where water utilities and regulators perceive catchment solutions to be important, what will be the effects on tenancy agreements, farmers undertakings and the degree of commercial compensation? 86. What is the right balance between the cost of treatment and in-stream ecosystem benefits? 87. Will the drive for spatial connectivity in aquatic ecosystem restoration lead to real improvements in aquatic biodiversity? 88. What are the effects of local-scale engineering schemes (e.g. hydroelectric schemes) on river ecosystems, how can we regulate them, and to what extent do these developments conflict with the policy of barrier removal to aid fish migration? 89. Where are the key opportunities for restoring floodplain space along river corridors in a manner similar to central European examples (e.g. Paillex et al., 2009)? 90. To what extent can we apply ideas of hydrological connectivity to prioritise restoration of water bodies? 91. How will hydrological and ecological connectivity between the array of freshwater bodies (streams, floodplains, ponds, lakes, groundwater) be affected by future changes in the hydrological cycle? 92. What are the benefits of river morphological restoration schemes for the broader catchment, and how can these benefits be assessed? 93. How can we adapt our agricultural systems to reduce water use in times of shortage? 94. How do we manage the water cycle to further improve public health and environmental protection? As discussed by Brown et al. (2010), the questions demonstrate that there is a clear need to improve the |126| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
communication of research as detailed research already exists to help answer some of the questions suggested by policy
Image above: Integrated catchment management - Paul Kay
stakeholders, indicating that knowledge transfer between researchers and practitioners needs to be improved; and there appears to be an emphasis on broad or aggregated policy issues over narrow, specific questions that researchers are better equipped to answer. The questions also indicate a strong demand for applied research through improved understanding of the effects of management interventions across a range of water issues and for basic research in both physical and socio-economic processes to better understand uncertainty in, for example, extreme event forecasting. Appraisal or valuation is a recurring thematic area, whether through the value of water resources, biodiversity, ecosystem services or cost-benefit analysis. In particular, the importance of healthy, functioning ecosystems is evident in a number of questions, although more needs to be done to fully embed the ‘ecosystem concept’ in the water sector. Sustainability also recurs through a number of themes and questions, with reference made to long-term planning rather than short-term intervention and a willingness to seek longterm innovative solutions from the research community across disciplines suggestive of a holistic approach to decision making in water management. It is immediately apparent from the questions, particularly the prioritised list, that most stakeholders are concerned with the impact of extreme events such as flooding and, to a much lesser extent, drought. Extreme events cross two of the main grand challenges in water research – understanding the effects of climate change
on rainfall events and the impact of land use changes (urbanisation and development) on water flow – and concentrate on adapting to changing environmental and human conditions by engineering natural and artificial barriers, storage facilities and transport mechanisms. The strong representation of questions addressing water supply, treatment and distribution, which together with questions on demand account for a third of all questions posed is notable and timely, particularly regarding the recent water supply issues in Northern Ireland, and is indicative of the major implications that water distribution exerts on all other thematic areas. An area that received surprisingly little attention was the interface of water issues with other key sectors such as food and energy security, despite concern that demand for all three will increase significantly in the coming years. Within the ten priority questions, four themes are therefore evident: the recurring focus on extreme events, valuation of freshwater services, water governance (industry level upwards) and effective communication of water research and innovation. Hence, as the UK economy is further squeezed, it is perhaps these areas that should form the focus of applied water research and enable the UK to adopt a sustainable approach to the management of water for people and the environment. Acknowledgements This article is based on a paper appearing in the journal
Science of the Total Environment, vol. 409, pages 256266, entitled “Priority water research questions as determined by UK practitioners and policy-makers” by Brown et al. We would like to thank all our co-authors who contributed to this paper and everyone who attended the original workshop at the University of Leeds in November 2009 or who provided questions. This study was funded primarily by a University of Leeds, Faculty of Environment Enterprise and Knowledge Transfer grant. More information Further details of the questions, workshop and resulting paper (Brown et al. 2010) are available from http:// www.wateratleeds.org/prioritising-water-research.php. For more information about getting involved in water research activities or to discuss potential collaborations or partnerships, please contact water@leeds. References APPWG, 2008. The future of the UK water sector. All Party Parliamentary Water Group. Brown, L E; Mitchell, G; Holden, J; Folkard, A; Wright, N; Beharry-Borg, N; Berry, G; Brierley, B; Chapman, P; Clarke, S J; Cotton, L; Dobson, M; Dollar, E; Fletcher, M; Foster, J; Hanlon, A; Hildon, S; Hiley, P; Hillis, P; Hoseason, J; Johnston, K; Kay, P; McDonald, A; Parrott, A; Powell, A; Slack, R J; Sleigh, A; Spray, C; Tapley, K; Underhill, R; Woulds, C., 2010. Priority water research questions as determined by UK practitioners and policy makers. Science of the Total Environment 409:256-266 Emaginating. 2009. Debt and affordability debt collection performance and income deprivation. UKWIR Project CU-04 Pitt, M. 2008. Learning lessons from the 2007 floods. The Pitt Review. UK Cabinet Office.
Image left: Understanding & managing demand - Andrey Brukhno
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WASTE MANAGEMENT Page 130 - 134 - Localism in a National Context - Colin Drummond, CEO, Viridor Page 136 - 137 - Energy From Waste and Sustainable Communities - Malcolm Chilton, Director, Covanta Energy Page 138 - 139 - A solution for Anaerobic Digestion Project Development - Gary Little, CEO, Kirk Environmental Page 140 - 141 - New Energy In Severn Trent - Martin Dent
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Localism in a National Context Colin Drummond, CEO of Viridor. With the Coalition Government’s movement towards a policy of ‘localism’ the intention is to create ‘genuine neighbourhood planning’. Local authorities should work closely with their communities using planning responsibilities and powers to decide the provisions of housing and essential infrastructure that they require. The bureaucratic nature of the current planning process has certainly played a large part in obstructing progress of vital waste treatment and recycling facilities. The recycling and waste industry now needs to look to work within the framework being established under the Localism Bill to ensure that the next steps will deliver the means to deal with Britain’s waste efficiently in the long term. Giving people greater responsibility for what happens in their area includes communities taking responsibility for the waste that they produce and acknowledging that it has to be dealt with. The new planning system proposed by this radical and far-reaching bill needs to deliver the means to deal with the waste that we all produce, and our industry will be looking closely at the detail to ensure the bill does just that. In Viridor’s experience, proposals for all waste and recycling infrastructure, and particularly with regards to energy from waste (EfW) facilities, community interest and engagement is unpredictable and varies hugely from project to project, even where the facilities proposed are identical. For example, our joint venture with Grundon Waste Management, the Lakeside EfW facility, which is up and running near Heathrow Airport, had less than twenty letters of opposition and went smoothly through planning approval. On the other hand, similar facilities proposed elsewhere, at locations including a site between a cement works and a nuclear power station, isolated quarries and industrial estates, have all seen substantial delays caused by a combination of local politicking, vocal opposition and unnecessary bureaucracy. As with development of any scale, some delay is expected and scrutiny and engagement by communities and those representing them is welcome. However, there is a pressing need for waste recycling and treatment capacity across the UK. Local authorities and UK Governments will be hit hard financially if landfill-diverting waste solutions cannot be delivered. Many areas are facing substantial disposal and treatment capacity shortages and rising landfill tax levels mean average additional |130| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
local authority waste disposal bills of £5 million a year (based on landfill tax currently sitting at £48 per tonne, and rising) are not unusual. Despite our company showing an excellent track record of securing planning consents for recycling and waste facilities over the past few years, improvements to our planning systems are without doubt required. In Viridor’s experience, planning permission for waste management facilities is often blocked by local elected members, who are unprepared to make decisions that they deem could be unpopular with some of their voters, even though such opposition is often from a noisy minority rather than being representative of wider opinion. Such decisions are often made arbitrarily without regard for national, or their own painstakingly developed waste and planning policies. They are also made despite being supported by local planning experts and approved by the Environment Agency, and following close consultation with local communities and stakeholders. This all leads to unnecessary costs both in terms of money and time, as planning applications take an age to reach decision
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stage, often requiring resubmissions and appeal before approval. The purpose of decentralisation and localism is to free local Government from central and regional control, which is intended to empower local people and to enable local communities to have a real say in local growth. But with rights come responsibilities, and such is the power of local opinion, well informed local communities are crucial if we want to reach these goals and create a more efficient planning system, and avoid planning functions becoming incoherent and ineffective. Balanced information needs to be readily accessible about recycling and waste management and the required associated facilities, and the evidence backing their environmental sustainability. We urge the industry to talk to its communities about the pros of building a strong network of waste management sites and not just lie low hoping that objections won’t be raised. Let’s take the debate out into the forums we have available, be proactive, and tackle issues and objections head on. We are in a fantastic position to argue our case, hold our ground and show how, with the right support, the waste management sector can help local communities deal with their own waste over the long term and in a sustainable way. The UK waste industry is going through a period of significant change and facing some of its toughest challenges yet. With the Government setting tough targets on the UK’s fuel use and landfill waste disposal levels, there is a renewed enthusiasm to reduce the nation’s reliance on fossil fuels through increased generation of renewable energy. Alongside needing to meet national quotas, it is also widely acknowledged that we need to substantially reduce our reliance on fossil fuels The UK already relies heavily on imported fuels from countries such as Norway and Russia. Recent statistics [from ONS and Platts - 29 July 2010] highlight a precarious state of energy dependency for the UK with a third of gas supplies now coming from overseas. To
put this into context, we are relying on imports for the equivalent of 7.6million homes or more than three times the number of households in Wales. Whilst the benefits of energy generation from waste in all its forms are being increasingly recognised by the Government and society, it is rarely the first form of renewable power that comes to mind. Currently waste accounts for 1.5% of all energy produced in the UK, roughly the same as wind. This comes from two technologies: landfill gas, and various combustion processes, commonly known as EfW. The scope for additional landfill gas power is limited but there is considerable potential for expansion in EfW. Viridor estimates that waste could account for 6% of UK electricity by 2015 if planning permission to build infrastructure and facilities is better enabled. There are several benefits of using EfW technologies, not least of which is that it significantly reduces the amount of residual waste heading for landfill, thus helping the UK to work towards meeting current EU landfill targets. In addition, unlike other popular forms of renewable energy, such as solar or wind, EfW provides a consistent source of base-load electricity due to the fact there will always be a steady supply waste that needs to be disposed of. Facilities are also located conveniently for cost-effective grid connections, as waste is produced in volume from our main population centres. Balanced and accurate understanding among our stakeholders is one of the greatest challenges facing both the waste industry and the Government when it comes to waste recycling and treatment options. We need the means to deal with Britain’s waste, but currently there is a distinct lack of understanding of the proven technologies available and their associated pros and cons. It is an unfortunate reality that whilst everyone is a waste producer, the general public do not usually want the problem to be dealt with in their local environment and the default position for many is therefore one of opposing the development of such facilities. It’s common for communities to object to proposed waste facilities on the grounds that they are worried emissions are unsafe and will cause health problems in the local area. The reality is that EfW, for example, is subject to extremely stringent air quality standards, much higher than those for conventional power stations or other industrial processes. Yet some sections of the public remain distrustful of the information that is currently available to them. A Viridor proposed EfW facility in the South West of England received 800 letters of opposition, following a campaign coordinated by a parliamentary candidate with little chance of electoral success. Concerns ranged from air quality, impact
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on health, the undermining of recycling rates to flood risk. The Government has undertaken rigorous and transparent scientific and technical evidence which has shown these concerns to be unsubstantiated. This needs to be reflected in national planning guidance. It has also been argued that efforts by the Government to encourage the production of energy from waste sources may damage recycling rates, as the public will no longer see the need to separate out their waste if they think it will just be sent for incineration. The reality is that EfW complements recycling. This is a strategy already working in European countries such as Sweden, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands that have long been seen as leading the environmental agenda and have considerable numbers of EfW plants working alongside very high recycling levels. This combined strategy means that landfill usage is extremely low in such countries, unlike the UK and countries with a lower take-up of EfW. This fact should again be reflected in national planning guidance. The UK Government and the devolved administrations have clearly signaled the need for increased EfW in all
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forms to help meet current UK energy requirements and to help with their vision of moving towards a ‘zero waste’ society. To Viridor, maximising recycling, managing residual waste efficiently and producing energy at the same time is the obvious and common-sense solution, but we acknowledge that each treatment facility needs to be planned and implemented with the future of Britain’s sustainability in mind. With the proposed Localism Bill in place, local communities will be able to have a clear say in their own future. Our job, as experts in waste and resource management, is to communicate the necessity of localism in a national context. By which we mean local communities being able to deal with their waste in an economically and environmentally sustainable way and understanding the need for a modern, efficient network of facilities to support this.
