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Sustainable construction aims to produce buildings that use less virgin material and less energy, cause less pollution and less waste but still provide the comfort, architectural quality and function that we have come to expect from modern buildings.
Ultimately, a sustainable building will allow the needs of today’s population to be met without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs by minimising its resource use and environmental impact.
Sustainable construction needs to consider a range of environmental impacts arising from the construction and operational phases of a building. These include:
- energy use
- waste production
- water consumption
- types of materials
- landscaping
- transport
- climate change adaptation
Why is sustainable construction important?
Buildings are responsible for 52% of the UK’s carbon dioxide emissions. The UK building stock is only replaced at the rate of about 1% a year. If ambitious carbon dioxide reduction targets are to be met then the energy and resource use of new buildings needs to be minimised. Zero carbon buildings do not emit any carbon dioxide through their use at all.
Related Websites
Contact Environmental Policy & Sustainability
- Tel: 01803 207751
- Email: sustainability@torbay.gov.uk
- Fax: 01803 208882
