SUSTAINABILITY


MATERIAL CONSIDERATIONS T


Reducing carbon emissions has to remain a priority – Lorna Stork, ESG Director at SIG talks to BMJ to outline how this focus will increasingly affect the design and choice of building products.


he UK government does not have a good record on reducing energy demand in buildings. Lord Debden, Chair of the Climate Change Committee makes this clear in a letter [9 November 2022] to Jeremy Hunt, Chancellor of the Exchequer: “Our recent record on reducing emissions is particularly poor”. He goes on to say: “A decade ago 2.3 million energy efficiency measures were installed annually through Government -backed schemes. In 2021, fewer than 100,000 were installed.”


Debden could also have referenced the Code for Sustainable Homes, with its original target of 2016 for all new homes to be zero carbon, as another failed government policy for reducing the energy demand of buildings. In the case of this initiative, the financial crisis of 2008 and housebuilders, who just saw red tape and expense, saw that ambition scuppered. So will the recent economic turbulence mean an end to talk about sustainable construction and the government quietly shelving its 2050 net zero commitments?


I would argue that it will do the opposite. Far from heralding the end of sustainable construction, the recent financial and energy crisis combined with initiatives from the private sector will actually increase the focus on sustainability and sustainable products. One reason I think sustainability will become increasingly important in construction is the increasing public awareness of the impact of carbon emissions on the climate and the need for us all to take urgent action. It was a point made by Lord Debden in his letter to Jeremy Hunt: “The cost of living is a top public concern, but support for Net Zero also remains strong. People want to reduce their bills and to tackle climate change,” he said. Debden also called on the government to make energy efficiency a core part of the Government’s exit strategy from expensive energy bill subsidies.


Regardless of whether the Chancellor listens to Debden’s call for energy efficiency measures, I would argue that there is now a growing momentum in the construction industry for sustainable and energy efficient construction solutions.


Collectively, the industry has invested in new product development and technical innovations. This time round, we really do know how to


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account for the carbon impact of materials used in a building. The Nordic countries are expected to follow suit in the next couple of years so it is probably only a matter of time before embodied carbon becomes a key feature of the UK Building Regulations.


build high performance homes cost-effectively. It’s challenging and the technical team at SIG is frequently involved in providing product advice on how to meet increasingly stringent fabric thermal performance targets for new homes. In addition, many businesses are committed to improving their environmental, social and governance (ESG) commitments. Developers, aware that occupiers are placing an increased emphasis on the ‘E’ of their ESG, are looking to contractors to help secure the long-term value of their property portfolio by aligning it towards net zero carbon buildings.


A net zero carbon building is one that has no net carbon emissions during its construction and operation. A new standard is currently under development that will address carbon in both new and existing buildings. Crucially for construction material suppliers, the new net zero carbon standard is expected to set performance targets for both operational and embodied carbon emissions in order to deliver a net zero carbon building.


The carbon embodied in a building product includes emissions from the energy used to extract and transport raw materials used in its manufacture along with the emissions from the manufacturing process itself.


France has already introduced a regulation to


The challenge for constructors - and the merchants who supply them - is how to quantify the embodied carbon in a product. Environmental product declarations (EPDs) are the accepted way for manufacturers to establish a product’s embodied carbon. With a defined certification process, EPDs enable customers to make product choices based on technical performance, cost and also on carbon emissions. To make it easier for customers to access a product’s EPD, SIG has established a central EPD database which will contain the EPDs for all products supplied by SIG which currently have this documentation. What’s more, SIG’s specialist compliance team will ensure this certification not only matches the product purchased, but that the EPD is valid and is current, putting the merchant in a great position to help responsible customers make the right environmental choices. Alongside its EPD database, as a leading distributor of building materials with a commitment to sustainability SIG is also improving information about the sustainability of the products it offers. This will enable customers to make informed decisions and considered trade-offs between embodied carbon and in- life energy efficiency, as well as factors such as recycled content, waste take back opportunities and contribution to biodiversity.


SIG is also working with its suppliers and early- stage innovators to support and encourage the uptake of lower carbon products, such as bio- sourced insulation solutions. Its aim is to offer as wide a range of products as it can. It is not just sustainability of the products that we are looking to improve. As a major construction product distributor SIG has committed to its own zero carbon roadmap to reduce and, eventually, eliminate carbon emissions from its business operations. This includes targets to eliminate emissions from its transport fleet, offices and warehouses. It also includes a commitment to partner with manufacturers and customers to reduce carbon and waste across the supply chain – a commitment SIG is working hard to honour. BMJ


www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net January 2023


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