ENERGY FROM WASTE AND SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES Malcolm Chilton, Managing Director of Covanta Energy, considers the UK’s approach to Energy from Waste and its role in terms of the development of sustainable communities and economic restructuring. For a long time in the UK, Energy from Waste (EfW) has been seen primarily as one of the options available to us to divert residual waste from landfill. Of course it is that, and in many ways perhaps the most efficient and effective way of contributing to making our waste management practices more sustainable. This is a rather different perspective to the one that is common across much of continental Europe where EfW is much more fully integrated into the concept of sustainable communities. In such societies, EfW is not seen simply as an effective response to the need to manage communities’ residual wastes. It is seen as an integral part of the community infrastructure, contributing sustainable power and heat and having an important part to play in the economic life of communities. Geography and geology A significant part of this difference in perception is down to geography and geology: • Geography matters because the markedly different climatic conditions across, for example, northern Europe mean that the seasonal variation in demand for hot water and heating is much less than in the UK. This means that the economics of district heating – with the attendant high infrastructure costs – made it sensible to integrate district heating networks into early urban planning from the late 19th century onwards • Geology matters because, while the UK has many locations where the ground conditions are ideally suited to landfill, much of continental Europe does not, meaning that alternatives had to be pursued vigorously from a much earlier stage. This means that EfW and district heating have been integrated in the development of sustainable communities in much of Europe for well over a hundred years. For example, the first combined heat and power EfW facility in Denmark was built at Frederiksberg in 1903. |136| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
It was the first of many, with often large-scale facilities being built at the heart of communities across Europe to this day. One consequence is that in many of these societies there is broad acceptance of the role of EfW in promoting sustainable communities. In the UK, largely because the geographic and geological conditions are so different, the debate over the potential of EfW has evolved in a very different way. Here, we have argued intensely about the part that EfW should play in sustainable waste management but have only much more recently begun to think about how it can play a wider role in making our communities more sustainable. As the pressure has mounted to ensure that we develop a more robust and secure energy supply network, while simultaneously reducing the carbon emissions from energy production, so interest in the part that EfW can play has grown. This is welcome. But it is vital that we frame the debate about how we grow the role of EfW in the right terms. Yes, it is about how we use EfW to secure value from residual wastes. And, yes, it is about how we optimise the deployment of the energy content of that waste. Developing UK CHP So it is not surprising that a key focus of much government policy work in recent years has been on how we can move to a situation in which UK EfW plants are developed and operate routinely in combined heat and power (CHP) mode. Concrete steps have been taken in the last few years to encourage the deployment of new EfW projects in CHP mode. These include: • Increasing the payments for CHP EfW projects under
•
the Renewables Obligation (RO); and Including EfW among the eligible technologies for the new Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) when it is introduced in April 2011.
energy partnerships, supplying new and existing industry. Two very good examples are our projects at Ince Marshes in Cheshire (through a joint venture with the Peel Group) and at Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales.
These are welcome forms of support. In addition, a number of initiatives have been developed to try to facilitate the roll out of CHP in various parts of the UK. Perhaps the most significant of these is the ambitious London Thames Gateway Heat Network that is being promoted by the Mayor of London through the London Development Agency. At the heart of this project is an attempt to develop an extensive district heating network to serve a range of potential customers including residential, industrial and commercial users. Given the uniquely dense nature of development in the east of London where the project is located and the strong mix of different types of potential business customers for heat, this project may well work. But it is not a model that can be replicated easily in many other parts of the UK. There are several significant barriers that would operate elsewhere, including: • Strong zonal planning which means that residential and industrial uses increasingly are separated • Lack of in-built piping networks because of historic patterns of development and the very high infrastructure costs of retrofitting such networks • The variability of, in particular, domestic demand for heat.
At Ince Park, the EfW facility will be the centre piece of a wider Resource Park that will become home to a range of other businesses in the resource and environmental sectors, including research and development operations, recyclers and reprocessors. This kind of wider development has the potential to put the EfW facility at the very heart of an economic development project with the potential to create thousands of jobs. At a time when the government is embarked upon a major restructuring of the economy, seeking to move jobs from the public sector into the private sector as part of its strategy to address the country’s public finances deficit, this kind of development could play a significant part in the new economic strategy. But the UK is not alone in pursuing these objectives and the next few years will see intense global competition for the investment needed to create new sustainable jobs. The fact that secure low-carbon energy can be put at the heart of the kind of development that will be needed could become a significant factor in companies’ decision-making about future location. Another aspect that will impact on location selection is planning. With government data suggesting that EfW could contribute as much as 10% of the UK’s future electricity requirement, it is important that planning does not become a barrier to infrastructure development or investment.
The result is that a better model for the UK, for wider deployment of CHP from thermal treatment of residual wastes, is to look to exploit the increasing requirement for important industrial users to access long-term power contracts that give good guarantees of stable supply and (as far as possible) protection from the very significant increases in energy prices that are forecast for the future. This is especially true for process industries where very intensive energy use can often be the most significant cost factor relative to the value of products. We have already seen a number of energy intensive industries start the search for alternative fuel sources, including wastes. From an energy customer perspective the beauty of contracting with an EfW supplier is that often security of supply can be largely underpinned by the availability to the EfW operator of fuel supplies through relatively long-term contracts. (For example, typical Local Authority residual waste disposal contracts these days are of 25 or 30 years’ duration). Local economic development Over the last few years, Covanta has specifically targeted projects that have this potential for industrial synergies. Sites that we have identified for the development of strategic EfW facilities have been chosen largely because they have this potential for development of long-term
Carbon tax The UK has long struggled to get financial support mechanisms for renewable energy right but the coalition government’s announcement that it is to introduce a carbon tax should have a positive influence. In the 1990s the Non Fossil Fuel Obligation saw renewable energy generation climb to just 2.5% over a ten year period. Since its replacement by the Renewables Obligation in 2002 this figure had risen to about 6.5% in 2009. Taking into account that the UK’s target is to reach at least 30% renewable electricity generation by 2020, there is still a long way to go. The Electricity Market Reform package detailed proposals to create a ‘carbon price floor’ based on the existing EU Emissions Trading Scheme. There is still a good deal of work to be done to get the design and implementation details right but this is an historic step in the right direction. As the government considers the policy framework that is needed to achieve the economic restructuring that it wants to see over the next few years, it must consider how it can facilitate more projects like this that embody the original sense of the term sustainable development – economic growth that does not add to the environmental burden of future generations.
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Specialist Partnerships – A Solution for Anaerobic Digestion Project Development By Gary Little, CEO, Kirk Environmental
The Anaerobic Digestion (AD) industry in the UK has its roots in municipal sewage treatment which has used AD as a standard application for many years. Recently the AD process has been used as a renewable energy source in mainland Europe, utilising agriculture feedstock and general waste from food, households and industry. The UK has providers of turnkey AD solutions and these have been supplemented by providers from mainland Europe.
investment in AD is encouraged and available. Kirk Environmental can call on over 30 years of AD project installations which includes successful site completions throughout the world. Our Directors have been involved in the largest AD projects in the UK and Europe.
Currently the UK Government is developing policies and strategies to support AD applications and investment. In addition the Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association (ADBA) is providing Government and the industry with general support and is currently developing codes covering quality, health and safety, standards and specifications.
Kirk Environmental maintains a specialist contractor position which does not include any process design solutions. As a result all process solution providers can enjoy a confidential support package which can be either a total design and build solution or simply supplying tanks. The scale of involvement is determined by the process solution provider.
The target for the UK of 1000 AD project installations must be based on sound standards, reliable process design, quality installations and effective operation and maintenance systems. It is also critical that financial
Kirks engineering and general knowledge of AD is often utilised at an early stage of the infrastructure design. This often results in major financial savings and program reductions.
Image courtesy of Severn Trent.
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BIODOME® Double Membrane Gas Holders are a critical component of the Kirk portfolio. Their quality and design are crucial and are often overlooked by the industry. Kirk has developed a key engineering partnership with an Austrian engineering house with over 25 years experience in biogas storage. The design, quality, installation and testing regimes are essential for any successful AD facility. Kirks development of steel and concrete tanks, often in combination with their BIODOME®, is at the core of the package supplied by the company. Agreements with manufacturing leaders such as Permastore, the GlassFused-to-Steel tank specialist also support the overall service. Kirks turnkey installation solution can provide total civil and mechanical design and build packages, which involves detailed discussions and agreements with process design contractors. The aim is to provide the most competitive solution, in the fastest time to the highest industry standards. Kirk are proud to be founder members of ADBA who are currently focusing on a number of key issues one of which is an important piece of work in policy for AD in Defra’s Framework Document. Through bringing together the key Government departments, which include Defra, DECC, DfT, CLG and the Treasury along with the Government agencies including WRAP and the Environmental Agency (EA) and representatives from the industry, a strategy and delivery plan will supposedly be agreed in achieving the ‘huge increase’ in Anaerobic Digestion promised by the Government in the Coalition Agreement . This strategy will analyse the barriers which currently exist within the industry and how these can be broken down and overcome. From this the final article, due to be released in May 2011, will outline what actions need to be taken, who will be involved and when the goal will be achieved. Works which have already commenced will continue to do so and be included within the Framework Agreement. Various working groups have been launched comprising of a wide range of people with considerable experience and knowledge within the AD and associated sectors to aid and support the steering body including Government Departments and senior industry representatives, including ADBA’s Chief Executive, Charlotte Morton, in documenting the approach of this target. This support is invaluable as much ongoing work in related areas is being built into the overall process. For example, DECC and the Health and Safety Executive are assessing the changes required to the Gas Safety Management Regulations in order to allow biomethane injection into the gas grid as well as the EA working on Standard Permits. Other projects within the industry such as ADBA’s Best Practice Scheme, and work with EU Skills and others on training and safety for the AD industry, will
also feature. Although the Framework Document will be unique, it will vitally set out a pathway through the ongoing work to grow the industry rather than be an end in itself. One of the most significant and alarming areas not being addressed is a strategy for the industry, which should be matched by the financial incentives regime. Any plan needs a strategy behind it and the financial incentives need to be aligned with that strategy, to encourage businesses to follow it – otherwise AD will not be able to make the contribution to the UK’s Climate Change, renewable energy and other targets which the Government needs to meet. For example, upgrading to biomethane for use as a transport fuel is widely viewed as the best use of biogas from a carbon saving perspective; however the Road Transport Fuel Obligation currently fails to make this economically viable. It is somewhat frustrating why the Government, which is leading this work, refuses to discuss what the strategy should be. The industry needs consistency and clarity, particularly if it is to develop financial models for new projects, which, is exactly what is required if the “huge increase” is to be achieved. It is considered that the sort of delays which have continually put back the announcement on the Renewable Heat Incentive are unhelpful and should not be repeated. The industry needs a clear strategy now. All of ADBA’s good work will improve the AD opportunities, however important industry process solution providers are already developing and building projects. This includes major industrial projects utilising household and food waste, private food and drink manufactures and critically agricultural on farm solutions, mostly of which Kirk Environmental are significantly involved. AD is developing rapidly all over the world and Kirk Environmental have expanded to open offices in Malaysia which has been involved with projects in Korea, Vietnam, Philippines and Malaysia itself. Kirk considers that their independent, non-process, design and build package is an important and often critical element of a successful AD project.
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Severn Trent Water, the UK’s second largest water utility and serving over 8 million customers, is facing an increasing need for energy. We need to ensure supply resilience as a consequence of climate change and ever tightening quality standards. Maximizing renewable energy generation from sewage, water and our landholdings is an essential part of our strategy to minimise green house gas (GHG) emissions.
In 2008 the outline design of the plant was completed with assistance being provided by German process specialists Schmack Biogas GmbH. Schmack were selected as the preferred process supplier, having already designed and constructed over 230 biogas plants worldwide, and had successfully scaled up this technology in a 10MW gas plant constructed at the company’s headquarters in Schwandorf, Bavaria.
In 2009/10 we generated 183 GWh of renewable energy from sewage gas combined heat and power plants (CHP) and hydro generation which satisfied over 20% of our electricity demand and saved 99,000 tCO2e. We have an ambitious target to generate 30% of our consumption by 2014/15 by investing in other renewable energy technologies.
