ARCHITECTURE
INITIATING A GREEN RECOVERY: HOW CAN DEVELOPMENT CONTRIBUTE? OLIVER LOWRIE Director & Co-founder Ackroyd Lowrie www.ackroydlowrie.com
The built environment is widely recognised as one of the biggest contributors to the UK’s carbon footprint, at around 40% of overall emissions. This is split between the carbon/energy required to build the buildings, and the carbon/energy used to operate the buildings. Furthermore, with the pandemic re-emphasising our reliance on green space, it’s now more important than ever that we build back better, greener environments that ensure the occupants of our future cities can live healthy, balanced lives. 042 – Qandor – Issue No. 12
Whilst there is the long-term European target to be net zero carbon by 2050, there are other, more pressing goals to achieve in the short term. To prepare for the 2025 Future Homes Standard (FHS), the government announced there is now an expectation for all new homes constructed from this year onwards to produce 30% more energy efficiency. But how is all this achievable and how do we make it easier to be green? Initially, we encourage a fabric first approach. This means ensuring all buildings we produce are well-insulated and have decent quality glazing. Developers and builders are going to see more attention paid to minimising cold bridging and making