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Contractors urged to ‘wake up’ in bid to meet zero carbon target
Building contractors are being urged to “wake up” and introduce radical change to help meet the UK’s 2050 zero carbon target.
A 32-page report published today by the National Federation of Builders (NFB), entitled Transforming Construction for a Low Carbon Future, is branded as a “call to arms” to the construction industry, which is responsible for 10% of the UK’s carbon emissions. The sector also “directly influences” 47% of all emissions through work on infrastructure and building maintenance, the report said.
Among its recommendations, the report calls for a new version or overhaul of the current certification scheme on retrofitting houses with carbon-saving technology.
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Under current targets, all rented properties must have an EPC rating of C by 2030 and 80% of all homes need to have a C rating by 2035.
The report said: “Contractors engaging in this retrofit market must be able to deliver the modifications required to make the necessary carbon savings: this will require high-quality installation skills allied to a technical education.”
It added: “Government will have to support this investment and encourage take-up, otherwise it will not happen.”
The government’s Committee on Climate Change has said that £15bn of public money must be spent annually to cut carbon emissions from housing.
It comes as environmental issues around housing are moving further up the political agenda as the general election looms. Last month the government announced plans for a new ‘green standard’ for all new build homes. Labour has pledged to make all new homes zero carbon by 2022 as part of a £60bn proposal around retrofitting housing.
And the Liberal Democrats last week laid out plans to spend £15bn on insulating up to 26 million homes.
Nick Sangwin, chair of the NFB, said: “This report is not a document to sit on shelves gathering dust, it is designed to galvanise the sector into action, to see the opportunities and to lead the way towards zero carbon by 2050.
“It is critical that those within the construction sector are stepping forward and implementing a real step change in the way they do business.”
Mark Wakeford, chair of the NFB’s major contractors group, added: “Anyone still operating the same way as they are today in 20 years’ time will be lucky to still be in business. There are no excuses: government, contractors, the supply chain, manufacturers, designers and the trades must all embrace the challenge now, as highlighted in our recommendations.”