The construction of the 2MWe energy crop AD was completed by May 2010, on programme with the plant ready for the commencement of the commissioning phase. The multiple digestion tanks were filled with around 6000 tonnes of imported farm yard manure and the temperatures within the tanks were gradually raised to the 40 deg C digestion temperature. The biology of the plant was closely monitored during this process to ensure that a healthy biomass was produced.
In order to reach this target Severn Trent began to look at using some of our land to grow crops for crop digestion to generate energy, and last year we completed the construction of UK’s first commercial scale dedicated crop digestion plant which helps to power Nottingham’s main sewage treatment works. Work on this project started in 2007 when Severn Trent became aware of the development of energy crop anaerobic digestion (AD) plants across mainland Europe. The company commissioned its own feasibility studies to assess the potential of this technology for deployment at its own farms.
After three years of planning and construction, the plant achieved its full 2MWe production in October 2010, two months ahead of programme. The adjacent sewage works which serves the city of Nottingham, previously imported around 1MW of electricity from the national grid, but now that the energy plant is operational, all the sewage works electricity demand is satisfied and a surplus of around 1MW is being exported to the grid. This means that the sewage works has become a net exporter of electricity. Severn Trent is the largest producer of electricity from sewage gas in the UK which is generated at its 36
New Energy in Severn Trent Stoke Bardolph Energy Crop Anaerobic Digestion (AD) Plant By Martin Dent, renewable energy development manager |140| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
main sewage sludge treatment centres. The company recognised that many synergies exist between with the anaerobic digestion of sewage sludge and energy crops and the biomethane from both processes can be used to power combined heat and power plants (CHP). The energy crop AD plant has been designed to generate approximately 15GWh of electricity each year. This is equivalent to supplying around 4500 residential properties. Each day around 100 tonnes of crop silage is fed into the plant and over a period of 90 days bacteria breaks down the organic matter to produce a methane rich biogas. The feedstock is being grown on Severn Trent’s own farmland which is classed as dedicated land as it has been used for the safe recycling of sewage sludge for over 120 years. The land potentially contains elevated levels of heavy metals rendering it unsuitable for food crops. However the land is extremely fertile making it ideal for growing crops for energy production. The estate produces around 35,000 tonnes of maize and around 2000 tonnes of wheat which are the primary feedstock for the energy plant. An independent study was commissioned to report on the environmental impact of mono-cropping maize (growing maize year after year after year). The report concluded that maize is one of only a few crops which is suitable for mono-cropping with positive environmental benefits to be had for allowing the land to be left as stubble over the winter months providing habitats for hares and lapwings amongst other species.
This plant is producing 1.6% of the total amount of electricity Severn Trent needs when supplying its water and wastewater services to over 8 million people living in the midlands and mid-wales. This project has successfully combined the company’s expertise in farming, operating AD plants and producing significant amounts of renewable energy. It is hoped that this energy crop AD plant will act a catalyst for the development of similar projects elsewhere in the UK to hopefully realise DEFRA’s vision for 1000 farm-based AD plants in the UK by 2020. Now that this plant has successfully been completed, Severn Trent is also assessing its other land holdings to see where this can be repeated.
Benefits: This energy crop project provides: • 1.6% of Severn Trent’s total electricity needs • an annual carbon saving of 8,500 tonnes of CO2 equivalent. • 15,000 GWh of electricity (enough to power more than 4,500 homes) • a sustainable use of contaminated land • 5000 tonnes of solid fertilizer • 25,000 tonnes of liquid fertilizer.
The biogas produced is fed into 2 combined heat and power plants which produce electricity for the nearby sewage works and heat which is required to maintain the AD process. The plant also produces 30,000 tonnes/ annum of digested organic plant material which composite makes for an excellent organic fertilizer high in nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium. This fertilizer is reapplied onto our farmland saving around £30k a year on artificial fertilisers that would have been required and contributing to the annual net Carbon reduction of 7,400 tCO2e / annum.
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FOOD Page 144 - 146 - Urban Growing and Food Sufficiency, Rosie Boycott, Chairman, London Food Page 148 - 149 - Food Security - Dr Jeremy Wiltshire, Head of Carbon Management, ADAS & Prof. Roger Sylvester-Bradley, Principal Crop Scientist, ADAS
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Urban Growing and Food Sufficiency By Rosie Boycott, Chairman, London Food
Image: Rosie Boycott © Charles Glover
London Futures Parliament Square © Robert Graves and Didier Madoc-Jones at the Museum of London
We have all watched in horror the terrible images following the recent floods in Australia and Brazil. Natural catastrophes such as these levy an immediate human and environmental toll, but many people thousands of miles away may not appreciate the connection to the rising cost of food in their shopping trolley. The fact is that our reliance on imported goods and the globalisation of food chains makes us vulnerable both to sudden interruptions in the supply chain, meaning natural disasters such as these can have a profound impact. For example, London imports 80 per cent of its food and the recent harsh winters have shown us how the UK can be vulnerable to shortages of fresh goods if disruption continues for several days or more. |144| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
But with political will, cities have the potential to grow a far greater proportion of food for themselves. As the world’s population is set to reach eight billion later this year and two thirds of these people are living in urban centres, freeing up city spaces for food growing by communities needs serious attention by policy makers at all levels of government when considering the issue of food security. In addition, a greater proportion of local, seasonal food will help to tackle other pressing issues such as reducing carbon emissions and our reliance on fossil fuels. For example, food in general travels much further today than ever before – between 1978 and 1999 “food miles” increased by 50 per cent and now some 40 per cent of all freight is related to food. Some 29 per cent
of the vegetables and 89 per cent of the fruit we eat, for example, are imported. And in spite of organic food’s environmental benefits at the point of production, over half of that consumed in the UK is currently imported (although this is declining as UK production capacity increases). Some 95 per cent of all the food consumed across the world involves oil at some point in its production – through the use of mechanised production, fertilisers, transportation and packaging. As global oil supplies diminish, so the threat to our overall food security increases. Combined, all these environmental concerns would be eased by relocalising the growing of food, which can not only benefit health, but also strengthen communities which have lost touch with the very stuff of life – the food we need every day. This is why we have been thrilled by the uptake of Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London’s ‘grow your own’ initiative Capital Growth by green-fingered Londoners and believe it offers a template for other cities to follow suit. Since its launch in autumn 2008, the small Capital Growth team has been providing practical support for would-be city gardeners to find land and set up community plots. The scheme cajoles and challenges landowners and large organisations to get involved by offering up patches of earth. These plots can be temporary or more permanent fixtures, and are popping in all manner of spaces including on roofs, in housing estates, by Tube stations
and in schools. Our 800 plots (we are on track for 2,012 sign ups by 2012) are offering a solution to the allotment shortage London is experiencing, binding communities together and supplying a low cost supply of food. A shining example of what we are setting out to achieve is the Rocky Park Urban Growers in Bethnal Green, east London, part of the Capital Growth’s ‘Edible Estates’ strand. Tucked away just five minutes from a busy road junction and Tube station, this inspiring project has transformed formally neglected plots of land at the heart of a multicultural social housing estate which was previously plagued by anti-social behaviour by involving around 150 residents in growing fruit and veg. Whole families are now involved and enjoying a steady supply of food tended by themselves and their neighbours. Residents have created raised beds, along with a herb garden used by a local special needs school for play and learning. The growers also have excellent eco-credentials collecting rain water in butts, composting green waste and nearly everything on site is recycled or salvaged from tips. Second hand plants, which would have been discarded, have been sourced (with permission) from local authority parks. Rocky Park vividly shows the power of communities working together to help themselves and their local environment, using endless creativity to make
RHS Borris Hampton
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a few resources go a long way. How far could London go towards producing its own food? We have recently calculated that an army of 20,000 people are currently involved in Capital Growth, helping to grow vegetables and food to dramatic effect. Politicians and policy makers can help engender change in other ways, by using the power of their own public procurement budgets. The Mayor has recently embodied our commitment to local, seasonal and ethical food by pledging that the Greater London Authority group (City Hall, transport, fire and police catering) adopt the higher food standards developed by the Olympic and Paralympic Games organisers. These standards promote better farming and production practices, supporting good jobs in diverse and economically viable food and farming sectors. The GLA Group is one of the largest public sector purchasers - and consumers - of food in London with about 30,000 employees across hundreds of sites consuming thousands of meals each week. Transport for London’s catering outlets alone serve food to more than four million customers every year, so we have the serious clout to challenge current practices. The Metropolitan Police Service has already made progress, for example, using more than one million British freerange eggs a year as part of a catering operation that must deliver five million meals annually. We cannot be complacent to the threat of serious food crisis. Here in London, we are finding ways for everyone to have a role to play in finding the solutions. Capital Growth is a partnership initiative between London Food Link, the Mayor of London Boris Johnson, and the Big Lottery’s Local Food Fund. It aims to boost community food growing, creating 2,012 new food growing spaces by the end of 2012. www.capitalgrowth.org
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Dr Jeremy Wiltshire, Head of Carbon Management, ADAS Prof. Roger Sylvester-Bradley, Principal Crop Scientist, ADAS
Engagement of suppliers in management of carbon emissions will enhance food security
A widely-accepted definition of sustainable development is the definition given in Chapter 2 of the 1987 Brundtland Report: “Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs .” The report points out two key concepts in this definition: the concept of needs and the concept of limitations on the environment’s ability to meet those needs.
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The needs for food are increasing as world population grows, but land area for growing crops is finite. There is competition for this land from industrial and residential development, conservation of biodiversity, leisure, and other uses of land such as production of fibres, and building materials and mined materials. We need to supply more food to meet the needs of our increasing population, and also ensure that we minimise the limitations on the environment’s ability to meet future needs. To meet the future needs there must be enough land, a suitable climate, enough water to supply crops and livestock, soils that are sufficiently productive, and technologies that ensure sufficient and reliable yields. Global warming will make this a more difficult challenge because it will significantly alter the type of crops we produce and where, so it is difficult to predict how future generations will meet their food needs. There is a consensus view that temperate climates such as ours will need to become more productive, because Mediterranean and tropical climates are likely to become less productive. Increasing efficiency To supply enough food, production will need to be efficient, and waste must be minimised by more efficient supply chains. Fortunately, the drive towards more sustainable food supply, which seeks to drive down environmental impacts such as global warming potential, or carbon footprint, also reduces costs. This is because a greater level of production per unit of land and per unit of inputs (such as fertilisers and fuel) leads to less environmental impact per unit of production. An ADAS report for the Government’s chief scientific advisor Professor John Beddington showed that it is hypothetically possible to boost wheat production by 40 per cent and oilseed rape production by 55 per cent within the next six to seven years. Such gains would mostly be brought about by bringing grassland and un-cropped areas into production. Yet such a move would have serious drawbacks: large impacts on biodiversity and large carbon
emissions; carbon absorbed by soil and natural vegetation would be released and this could be accompanied by increased losses of nitrate into rivers and aquifers. Longer term, however, there is potential to produce more food on a smaller area. Our report for Professor Beddington, shows that there are theoretical opportunities to increase crop productivity per hectare, so to grow more food with more benign environmental impacts. Based on advances in husbandry, including more and better irrigation, better machinery and automation, genetic innovation including Genetic Manipulation, better land use and integrating measures against disease, pests and weeds, it could be possible to improve yields for both wheat and oilseed rape by about 70% per cent. Obviously, theoretical yields will always be higher than actual yields; nevertheless, enough is known about yield-forming processes to suggest that such increases are attainable. These are promising conclusions for a deeply worrying problem – large production gains made without compromising the environment. At this stage, though, the opportunities remain theoretical. Time, large government and industry investment and a supportive public will be required to turn the theory into reality.
