Zero carbon homes, the UK government’s and new housebuilders’ holy grail by 2016, are achievable now, says Pete Halsall, managing director of sustainable developer BioRegional Quintain. “It’s about choosing to go down that route, undertaking the practical aspects necessary to achieve it and then about delivering it. Many housebuilders simply don’t want to engage with the challenge of providing zero carbon homes.”
Currently not one built development in Britain achieves zero-carbon status, according to the way the government defines it in The Code for Sustainable Homes, which is the new single standard for designing and building new homes in a more sustainable way in the UK.
The code says: “True zero carbon is where net carbon emissions resulting from all energy used in the dwelling is zero. This includes the energy consumed in the operation of the space heating/cooling and hot-water systems, ventilation, all internal lighting, cooking and all electrical appliances.
“The calculation can take account of contributions from renewable/low carbon installations on/in the dwelling, or provided by an energy services company (ESCO) on/offsite provided it directly supplies the dwelling.”
One development that when completed will be zero carbon is One Brighton, New England Quarter in Brighton, on England’s south coast. A development of 172 apartments, it is being built under a joint development by BioRegional Quintain and housebuilder Crest Nicholson. Priced from £145,000 for a studio apartment, phase one has sold out. Phase two is to be released in spring 2008.
Developed under the ten One Planet Living® principles of sustainability, One Brighton will achieve zero-waste status through recycling and composting; will be built using sustainable materials wherever possible, implement sustainable transport solutions, and apply measures to support local and sustainable food and wildlife.
Halsall says: “One Brighton will be the most sustainable development in the UK and it will be true zero carbon. Fifty per cent of energy requirements will be provided by onsite renewable sources, including biomass. The remaining 50 per cent will be bought in from a REGO accredited supplier, which ensures the energy is provided from a renewable source and is only sold once.”
The distinction is an important one in the quest to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, which create greenhouses gases, which are the main cause of climate change globally. In the UK 27 per cent of our CO2 emissions come from our homes, and almost 50 per cent are from the built environment, including offices, factories, schools and hospitals, according to the government agency the Carbon Trust.
“Currently, Halsall says, “for practical reasons it’s really only possible to produce all the energy requirements onsite through renewable sources – for example, biomass (the burning of wood), solar, wind or hydro – in new developments of 260 homes or more. Any less and there will be have to be a mix of onsite and offsite renewable energy provision for a development to be zero carbon.”
Don’t confuse zero carbon with carbon neutral. Many developers sell their schemes on the grounds of them being carbon neutral, through what is known as offsetting. The practice works where companies buy credits in a scheme elsewhere in order to offset the carbon they emit during construction but also ongoing. BioRegional Quintain, however, is taking direct responsibility for reducing its CO2 emissions.
At One Brighton, during construction, when vast quantities of embodied energy are used, the company is spending a additional five per cent to develop and build a concrete frame of equal strength to a conventional one, but which will use only half the usual amount of concrete – a major contributor of embodied energy and therefore CO2 – and 100 per cent recycled aggregate.
Ongoing, it will provide zero carbon homes at not only One Brighton, but also at a second new development in the South East, called One Gallions. In the north of England, BioRegional Quintain will do so in the construction of 750 houses as part of a new development of 5,000 homes, called RiversideOne at Middlehaven, which is located in a former docks in Middlesbrough.
Halsall said: “RiversideOne will be a higher specification than that at One Brighton. We copperplate our learning at each development and carry that with us to the next one and them move that forward once more. I would say, as a company, it is what gives us our competitive advantage.”
The ethos appears to be working. BioRegional Quintain, in partnership with Crest Nicholson and Southern Housing Group have been selected as the preferred developer by the London Development Agency for Mayor Ken Livingstone’s flagship zero carbon scheme in the Thames Gateway, One Gallions.
The partnership’s winning concept is designed to provide a sustainable lifestyle for residents, using the One Planet Living principles to provide a holistic, attractive and exciting new community. Homes are expected to be for sale later this year, and ready to move into in 2010.
The approach to be applied will significantly reduce carbon emissions and wider environmental impacts, through a host of measures such as renewable energy (100 per cent onsite combined heat and power [CHP], fuelled by biomass), energy efficient architecture, natural materials, as well as integrated waste management, on-site food growing and green transport measures such as car and cycle clubs.
At Middlehaven, the UK’s largest zero carbon community will be realised. Master-planned by award winning architect Will Alsop, Middlehaven will be a landmark mixed-use, zero carbon community (generating all the energy to heat, cool and power the development from a combination of on-site and off-site renewable sources), which will set the standards for sustainability.
In addition to the 5,000 homes to be built, more than 2,000 new jobs, in excess of 200,000 ft2 of new office and leisure space, and 25,000ft2 of shops, a hotel, bars and restaurants will be developed in a series of iconic and sustainable riverside developments. Registration is now taking place and prices have yet to be released.