impacts (e.g. biodiversity loss) of their raw materials, which are largely produced by suppliers outside their immediate control? Supplier engagement programmes must genuinely engage farmers. Buyers can work closely with their suppliers to establish guiding principals to reduce a finished product’s environmental footprint, but they must understand production processes to allow establishment of best practices, and they must show the benefits for suppliers’ businesses. Supplier engagement programmes help suppliers to anticipate necessary changes ahead of their competition, protecting and enhancing their markets. Manufacturers and retailers are able to demonstrably reduce environmental impacts of products, with associated marketing and other business benefits. They can also lower reputational risk associated with their production practices. Forward-thinking suppliers and retailers are attaching increased importance to this type of activity and the trend is set to grow, helping the present generation to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
Engaging the ‘team’ Alongside strategic investment and public support, a team effort is required by a large number of businesses world-wide, to achieve greater food supply for a greater population, in a sustainable way. This team includes food producers and their suppliers of raw materials, transport networks, food processors, and retailers. Team members need to be engaged by demonstrating potential benefits to their businesses, arising through increased production, increased sustainability, and lower costs per unit of product. Good businesses manage the environmental impact of their operations. But this gets more difficult when impacts of raw materials are included. Food materials are produced on the land and the close interaction between land management and the wider environment adds complexity. Consumers make buying decisions based on many factors, especially price and quality, and sometimes also sustainability, or avoidance of impacts that interest the individual consumer. Retailers are responding to these commercial pressures and, together with government and agriculture-industry pressures for decreased carbon emissions, these pressures are influencing supply chains. How can manufacturers and retailers measure, monitor and reduce water use, carbon emissions and other ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |149|
MISCELLANY Page 151
- Environment Prosecutions
Page 152 - 154 - Invasive Species - What Has The ‘Killer Shrimp’ taught us? - Trevor Renals, Environmental Agency Page 155 - 159 - Conservation - Biodiversity What’s In A Word? - Dr Eleanor Ballard, Principal Ecologist, WYG Page 160 - 161 - Mapping - A Geographic Solution To An Environmental Challenge - Nick Jones, Esri UK Page 162 - 164 - Training- Environmental Careers - SAC Page 166 - 175 - Case Studies Page 176 - Famous Last Words - Syed Ahmed, CEO, SA Vortex Ltd
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROSECUTIONS Litterpicker injured falling into well Three arrests over alleged illegal export of waste tyres to South East Asia Three men suspected of exporting waste tyres illegally into Vietnam and Hong Kong, have been arrested. The three men were arrested on suspicion of a number of fraud offences. Officers raided five sites across England to tackle the dumping of tyres in the United Kingdom and abroad.
A Mansfield District Council worker fell six metres down a dry well while clearing litter from a yard, magistrates heard yesterday. Three workers were asked to clear litter that had collected between a metal grid and a mesh cover over the well. Two workers removed the grid, while the third stood on the mesh, believing it to be solid underneath, and fell into the well. He dislocated his elbow and cut his head, arms and leg and was off work for six months.
Fine for slurry fish kill
A farming business has been fined after a slurry leak killed hundreds of fish. On the 10th January at Teesside Magistrates’ Court, C K & D Muir Limited pleaded guilty to one charge of polluting Easington Beck and was fined £8,000. The company, of Grinkle Park Farm, Loftus, Saltburn-by-the-Sea, also was ordered to pay full prosecution costs of £5,926.82 and a victim surcharge of £15.
150 hours Community Order for Nottingham businessman Russell Greenhalgh, of Minver Crescent, Nottingham was sentenced at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court on the 11th January for running two illegal waste transfer stations in Nottingham. He pleaded guilty to the offences at an earlier court hearing. Greenhalgh, who traded as GIT Skips, ran the sites on Colwick Road, Sneinton and Redfield Rd, Lenton.
Gainsborough firm fined after worker hit by three-tonne steel tank
Boaters ordered to pay £4,344 for flouting licence law
A steel manufacturing company has been fined after a process tank weighing three tonnes fell on an employee at one of its sites
Five boaters caught using their vessels on the River Thames without valid licences have been convicted by magistrates.
A process tank was being lifted with an overhead crane, chains and a temporary lifting bracket welded onto the tank. The lifting bracket came off the tank, which then fell onto Mr Baxter.
John Reid, 46, of Denmark Road, Kingston, was fined £150, ordered to pay compensation of £156, £85 costs and a £15 victim surcharge by Kingston Magistrates’ Court. Environment Agency enforcement officers found the boat “Pokerdot” on Barge Walk, Teddington, Kingston, without a valid licence around 1.45pm on June 16 2010.
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What has the ‘killer shrimp’ taught us? By Trevor Renals, Environment Agency Last year, the presence of the ‘killer shrimp’ Dikerogammarus villosus, was recorded for the first time in Great Britain. It was first recorded from Grafham Water, Cambridgeshire in September and subsequently found at Cardiff Bay and Eglwys Nunydd reservoir near Port Talbot. This shrimp is one of approximately seventeen species of freshwater invertebrate that originate from the Ponto-Caspian Region of Eastern Europe and is spreading into the West. Dikerogammarus villosus has earned the rather sensational title of ‘killer shrimp’ from its voracious appetite, particularly in the early stages of colonising new habitats. Unusually for an animal, it appears to kill other freshwater organisms, such as invertebrates and small fish, without actually eating them. This appears to be a mechanism to reduce competition. Other shrimps have a particularly hard time and are often totally replaced by the invading species. We don’t know how the invasive shrimp got here. It is one of a range of species that can move across the globe within ballast water. Ships take on large volumes of ballast water after they have discharged their cargo. The ballast water is then discharged at another port, prior to loading another cargo. The Ballast Water Management Convention was adopted in |152| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
2004 under the auspices of the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The Convention will enter into force after ratification by 30 nations, representing 35% of the world merchant shipping tonnage. To date, 26 States have ratified the Convention, comprising 24.66% of the world total merchant shipping tonnage. Annually, 3-5 billion tonnes of ballast water are transferred, vectoring 7,00010,000 different invasive non-native species. We had expected Dikerogammarus to arrive in this manner, from a freshwater port such as Rotterdam. Dikerogammarus shrimp can tolerate brackish conditions and would be able to migrate up many of our busy river systems. It is possible that it did enter the UK by this route and we have yet to locate the original point of entry. We have limited control over this pathway of spread, but technology is increasingly providing solutions for ballast water treatment that will reduce the risk of vectoring invasive species. There are other pathways, however, over which we do have more control. D. villosus has mostly spread throughout Western Europe through the various canal systems that link catchments. Research has shown that the shrimp can survive up to six days in damp conditions, out of water. Any activity based on inland waters, such as sailing, kayaking, diving
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and angling, has the potential to move this species across borders. Researchers believe boats used by divers may have spread the shrimp between various lakes in Switzerland. It is these pathways that we have focused on. The advice we have developed to date, with the cooperation of boating and angling interest groups, is available on www. nonnativespecies.org. uk. These documents are likely to be revised in the future, as our knowledge on effective measures improves. Other biosecurity advice is available for species such as zebra mussel (another Ponto-Caspian invader) and the carpet sea-squirt, Didemnum vexillum. There is a real risk that the advice to the public becomes confused by the different species of concern. It is important to keep the public advice generic, so that it is relevant to a wide range of invasive non-native animals, plants and also diseases. We need to achieve widespread behavioural change amongst a large number of people engaged within these pursuits. So far, the response has been very encouraging. Organisations such as the Angling Trust and the Royal Yachting Association have been highly proactive in supporting and disseminating this advice amongst its members. Landowners have cooperated fully in efforts to contain and manage Dikerogammarus shrimp. But if we are really serious about reducing the risk of spreading these species we all need to recognise our responsibilities, whether it’s participating in a watersport or disposing of garden waste. For many people, one of the remarkable experiences of visiting nations such as Australia or New Zealand is their culture of biosecurity. They understand the profound impact that diseases and invasive non-native species can have on their economy and habitats. On 15th December 2010 the Government published a report on the economic cost of invasive non-native species on the British economy; a conservative estimate of £1.7 billion per annum. When will we wake up to accepting a culture of biosecurity? We are far from achieving the level of behavioural change necessary. Volunteers working for the New Forest NonNative Plant Project have recorded a strong correlation between sites with the invasive non-native Australian |154| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
swamp stonecrop, Crassula helmsii, and proximity to car parks and easy public access. Incredibly, some of the invasive species they have cleared from sensitive New Forest wetlands have been planted in their pots! The next time you need to stop in a rural lay-by, or car park, see how many garden plants you can identify, spreading from flytipped garden waste into the wild. There is a cost to this behaviour. All of us who cherish a diverse and speciesrich landscape suffer the degradation that monocultures of invasive plants create. There are a range of economic impacts associated with many invasive species. There can also be human health implications, either from the toxic sap of giant hogweed, or the increased risk of drowning created by lawns of invasive plants across ponds and lakes. Sadly, the cost is rarely suffered by the perpetrators of the spread. It is usually the landowner who burdens the majority of the cost. So, what has the ‘killer shrimp’ taught us? So far, it has taught us that we continue to be vulnerable to new invasions of non-native species. More positively, it has taught us that many organisations, interest groups and individuals are keen to do something about it and are prepared to make the changes necessary to prevent further spread. This is a cultural change from which we all could benefit.
Biodiversity, what’s in a word?: International Year of Biodiversity 2010. By Dr Eleanor Ballard, Principal Ecologist, WYG WYG is a global consultancy with over 2,000 expert consultants which includes a dedicated team of sustainability and environment professionals. Dr Eleanor Ballard, Principal Ecologists at WYG has worked on [relevant biodiversity projects]. As a new year begins and biodiversity is still a topic of conversation, Dr Ballard reflects on the year’s international biodiversity for 2010. The International Year of Biodiversity (IYB) was a yearlong global celebration of biological diversity and its value to life on earth and was planned to coincide with the 2010 Biodiversity Target. This Biodiversity Target was adopted in 2002 by the parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity and by heads of state and government who attended the World Summit for Sustainable Development held in Johannesburg. Its aim was to achieve “a significant reduction in the rate of biodiversity loss” over the last eight years. The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was first established at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 and is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. It also aims to promote the equitable sharing of the multiple benefits of biodiversity (i.e. so called ‘ecosystem services’). The CBD has near-universal participation, with 193 parties across the globe signing up. The IYB was declared by the 61st session of the United Nations General Assembly in 2006. The International Year of Biodiversity was meant to help raise awareness of the importance of biodiversity through activities and educational events around the world. David Johns’ article “The International Year of Biodiversity– From Talk to Action” (Conservation Biology, 2009) explains that the year aims to act as a vehicle to influence decision makers and “to elevate biological diversity nearer to the top of the political agenda”. As part of the International Year of Biodiversity, funding
Kingfisher in hand Caption: Kingfisher is an Amber listed species due to its unfavourable conservation status in Europe
was made available by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and its partner organisations for people around the world to submit their ideas for biodiversity friendly projects. The requirements of such projects were to have a positive impact on biodiversity, promote the sustainable use of biodiversity, promote innovative solutions to biodiversity-related problems, motivate individual action to protect biodiversity, and could include ideas which could be adapted and imitated by others, ideas which raised people’s awareness of biodiversity, or showed the relationship between biodiversity and other themes, e.g. taxonomy. Where do we stand today? It is widely acknowledged that our biodiversity is under threat globally, nationally and locally. In the last hundred years at least 100 species have become extinct in the UK alone. This figure palls into insignificance when we consider that the present extinction rate is estimated to be up to 10,000 times greater than the rate of extinction in prehistoric times. It has been estimated that globally we are currently losing up to 50,000 species every single year. To put this figure in simpler terms, this equates to 137 species every day or perhaps more shockingly six species every hour. If human activity continues to expand at current rates, it is predicted that at least 20 percent of all species will have disappeared in less than thirty years’ time. The statistics are compelling. A recent study estimated that if every person in the world consumed the same amount of resources as the average person in the highENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |155|
in October 2010 that the governments who signed up to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) have missed their 2010 target, set in 2002, of achieving “a significant reduction in the rate of biodiversity loss”.
Small tortoiseshell- above and below Adult and caterpillars - Biodiversity is all species and includes even our most common species such as the regularly seen small tortoiseshell butterfly
income countries of the West, we would need three more planet earths to sustain us. If we wish to develop sustainably we cannot continue with the current levels of expansion which require such intensive use of our natural resources. For example, here in Northern Ireland, we have lost in the region of 95 percent of our ancient woods and only about 9 percent of our raised bogs remain intact. A quarter of the UK and Ireland’s flowering plants have become rarer and a third of all bird species recorded in Northern Ireland are now considered to need special conservation action. Many of our internationally valuable habitats, such as species-rich semi-natural grasslands and wet woodlands, are at risk of serious damage or permanent loss. Occasionally a natural process, such as a flood or volcano threatens the existence of a particular species or habitat. However, in the majority of cases it is the way we use our natural resources that is causing this extreme loss of biodiversity. Although we have little understanding of what the components of our complex web of life are, we know that as a whole they have made it possible for our species to survive and prosper. This web is inherently fragile and the way we act affects our existence in it, as well as the web itself. We need to consider new options as to how to safeguard both our local and global biodiversity to ensure quality of life not just for ourselves and future generations, but also for the other species with which we share the planet. The Earth is, after all, the only home we have. Communication problems It was clear from the Nagoya Conference |156| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Delegates to a London conference and other meetings held during the Year of Biodiversity have freely admitted that this failure to act results partly from shortcomings in communication. The scientific community has not been able to effectively communicate its concerns to decision-makers, at least not in a way that sufficiently prioritises biodiversity conservation within a political agenda predominantly concerned with employment and economic growth / recovery. At least part of the problem may be in the term itself. In 2010, the Year of Biodiversity, the BBC reported that when members of the public were asked “what biodiversity was?” the most common answer was “a kind of washing powder.” Ouch!
There have been many attempts over the years to develop a simple and understandable definition of the term “biodiversity”. These range from the complex e.g. “the wealth of ecosystems in the biosphere, of species within ecosystems and of genetic information within populations” or at the other end of the definition scale; Wealth of Wildlife’, summarised simply as WOW! However, despite the range of definitions available, it is clear that we are not succeeding in communicating to the general public exactly what biodiversity is, or how important it is. Without this understanding there will be no buy-in to biodiversity by communities or industries. Given such myopia, it’s understandable that Mike Shanahan, press officer at the International Institute for Environment and Development, suggested on his
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blog that we “kill biodiversity,” i.e. that the word is ditched altogether. However, as the comments on Mr. Shanahan’s post suggest, the idea to get rid of the word is unlikely to take hold. It’s impractical to abolish it; too much media and academic discourse has already been invested in the term.
just two years on, as well as the usual ducks and geese a visitor might also spot the amber listed kingfisher, dragonflies, damselflies and a wide variety of wetland plant life.
Commercial developments can also play their part to improve biodiversity. Other recent projects by WYG A constructive approach would be to agree on a definition include a colliery habitat restoration in Nottinghamshire of biodiversity that can be included in all outreach, where ditches were recreated and enhanced for water education and media. vole, a UK Biodiversity Action Plan Species; and a Shropshire sand and gravel quarry where habitat With this in enhancement was mind, the author incorporated for conducted a quick the downy emerald Google search for dragonfly, a nationally ‘Biodiversity’; at scarce species. Whilst least 18 commonly these projects were recurring driven by legislation definitions cropped and not benevolence up with hundreds of this does not detract others in addition. from the value of the Clearly there is outcome, i.e. they will a “diversity” of have a lasting, positive definitions and this impact on Biodiversity. exercise suggests This was achieved that the range by creating linkages of descriptions and stepping stones is simply further between retained and confusing the enhanced habitats, public. This results helping to deliver the in information aims of both county Balloo Wetland: Balloo Wetland Nature Reserve in Bangor fatigue and a wide and regional resultant apathy strategies. towards Biodiversity. How can we make sense of the numerous variations to arrive at a consensual definition? Future actions Failure would perhaps be too strong a word, however Help is clearly needed to overcome this problem it is accepted that the target to significantly reduce and industry is ideally placed to lead this process as biodiversity loss by 2010 has not been achieved. Added businesses are well versed and expert in communicating to that, there still remains the hurdle of popularising with their customers. even the mere concept of biodiversity with the masses. The International Year of Biodiversity 2010 represented a Is it all doom and gloom? year where more efforts were made to bring the concept The simple answer is “No”, but more examples of to public attention than ever before, which can only be a success stories need to be communicated to the public good thing. at large and to politicians in particular. One such example is the work of Conservation Non Governmental Furthermore, discussions on a new set of targets for Organisations (NGO) who work tirelessly to meet the protecting biodiversity over the next decade have come aims and objectives of the Convention on Biological out of the CBD review conference, which was recently Diversity (CBD), often with limited resources and the held in Nagoya, Japan. threat of funding cuts continuously hanging over them. Despite the restrictions, the Ulster Wildlife Trust, funded The chairman’s report from Nagoya produced “12 by North Down Strategy Partnership, and managed by messages:” North Down Business Village, through the European Union’s PEACE II Programme, recently engaged WYG to These were as follows: work and advise on the Balloo Wetland project, a project • The 2010 target has inspired action, but has not been to transform a derelict piece of land on the outskirts of reached in full Bangor, Co. Down into a haven for wildlife and a resource • Biodiversity loss and degradation of ecosystem for the local community. Ponds, a bird hide and a wetland services have increasingly dangerous consequences scrape were incorporated into the design to enhance the for human well-being, and even survival for some previously depaurparate habitat. On visiting the site now, societies |158| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
avoiding the term wherever possible for that very reason. This is not very promising for those trying to execute a global campaign around the same word.
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Urgent action is needed to address the loss of biodiversity, especially to avoid tipping points Biodiversity is the natural capital for sustainable development Inaction is more expensive than action Many more economic sectors than we realize depend upon biodiversity Biodiversity and climate change are inextricably linked Need for implementation Need to scale-up science and knowledge Need to communicate that biodiversity matters Substantially more resources are required Need to get the biodiversity targets right
These new targets must not only be more realistic and concrete, but must also be accompanied by a more sophisticated and coherent communications strategy. This strategy must address the weaknesses found in current approaches. For example, the issues scientists think most important often seem abstract and far removed from the day-to-day concerns of ordinary people. The rate at which the world is losing species is a typical example. Even the term ‘biodiversity’ suffers from this weakness, lacking a concrete description and lay-appreciation which concepts such as sea level rise enjoy. Some media advisers have suggested
Too much media coverage of biodiversity fails to connect with the issues directly affecting people’s lives. Even concepts such as ‘the web of life’, used to emphasise the interrelatedness of living systems, does not immediately explain why we should be worried about the declining number of insects or plants in distant locations. In addition, the apocalyptic tone sometimes used to drive the message home can further hinder the case for constructive action. Too often, it promotes either cynicism or apathy among those who cannot relate these disaster scenarios directly to their own lives. Climate change campaigners have experienced this in recent months, when trying to make the case for preventing global warming during the coldest winter that the northern hemisphere has experienced for several decades. Forging an effective communications strategy that avoids these pitfalls is clearly one of the biggest challenges facing the biodiversity community as it plans for the next ten years. Finally, if researchers and practitioners are to rise to the challenge, they must first firm-up the scientific case for action in a publically accessible way. Climate change campaigns have been hindered by recently highlighted scientific flaws. This should serve as a stern reminder that, with the stakes as high as they are, flawed scientific reasoning and mixed messages can have a broad and lasting impact on our chances of success. ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |159|
A geographic solution to an environmental challenge By Nick Jones, business strategist, Esri UK Under mounting government, financial and moral pressure, organisations are starting to implement a wide range of carbon reduction strategies. Esri UK business strategist Nick Jones explains why a deeper understanding of geography, and the ability to harness geographic information systems (GIS) technology, is crucial to the success of these initiatives. Not that long ago, companies that launched ‘green initiatives’ did so for positive publicity. Today the picture is very different. Organisations across the public and private sectors are increasingly having to implement strategies to reduce their carbon emissions – or face penalties if they don’t. Central government has committed the UK to reducing carbon emissions by 80% by 2050, and it is introducing legislation to ensure that this target is met. In the public sector, the government has introduced Local Carbon Frameworks, which compel local authorities to set quantifiable aims relating to carbon emissions. The pilot scheme, involving nine local councils in the UK, was introduced before the election of the Coalition Government and before the term ‘localisation’ took on the significance that has today. But it is essentially about passing responsibility for achieving the carbon reduction target from central government departments to local authorities. Private sector organisations too have been challenged with helping the government to achieve its 80% carbon reduction target. The UK’s top 5,000 energy consumers are now required to report on their energy consumption under the Carbon Reduction Commitment Energy Efficiency Scheme. These organisations have to pay a levy based on the amount of carbon that they emit. The money raised from this levy is then paid back to those organisations that achieve the greatest carbon reductions. It’s a big carrot, big stick approach. No organisation can afford the financial penalties that come with inaction. Equally, however, no organisation can afford the financial losses that might accrue from |160| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
a carbon reduction initiative that fails, due to poor planning or ineffective execution. All business executives therefore have to think more strategically and more carefully to make sure that their carbon reduction strategies are a success. The environmental challenge As with all business initiatives, the best way to reduce the risk of a new low carbon investment is to conduct careful planning and to gain a thorough understanding of the issues. If we want to transform our environment, we have to really comprehend it. In order to gain this deep understanding of our environment, complex questions have to be answered about everything from where an initiative should be sited and who it will benefit, to how it will impact upon other buildings and communities. All these questions rely on geography. Take local authorities and energy providers, for example. These organisations will need to ask a cascading series of questions like: Do we have a south facing series of roofs, suitable for solar energy? Are those roofs free from shade or obstruction? Are they big enough to accommodate a solar panel? Or do we have the density of buildings in a given location to make it economically viable to introduce a combined heat and power station? Is there land nearby to produce crops for that power station? And are the meteorological conditions right for those crops? Retailers, banks and other organisations with large numbers of sites will have to ask: Which of our locations have the available space to accommodate combined heat and power generation? Which of our buildings receive high amounts of sunlight or wind each year? Is there perhaps social housing in the area or other businesses that might want to tap into our greener power source and purchase heat in a cleaner way? And which communities might be affected by the proposed development or noise pollution? To answer these questions – and hundreds of others like them – organisations need to be able to perform detailed,
location-based analysis. This geographic analysis is particularly critical when a scheme needs to rely upon prevailing environmental resources, such as the sun or wind, or understand potential constraints such as the visual impact of an investment upon neighbouring communities. Traditional spreadsheets and databases simply aren’t up to this job. The geographic solution Geographic information system (GIS) solutions are uniquely suited to helping organisations ask all the questions that are a vital part of the planning for any carbon reduction strategy. This proven technology has the ability to bring together diverse data sets, display information clearly on a map and reveal a deep insight into complex issues.
are responsible for developing and delivering carbon reduction schemes. Use of the technology ensures that they have all the information necessary to make the right decisions. An 80% reduction in carbon emissions is a very significant figure. If the UK is to stand a chance of achieving this target by 2050, a serious amount of change will have to occur across our landscape. The target is particularly challenging in the light of the current recession and public sector cuts. When budgets and profits are already squeezed, organisations will have to take particular care to make sure that their investments in green energy are not just a costly exercise in ticking government boxes. By using GIS, organisations can ensure that their carbon reduction initiatives are viable and – above all – successful.
GIS is an essential tool that enables all kinds of organisations to assess the viability of their carbon reduction strategies and answer a range of economic, social and environmental questions. It can be used to create environmental impact assessments that consider habitats, visual impacts, noise and other factors and helps organisations to present information clearly at public consultations and planning meetings. Similarly, energy organisations can use GIS to create powerful heat, wind or solar maps for any geographic area. These maps can then be combined with data on housing density, suitable plots of land, fuel stock and other factors to model the suitability of an area for a large scale renewable energy development. GIS also enables local authorities to combine aerial thermal imagery with household income data to identify low-income properties in need of better heat insulation. They can then target their energy efficiency programmes more precisely at those groups who will benefit most. In each of these examples, GIS puts detailed, relevant information into the hands of those people and teams who ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |161|
Environmental careers – head or heart? Why do people choose to study environmental management? Is it out of an interest and an enthusiasm for the reduction of negative impacts on natural systems, or is it a shrewd choice towards careers in a sector of the economy which will inevitably grow in importance? Global environmental problems regularly fill the front pages of newspapers, present horrifying and sensational images on television and provide argument and discussion topics for countless documentaries and current affairs programmes. Fears over health problems such as asthma, allergies and cancers are creating a growing demand for the goods we purchase to reflect a more responsible attitude towards the world around us. The demand for organic foods for example demonstrates the desire from some sectors of society to avoid ingesting foods containing preservatives, pesticides and other chemicals due to uncertainty over their effects. Fair trade goods further reflect the concern over the ethics of trade with developing nations and guarantee at least a basic level of living conditions for those employed in the associated companies. It is little wonder that in this age of high profile environmental and ethical issues that there is an increase in the number of young people and career changers wishing to study in this area. As programme manager for a course in Sustainable Environmental Management at SAC it is clear that there are a number of issues that need to be addressed, and that many of the issues already alluded to in this article have no easy answers. The science behind many of these issues is either proven or inaction represents such an unacceptable risk to society that we dare not react. Government policy and economic instruments are slowly but surely leading us down the road to sustainable development. European legislation has sustainability running through it at every level, such as the Waste Framework, Water Framework, End of Life Vehicles and the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directives. Add the permitting requirements of Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control to this and it is obvious that reducing the environmental impact of consumer goods and manufacturing industry is core to achieving sustainability in resource and pollution issues. Students now have a variety of motivations for studying, and their personal circumstances often dictate that the courses offered reflect the reality of modern employment. |162| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Of course we still recruit straight from school and the growing importance of sustainability recognised in the Curriculum for Excellence will surely encourage a focus on environmental matters. But to complement this we now offer courses delivered at distance so that students already in employment do not have to leave a promising career to study. Part time study is also more common. The reality is that in many cases environmental concerns are not treated as a separate issue by companies – the environment is integrated into everything the company does in much the same way that Total Quality Management and ISO 9000 have become part of our workplace culture. On gaining environmental qualifications individuals with experience in a specific industry sector can gain new knowledge and apply it within the job they have. This enhances prospects for promotion and tenure of employment and gives them an additional skill on their CV that many companies know they will not be able to do without indefinitely.
Companies are now beginning to accept that environmental performance is perhaps a useful driver for efficiency and workplace integration. Companies require confidence in where they are going to be in five, ten or even twenty years time if strategic capital investments in new facilities and equipment is to take place. Investments in low environmental impact technology such as energy efficient buildings, clean manufacturing plant, low carbon products and on site renewable energy generation are expensive and the return on the investment is long term and does not follow our instinct for quick rewards and flexibility. Of course it is difficult for many businesses to take a long term view in terms of production - is it not the first priority of any business to make maximum profit
at all costs? Traditional business theory would lead us to seek to maximise short term profit, and dismiss the pursuit of long term aims as an unacceptable imposition on return on investment. Of course the recession has had the effect of throttling back some of the initiatives in this sphere, as companies focus on survival in the short term. Yet, in spite of this, many of our brightest graduates are choosing to seek employment in companies with sustainability firmly on the agenda. With energy prices increasing, concern for the future availability of resources becoming an issue and growing unease over failure to address international issues such as climate change, there is a growing trend for young talented individuals to be attracted to businesses with a real commitment to the future. Young graduates are looking for security of employment, opportunities for personal development and work in areas that will grow in importance as time goes on and offer them a chance to gain promotion. Only last week there was a plea from the Scottish oil industry for new talent not to discount them from their plans. Recruiting engineers, chemists and students from other relevant courses is becoming more difficult as many choose to focus on the new emerging opportunities such as renewable’s, energy management and clean technology. Looking at the Scottish Climate Change Act it is clear that our ambitious national targets for reducing carbon emissions will favour support and investment for offshore wave, tidal and wind energy enterprises, carbon capture and storage, low emission transport, energy efficient housing. This path is set out for the coming forty years so it is hardly surprising that those seeking continuity of employment are showing interest in these areas. This is policy driven, and the environmental industry is now seen as an opportunity for entrepreneurs to invest in. But really this is just the most obvious signs of a departure from a long term strategy of fuelling growth by trade in energy intensive production and the marketing of consumer goods with questionable environmental credentials. Within conventional industry there is a growing realisation that meeting environmental targets is not automatically leading to a reduction in production. Environmental performance is directly linked to efficiency. Meeting environmental targets allows companies to focus on reducing waste, encouraging lower levels of raw material procurement, and reducing |164| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
costs by focussing on reducing energy consumption and water use. This leads to reduced material costs, labour costs and waste disposal bills. Legislative compliance becomes easier and showing respect for the environment puts out a strong message to current and future staff that the company has a strong ethical culture which is automatically extended to include personal development, consultation and training. The success of the company can be considered a joint venture between the company and staff. Environmental management systems are invaluable in their ability to provide an infrastructure for increased communication and co-operation at all levels and between disciplines. Add to this the confidence given to insurers and investors that environmentally aware companies are less likely to incur massive legislative fines, compensation or reputational problems and a clear logic has emerged in considering the environment in business decision making. Employment opportunities include working on design for dismantling, design for recycling, life cycle analysis, energy management, environmental management systems, environmental auditing, legislative compliance, materials substitution, waste management, transport management, carbon management, quality assurance, environmental risk management amongst many others. The close relationship between efficiency and environmental performance ensures that expertise is required at every level – from lean production to strategic management. Corporate Social Responsibility reporting is now increasingly seen as a green marketing opportunity. Environmental assurance schemes and eco-labels are answering the call for sustainable products and experts are needed to measure impacts, manage compliance and advise companies on strategy. The future is bright – the future is sustainable. It must be if we are to escape the worst predictions of scientific and economic experts in this area. Graduates with environmental skills have the opportunity to be part of a quiet revolution for the benefit of all.
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CASE STUDY A Canadian company is leading the way for the world with its’ patented Elementa Process®. Over $6 million has been invested over the past eight years in the development and optimization of the innovative nonincineration energy-from-waste conversion technology and proprietary processes. There is no other complete system like it in the world and recently, delegations from over ten countries have been flocking to the pilot plant in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada to view the unique Elementa Process and place orders. The Elementa Process solves landfill problems, creates clean renewable base-load distributed energy and significantly reduces green house gases. Since 2007, Elementa Group Inc. has operated a 1,000 tonne pilot plant in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada which served to put the technology together, as well as to develop and optimize the intellectual property and processes. The Elementa Process has received independent third party verification by SNC Lavalin, one of the largest project and engineering firms in the world. The Elementa Process uses municipal solid waste (MSW) as the feedstock and through steam reformation, the chemical breakdown of materials under high temperatures in a oxygen deprived combustion-free environment, clean renewable energy is produced. The MSW volume is reduced by 98% with a 2% inert residual (to be used as an aggregate in cement). The reformation process converts organic (carbonaceous) materials into a synthesis gas that is fed into a turbine/engine to generate electrical power or can be used as a bio-fuel. Elementa’s
commercially viable, single continuous process of core conversion technology is based on the chemistry of steam reforming augmented by the company’s patents, licenses and intellectual property. The process significantly outperforms emission guidelines, including some of the toughest in the world of the European Union, California and Ontario, Canada. The City of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada in a landmark first of its kind in Canada 20-year agreement effective in 2011, has committed to supply and divert all of its curbside municipal solid waste to Elementa’s new full-scale plant. This will be a seamless transition as municipal trucks will continue to collect refuse as usual, but instead of dumping the contents at the landfill, they will deliver the contents to Elementa’s $33.6 million facility and pay Elementa a $60/tonne tipping fee. Elementa will utilize its patented clean energy non-incineration conversion technology and proprietary processess to reform 35,000 tonnes annually of MSW into clean renewable energy. This facility will generate an estimated six megawatts of electrical power for the grid, enough electricity to power approximately 6,000 homes. It will also contribute to cleaner air by reducing green house gases by over 24,000 tonnes annually, which is the equivalent to taking 4,800 cars off the road. Eliminating landfill activities also contributes to cleaner land and water by eliminating leaching and related problems. The landfill site in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada has an estimated 8-10 years left at which estimates indicate the costs to replace the landfill at well over $100 million. The Elementa solution will eliminate the need for a new landfill site. Furthermore, it offers the ultimate opportunity, to mine garbage, which would actually reduce and eliminate waste at existing landfill sites.
Canadian Company Leading The World With Patented Non-Incineration EFW Process |166| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
The Elementa solution is timely as societies around the world have three pressing needs - the need for an environmentally friendly alternative to land fill sites, the need for base-load distributed sources of clean renewable energy and the need to reduce greenhouse gases. Elementa Group Inc. company founder, President and CEO Jayson Zwierschke stated, “We are excited to be able to commercialize the Elementa Process. We have Phd’s, scientists and engineers from Hong Kong, Japan, Russia and France including expertise from the University of Toronto and the University of Waterloo collaborating on an onging basis. My team and I have been working on this project for many years and it’s the right product, at the right time for the right reasons. Elementa is excited to be able to affect positive change on the world.” Kevin Johnson, Consul General, United States Consulate, recently visited Elementa’s pilot plant in Sault Ste. Marie. Michael Wozny, Vice President, Business Development for Elementa Group Inc., said, “The Consul General was very interested in the Elementa Process. He was extremely impressed and rather surprised that this unique world class technology and process was developed and optimized in a small Canadian city. The fact is, given the right circumstances, technology and intellectual property can be developed anywhere. After his tour, the Consul General commented that colleagues in Washington need to be aware of the Elementa Process. ” There is tremendous growing global interest in the Elementa Process. The Sault Ste. Marie Economic Development Corporation and Elementa Group Inc. has hosted delegations from over ten countries in the past 18 months. This includes St. Lucia, United States including New York and Chicago, Czechoslovakia, Spain, Brazil, Mexico, Slovakia, Dubai, Panama, Australia, private sector companies, senior government and elected officials. After signing the first of its kind in Canada EFW agreement with Elementa, Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada Mayor John Rowswell stated, “Elementa has taken a responsible approach in verifying the technology and putting together a business model that is cost effective and results oriented. The city has been a great supporter all the way through the development process and this agreement is a demonstration of our continued commitment. We have hosted delegations from over 10 countries who are interested in the Elementa process. This is clearly another example of why Sault Ste. Marie is
the Alternative Energy Capital of North America.” David Orazietti, Member of Provincial Parliament for Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada added, “Our government continues to support the cutting-edge work performed by Elementa because we recognize the need to find innovative solutions to deal with our garbage while increasing energy supply and spurring economic growth. This initiative will further Sault Ste. Marie’s reputation as a national green energy leader by bringing the community closer to becoming the first jurisdiction in Canada to have all of its curbside waste diverted from the municipal landfill.“ The customer business model for Elementa Group Inc. includes sales and arrangements that will include municipalities and jurisdictions around the world that operate landfills, private sector industries and manufacturers, as well as utilities & power generators. “Elementa is willing to engage in a variety of commercialization schemes in any country which would include any variation of the Design Build Operate model, joint ventures, technology sales, franchises and other viable business arrangement that makes sense,” said Wozny. After successful establishment of the full-sized plant, Elementa Group Inc. further plans to establish manufacturing facilities of proprietary plant equipment in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. Elementa Group Inc. has had negotiations with major international manufacturers who are interested in joint ventures to subsequently set up manufacturing facilities for key capital components of the Elementa system such as kilns, scrubbers, shredders, gas cleaning equipment, fabrication and manufacturing of proprietary equipment. Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada is at the heart of the Great Lakes and has a deep water port. Scalable plant equipment would be packaged and exported via the St. Lawrence Seaway, and other modes, to countries throughout the world. This would be worth billions of dollars of exports for Canada. Elementa Group Inc. continues to be repeatedly featured in prominent international media. The world is anxiously awaiting the proliferation of this innovative Canadian technology and process to address key global problems associated with landfills and greenhouse gases while producing clean renewable base-load energy.
ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |167|
CASE STUDY
Confined Space Entry – is your gas detector right for the job? These features may all seem obvious, but finding a gas detector that includes all of them, as well as other important characteristics has, until now, been impossible.
Working in confined spaces is difficult at the best of times. Operators often have to wear full PPE (personal protective equipment), are usually harnessed and may be carrying tools and equipment to complete the task in hand (e.g. welding). The last thing a worker in this environment needs to worry about is his or her gas detector. It should be designed specifically for confined space entry (CSE) applications, be unobtrusive and have a clear display that is easy to see at a glance.
With this feedback in mind, Crowcon went back to the drawing board. The result is Gas-Pro, a design perfectly suited for CSE applications to comply with hazardous area and health and safety standards.
According to the UK’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE) a confined space means ‘any place, including any chamber, tank, vat, silo, pit, trench, pipe, sewer, flue, well or other similar space in which, by virtue of its enclosed nature, there arises a reasonably foreseeable risk’. This definition covers just about any industrial activity but is especially applicable to the utilities industries (water and wastewater, electricity, telecommunications and gas), construction, hydrocarbon exploration and processing, petrochemicals, marine applications, agriculture, food processing, wine making and brewing, as well as emergency services. While the best advice is, if at all possible, to avoid entering confined spaces, this is obviously not always an option. In the above mentioned industries there will always be occasions when workers or emergency services personnel need to enter potentially dangerous areas to carry out inspections, routine maintenance, perform emergency repairs or effect rescues. There is a wide range of equipment required for CSE environments and the supply industry is well developed, with a plethora of PPE and safety equipment available. The one area of CSE where improvement is needed and where compromises have, to date, always had to be made, is gas detection. Users of gas detectors have typically had to make a choice between large pumped units, small diffusion models, or models with ‘parasitic’ pumps, which are easily lost or damaged. Handheld detectors that measure a wider range of gases tend to have front-mount displays and are usually optimised for leak location or ‘hot work’ permit issue, rather than being suitable for CSE work. So, what are the requirements of the ‘ideal’ CSE gas detector? Crowcon has done extensive market research among users and fleet managers around the globe and found the following five features to be essential: • Simple to use. • Bright, easy to read display. • Long battery life (for at least one full shift, and preferably two). • Robust construction. • Reliable detection (while not being the focus of the task at hand, unreliable detectors can halt it quickly).
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Specific CSE features of the new Gas-Pro include: • It is compact and comparable in size to leading front-mount diffusion detectors. It is designed so as not to get in the way of other PPE and accessories and not interfere with the worker’s primary activity. • It has a bright, clear top-mount display that can be read at a glance without having to even touch the detector. A dual colour backlight adds an extra level of alert should the Gas-Pro enter alarm status. • An internal pump means that pre-entry testing can be done quickly and easily. This also keeps the size of the detector small and removes the problems of poor sealing or the need for extra equipment and chargers associated with parasitic pumps. • +ve Safety™ – The status of detectors is becoming more and more important to fleet managers. Health and safety executives around the world (OSHA, HSE, Safework Australia, to name but a few) are introducing and making more stringent the guidelines and regulations released to ensure worker safety. Unique to the Gas-Pro, +ve Safety™ provides tri-colour status indication, giving quick and effective monitoring of gas test (bump), calibration, over range and recent alarm notification. Not only is +ve Safety™ flexible enough to meet individual company regulations, but the indication light is visible to all, offering the fleet manager a quick, simple, yet comprehensive visible indication of monitor status, unlike standard bump test indications or confidence flashes. • Multiple gas sensors for up to five potentially hazardous gases from an extremely wide range including hydrogen sulphide, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, oxygen and flammable gases, as well as industry-specific gases such as ozone, ammonia, chlorine, chlorine dioxide and sulphur dioxide. • In addition, Gas-Pro is extremely rugged and has IP65 &IP67 ingress protection with an extremely loud >95 dB alarm as well as a vibrating and dual colour visual warnings as standard. Crowcon’s new Gas-Pro CSE detector is therefore a new category of product designed for just one purpose – ensuring gas safety in confined spaces. Free from worries about what risks might come with compromise, personnel entering these spaces will be more focussed on their core activities, safe in the knowledge that their gas detector is focused on its core activity.
ENVAC SYSTEM TO DRIVE ENERGY FROM WASTE FOR SURREY CANAL: LONDON’S SPORTING VILLAGE
CASE STUDY
Envac UK Ltd has been chosen to supply its automated underground vacuum waste system at Lewisham’s 30 acre Surrey Canal: London’s Sporting Village development. A partnership with neighbouring Lewisham power plant, SELCHP, will also see the system feed waste directly into the plant in order to generate energy for the entire community. The move forms part of Lewisham’s wider regeneration strategy and is expected to achieve recycling levels in excess of 40 per cent, and also cut carbon emissions from refuse vehicles by up to 90 per cent. Julian Gaylor, Envac UK Ltd’s Managing Director, says: “The Surrey Canal scheme is a high profile project and Envac’s involvement will help provide a safe, clean and sustainable environment across a significant area of Lewisham. Using the Envac system to generate energy from waste is an extremely compelling feature and takes sustainable waste management to the next level. It will also help deliver a sustainable community in its truest sense and we are delighted that Envac has been appointed to work on such a groundbreaking development.”
Above: How Envac, the automated underground waste system, works
Below: On completion, the Surrey Canal: London's sporting village is expected to provide 2,000 new jobs and up to 2,700 homes
Envac addresses waste management limitations placed on large scale developments. Waste inlets are placed at various points throughout the site and a fan system sucks the waste through underground tubes to a central waste station at speeds of up to 70mph and distances as long as 2km. Diverting valves ensure that different types of waste do not mix and each waste type is directed into its correct container at a central point. The waste is then automatically fed into large containers, which are then hoisted onto refuse vehicles when full and taken away by the local council. Mark Taylor, Director of Development at specialist property company, Renewal Group, adds: “The Surrey Canal development is creating a blueprint for modern day regeneration so it is essential that we work with partners who demonstrate innovation and a commitment to creating sustainable communities. Envac is now widely regarded as a huge success and its installation at the Surrey Canal: London’s Sporting Village will once again showcase how automated vacuum waste systems are the future of waste management.” Many more high profile UK developments are expected to adopt Envac throughout 2011 in order to meet waste targets and reduce the negative environmental impact associated with traditional waste collection. On completion, Surrey Canal: London’s Sporting Village will provide a regional sports centre for London, 2,000 new jobs and up to 2,700 new homes. ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |169|
CASE STUDY
LIGHTING SCHEME GOES SWIMMINGLY AT HARLOW POOL Harlow Leisurezone, a new state of the art sports and leisure centre earmarked as a training facility for the 2012 Olympics, has recently installed Sill Lighting’s high performance projectors to light the 25m swimming pool, training pool and spectator seating area. The lighting scheme design solution for the new build leisure centre was to use a combination of uplighting and downlighting to achieve both efficiency and glare control. The scheme also had to take into account the low reflectance values of the timber finishes of both the ceilings and walls. Mounted on specially made bespoke brackets either side of the swimming pool, are twenty back-to-back pairs of uplights and downlights. Sill’s 467 power plane projectors with 1000w metal halide lamps uplight the roof for illumination without veiling glare, whilst underneath, providing efficient, direct light are Sill’s dynamic curved 458 plane projectors with 400w metal halide lamps. Both projectors are equipped with asymmetric reflectors for excellent uniformity and the bodies of luminaires are anti-chlorine coated. Emergency lamps have also been fitted to half of the direct projectors so that the facilities remain lit in the event of a power cut. Global provider of professional, technical and management support services, AECOM, specified Sill for the lighting scheme due to its high-quality, efficient projectors. Damien Bathie-Neale from AECOM’s Building Engineering business in St Albans, Hertfordshire, comments, “Sill Lighting’s high-end fittings ticked all the boxes when it came to the requirements of the scheme.” The 458 and 467 plane projectors from Sill Lighting offer a high efficiency and long lamp lifespan due to the luminaires’ thermal engineering. The projectors are popular with lighting designers and architects and have been used in some of the world’s most prestigious buildings. Both projectors have Si12 corrosion resistant die-cast aluminium housings with large heat dissipating cooling fins. The reflectors are made of 99.98% pure aluminium, chemically polished and anodised with a UV filtering toughened safety glass sealed by a silicone gasket. Built as part of the £50 million Harlow Gateway Project which is providing homes, leisure and lifestyle opportunities for residents of Harlow, the £25 million leisure centre is operated by Harlow and District Sports. |170| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Trust, an independent and registered charitable trust with the objective to provide exceptional sport and leisure for the people of Harlow and district. Further information is available from Sill Lighting on 01844 260006, email: sales@sill-uk.com, or by visiting the company’s website at www.sill-uk.com.
When Hopkins Architects was interviewed about designing the new building for Yale’s School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, project director Mike Taylor and Sir Michael Hopkins took the opportunity to have a look at the university’s plans room. Their main aim was to see the drawings for such important buildings as Louis Kahn’s art gallery, but while they were there they made a discovery that had a vital effect on their design. ‘We saw that Yale had its own forests in New England,’ Taylor explained. ‘We thought then that it could be a masonry building with a timber lining – and that it could use their own timber’. The result is a building where much of the internal excitement comes from the use of American red oak, on stairs and lining walls, drawing you up to the most dramatic space on the top floor, and imparting a warmth to the building that might otherwise have been lacking. The building, known as Kroon Hall, occupies a space that was previously a messy backyard. ‘All the good sites have gone now,’ said Taylor, but this positioning on what could fairly be described as a brownfield site accords with the aspirations of the building, which were to be as environmentally friendly as possible. The client wanted the building to score LEED platinum, the highest category in the US system (roughly equivalent to BREEAM). But it wanted to go further, to be carbon neutral. Hopkins designed a building that is one of the greenest in the US, using many approaches that are common in the UK, but unusual in the more extreme climate of New Haven Connecticut, which has hot humid summers and cold winters. Only in the pleasant ‘shoulder seasons’ of spring and autumn is it feasible to rely entirely on natural ventilation.
By Ruth Slavid
School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, Yale University, Hopkins Architects
CASE STUDY
Its approach is one of orientation, high thermal mass and good insulation, to minimise the demand for energy. There is as much natural light as possible, and an exposed southern façade to allow solar gain in winter, but with shading to keep out the high summer sun. Having kept the energy requirement as low as possible, the building then has windows that can open in spring and autumn (there is a system of red and green indicators to show when it is appropriate to do so). The rest of the time the building uses displacement ventilation with heat recovery. Heating and cooling come from heat exchange ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |171|
with geothermal wells that are nearly 500m deep. And there are photovoltaic panels on the roof to provide another source of renewable energy. If all this sounds complex, the building itself is surprisingly simple, a single, barrel-vaulted structure, two storeys high on one side, and three on the other to accommodate a change in level on the site and provide access beneath for service vehicles. It is also a clever piece of placemaking, creating new courtyards on either side of it. It is initially surprising that the most public spaces are on the top floor, with relatively routine cellular offices below. At the top are an environment centre, classrooms and gathering spaces including a canteen. This was a deliberate attempt to create a new heart for the school, to complement the informal gatherings that can happen outside when the weather allows. Because of the form of the building, the top floor is the most dramatic space, and so most suited to this use. The centrally placed staircase draws people up to this space, and, especially on the ground floor, its warm patina contrasts enticingly with the cooler exposed concrete finishes. The timber used is American red oak, which comes from the Yale Tourney forest, the largest of the seven forests that were donated to the university in the 20th Century. In the very northeast of Connecticut , it covers 3.213ha, and is FSC certified. It mostly consists of mixed hardwoods with small stands of pine. The timber that Hopkins chose to use was red oak, and in the end about half of it came from Yale Tourney and the rest from elsewhere, although it was all FSC certified. It was used for all the internal timber, with the exception of the glulam beams, which are of Douglas fir, as is the external timber shading. American red oak is not suited for external use in so harsh a climate, and the glulam manufacturer also has specifications that exclude its use. For Hopkins this is the first time it has worked with American red oak. It has extensive experience of white oak, particularly at the parliamentary building Portcullis House, and also at Haberdashers’ Hall in the City of London. ‘We were a bit guarded,’ said Taylor. ‘It is more characterful than white oak. There is more variation and more warmth. We were concerned that it could look like exaggerated variation.’ When working with timber in the UK, Hopkins’s normal habit is to create panels and then to hang these directly, but at Yale it went with a more American process of using ‘v-line’ boarding – roughly equivalent to tongue and groove. ‘You start at one end and move along explained Taylor, explaining that this was a cheaper solution, although he did not think it would have been in the UK. ‘It’s a local thing,’ he said. ‘I imagine if you did it in the UK it wouldn’t look the same.’ Hopkins was in the fortunate position of being able |172| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
to select the timber, which was all kiln-dried. Before specialist local timber contractor Legere Group started installing the boards, Hopkins set up a selection specification, ensuring that any boards in which the variation was too extreme, or where there were too many knots, would be rejected. The contractor then installed them, deliberately randomising them so that, although the variation is not extreme, it is most definitely there. On the upper floor, where this panelling forms enclosures to some teaching spaces that go up to meet the ceiling, there are three rows of vertical planking at the ends, and an alternation between horizontal and vertical planking on the main entrance walls, with the horizontal element acting almost like a portico. As well as the panelling there are other elements that use red oak. The stairs have oak treads, with nonslip strips set into them, contrasting with the exposed concrete of the risers. An informal space at the end of the top floor has red oak flooring, made into panels each of which is the size of four of the raised floor panels, so that it can be lifted off and the services can be accessed. With dark leather sofas, and the timber panelled walls of some enclosed classrooms behind, the effect is a little like being in a modern, and determinedly nonexclusive, version of a gentleman’s club. The use of red oak for some low-level tables adds to the harmonious impression. There is other red oak furniture in the building as well, in particular some benches near the entrance, although none of the timber for this furniture was sourced from the Yale forest. But after the panelling, the most obvious place where red oak has been used is on the ceiling panels to the vault that runs the length of the building. These panels, made by Rulon Company, are of solid formaldehyde-free MDF and contain apertures for lighting and sprinklers, as well as having openings to an acoustic backing. They are veneered with red oak, and have solid red oak edges to them. Initially Taylor was concerned about the visual contrast between the red oak panelling and veneers and the Douglas fir glulam beams, but the effect is harmonious. And the use of locally grown oak, even if there was not enough of it to do the whole job (the forests are mostly maintained as a research resource rather than for commercial exploitation) is in keeping with the approach on the rest of the building. Externally, it is clad in Briar Hill Stone, a pale yellow stone that has been used widely on buildings on the campus, so that Kroon Hall sits comfortably with its neighbours. What is most striking about this building is the way that almost every decision about its design was informed by an environmental agenda, and yet it is an eminently strong and rational piece of architecture that doesn’t proclaim its environmental credentials, except to the cognoscenti. The architect describes it as ‘a modernist blend of
cathedral nave and Connecticut barn’. It is orientated east west, with the long northern side, with its minimal openings, set into the hillside, and a much more open southern side spilling out into a garden. The concrete structure, exposed internally to provide thermal mass, has 50 per cent of the cement replaced by blast-furnace slag, a waste material. Low-velocity fans in the basement circulate the air in the displacement system. It is easy to concentrate entirely on energy when one thinks about environmental performance, but water is also a valuable resource, and the architect has not neglected this in its design. There is a rainwater harvesting system that not only gathers water from the roof but also uses the garden in the south courtyard to help clean it up. The rainwater is directed to an area of aquatic plants which filter out sediment and contaminants. From there it goes to underground storage tanks, and it is used for flushing lavatories. The saving in water, the school of forestry estimates, is a staggering 500,000 gallons a year. The architect even thought about the lift (sorry, elevator), in environmental terms. It has specified a counterweighted roped holeless hydraulic elevator, which uses less energy than either an ordinary hydraulic elevator or a typical roped counterweighted elevator. Equally importantly, by placing the staircase at the heart of the building, it has helped to ensure that only those who really need an elevator will use it. On completion of the building in April 2009, Richard C Levin, the president of Yale, praised it as ‘Yale’s most sustainable building to date’ and said that he hoped ‘its energy-saving concepts will be emulated widely and inspire others to advance green building design even further.’ Set anywhere, this building would be an achievement in both architectural and sustainability terms. The fact that it has also replaced an eyesore of a power plant and created a focus for a department that previously inhabited a soulless hotchpotch of buildings is a bonus. And for the students and faculty, what could be better than to be reminded of the subject of their study every time they look at those red oak walls? With busy agendas they are unlikely to get to the forest as often as they might wish. How marvellous then that the forest has come to them.
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CASE STUDY
By ALcontrol Labs
Online Test Data Improves Remediation Efficiency
Quick and easy access to test data combined with the ability to schedule analytical work is helping remediation contractor VSD Avenue to maximise the efficiency of work to clean up one of the UK’s largest and most heavily contaminated sites. The £172.3m clean-up operation at the Avenue Coking Works near Chesterfield in Derbyshire has been underway for over a year and project director, Marcus Foweather says: “Over the lifespan of this project ALcontrol will have tested in excess of 10,000 samples for between 5 and 18 species. This data is critical to the ongoing management of the remediation activities, enabling us to identify soils for treatment and to check that cleaning operations comply with the required specifications. Almost all process management decisions are therefore affected by test data, so the ability to access results through ALcontrol’s online ‘@mis’ system has been a fundamentally important part of the project’s success.” Background Historically, the land at the Avenue has hosted a variety of industries; primarily the coking works but also a large chemical plant, a liquor by-products works, a large rail head, a hazardous waste tip and two large contaminated silt lagoons. Covering 80 hectares (almost the size of 200 football pitches), the site presented a substantial challenge to VSD Avenue which is a joint venture consisting of civil engineering contractor VolkerStevin Ltd, DEME environmental contractors (DEC) and SITA Remediation. The reclamation and remediation is being funded by the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) through the National Coalfields Program. The site remains owned by the East Midlands Development Agency (emda) which is acting as delivery agent for the project. This redevelopment process started as early as 1999 with the emptying of above ground storage tanks and the dismantling and demolition of the above ground infrastructure and buildings. The site was razed but was left with a host of contamination problems below ground including the remaining sub surface infrastructure and contaminated soil and groundwater. The completed project will create a substantial development platform for residential plots and |174| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
employment space for light industry. The remaining three quarters of the site, once remediated, will be returned to the community for various uses, including open spaces, sports pitches and a nature reserve, creating high quality habitats for a wide range of local flora and fauna including water voles, bats, butterflies, great crested newts and many other species. Complex remediation challenge The volumes associated with the project are unprecedented in the UK remediation sector; over 2 million cubic metres of material are being excavated with a significant volume of this having to be processed. Within this over 100,000m¬3 of contaminated sediments from the site’s silt lagoons are also being processed. The lagoons were originally built either side of the River Rother which passes through the site and there is a waste tip above one of the lagoons. The range of contaminants and the breadth of physical variation of the material have called for a number of different remediation techniques. The site’s thermal desorption plant is the largest in the UK and utilises advanced ‘off gas’ treatment and filtration systems to ensure compliance with stringent emissions criteria. Two large aerated bio beds treat a further 75,000 m¬3 of hydrocarbon contaminated material and an innovative on site water treatment facility employing a combination of chemical oxidation and biological degradation treat the cocktail of phenols, thiocyanates, benzene and ammonia in the waters.
Other operations include the manual sorting of 237,000m3 of tip materials followed by soil washing of the remaining material. The soil washing operation utilises the same techniques that have been employed by DEC in their soil treatment facility at the London 2012 Olympic Games site. The soil washing process generally allows reuse of 70-85% of the contaminated soil as suitable fill material. This reuse in conjunction with the reuse on site of material from the thermal desorption plant and the bioremediation treatments allows a very high percentage of all the excavated materials to be reused on site with only a very small fraction of material leaving the site for landfill. This reuse of material on site obviates the need for imported materials and saves many thousands of lorry movements, thereby reducing emissions and traffic congestion. Further information on the Avenue is available at: www.theavenueproject.co.uk. The role of analytical chemistry Soil and water analysis at the Avenue performs two key functions. Firstly, to inform the management of the treatment processes and secondly to provide verification that either treated soils meet with the required specification or that treated water complies with the site’s discharge permit. “The turnaround time for analysis is critical,” says earthwork planning engineer Steve Dobson. “Results for most of the analyses are required within 5 days, so that we can plan remediation activities accordingly. It has been necessary, therefore, to work in close partnership with the technical staff at ALcontrol to ensure the delivery of timely analytical data. “The online @mis system has helped enormously to provide us with fast results from what we call ‘sentencing testing’ – tests that help determine the appropriate method and level of remediation. In addition, the facility to schedule analytical work means that we get the data we need to maximise the efficiency of the remediation work, which helps to minimise costs. “We worked very closely with ALcontrol to develop a bespoke testing strategy to ensure compliance with the project’s requirements and the ability of the @mis system to export in AGS format has helped us to manage the enormous volume of data that is being produced.” From the perspective of the analytical service provider, ALcontrol’s Hazel Davidson says, “The Avenue presented an interesting challenge both in terms of the volume of samples and the range of pollutants to be tested. However, two of the main advantages to be gained from an organisation the size of ALcontrol are an ability to manage extremely high volume of samples and the analytical resources to be able to measure almost anything. In fact, our UKAS and MCERTS laboratories are able to provide over 3,000 different tests, so it was simply
a matter of creating a plan to ensure the availability of test data as quickly as possible.” The utilisation of the Internet to provide analytical data has been given a high priority at ALcontrol and as a result, six full-time IT staff are employed to continuously improve the @mis system in line with requirements that are driven by customers and end-users. For example, the team is currently developing a capability for @mis to automatically issue sms mobile phone alarms when results meet an SGV (Soil Guideline Vale) or pre-set alarm level. However, Hazel Davidson says, “Only about 30% of UK customers currently use the online system and whilst this figure is growing, it contrasts significantly with our customers in France, for example, where 80% use the system.” There is no extra charge for online results, so Hazel says, “It is surprising that it is not yet used by everyone, particularly since the data remains online as a permanent, easily accessible archive. This means that customers can access their data at any time and create reports, in a choice of formats, by selecting specific dates. “Staff at the Avenue also order fresh sample bottles and schedule their analytical work though the @mis system and tell us that this is a great benefit to the speed and efficiency of their remediation work. “Fast results are clearly essential to effective site investigation and efficient remediation, and for this reason the number of engineers and consultants benefiting from the @mis online system is growing rapidly.”
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FAMOUS LAST WORDS
There is more to hand drying, than just drying your hands… By Syed Ahmed, Former Contender For Lord Sugar’s Apprentice Syed Ahmed, founder and CEO of Award winning Ecomanufacturing business SA Vortex Ltd a National Green Specification approved manufacturer and supplier of patent protected, ultra energy efficient hand dryers, have reduced the power consumption of its range. We find ourselves in tough economic times and in a race against climate change. Business leaders must take a lead and look at ways of implementing sustainable practices that reduce energy use through their businesses which ultimately cut costs. I have spent the last three years channelling all my energy into SAVortex Ltd, a UK company that has developed revolutionary air-spinning heating technology for hand-dryers. British design, British innovation, and manufactured in Wiltshire. Building a company with an eco conscience from scratch isn’t easy. Our journey in the past few years has been painful, frustrating, scary, exciting, edgy, and a never ending adventure of creativity and creation. I have enjoyed every minute of it. I am not afraid to say that I have risked it all, I’ve had doors closed in my face and several good ones open, I’ve created a product from scratch, filed patents, enticed an influential board of directors, a management team and learnt a lot about myself and business in my mission to raise finance. I have met some amazing and inspiring people and I now have a talented experienced team around me to take us to the next phase of our expansion – I am forever grateful for their unwavering commitment and support. We are working hard to lead and inspire our sector via innovation. Our goal is increase awareness of “Green drying” within the Hand drying sector and to help people understand the importance of making realistic, informed and energy conscious purchasing decisions that show real cost savings to their bottom line. Our sales team are here to help buyers and users understand the short and long term cost and energy benefits and highlight the true ‘cost of ownership’ of hand dryers. We want to drive initiatives and meet the needs of commercial, industrial and domestic customers helping them to reduce their carbon footprint and reduce cost, while maintaining and improving hygiene standards. We are very keen to work in partnership with like-minded leading companies and have already started that with several organisations. To close 2010 and to launch our latest eco-smart hand dryer, the first 10 second dryer using 550 watts, we organised an event in London at Savoy Place, the home of the Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET). Entitled “Innovation for Success”, we celebrated sustainability, British innovation, British design and British manufacturing. ‘Innovation for |176| ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Success’ was hosted by ITV’s Daybreak Newsreader Tasmin Lucia Khan with expert speakers on energy saving and sustainability including David Penfold, Sustainability and Innovation Manager Sainsbury’s, Hassan Atiq, an Energy expert, and Steve van Dulken, an Information Expert at the British Library. Steve van Dulken went on to congratulate SAVortex team on our diligence and success so far. The British Library was instrumental in providing SAVortex with research and guidance in the early days with their Patents. He added “with less than 3% of filed patents getting through, SAVortex have done very well in such a short period of time with three filings to date”. More from his blog at http://britishlibrary.typepad.co.uk/ patentsblog/2010/11/the-vortex-hand-dryer.html. The regenerative heating technique conserves energy by recovering and reusing heat that is used whilst drying, saving money as well as reducing the impact on the environment and producing the industry’s lowest heat emissions. Not only will this reduce electricity costs, increasing over-all carbon efficiency, the Vortex is the lowest carbon foot-print dryer in its class. With a 97% cost saving against paper towels, combine this with the lowest Total Cost of Ownership of any high speed dryer on the market and you have an unbeatable drying solution. SAVortex is continuing to push the boundaries and driving down costs enabling their customers to reduce their environmental carbon footprint. The Vortex 550 is our latest eco-smart hand dryer, the first 10 second dryer using 550 watts that recovers energy and cuts cost whilst drying hands. The total ethos of the SAVortex hand dryer is minimum energy use without loss of effectiveness. Our hard work to improve energy efficiency and produce the greenest quietest and fastest dryer is paying dividends. For more information please do not hesitate to contact us, visit www.savortex.com