carbon offsetting

Carbon offsetting schemes involve an evaluation by independent but unregulated carbon offset companies, such as The CarbonNeutral Company and Climate Care, of a building or development's carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Once assessed, a fee is charged to the developer per tonne of CO2 emitted based on a tariff of the cost to the environment of carbon dioxide emissions. The money paid by the developer is then used to fund a renewable energy scheme, often initiated by the carbon offset company. Examples around the world include the funding of a hydropower station in Bulgaria.

Supporters of carbon offsetting argue that it makes a real difference, helping to pay for renewable energy schemes to be set up. They further posit that there is no legal obligation – in some countries – to offset emissions and by doing so voluntarily they are taking a lead on the issue. Opponents claim that those who practice offsetting don't take responsibility for the reduction of CO2 they create. Instead they buy a clean conscience. It is better, the anti-offsetting lobby say, to build sustainably in the first instance, and implement long-term initiatives to reduce carbon dioxide emissions ongoing.

carbon positive woodfibre board

Carbon positive woodfibre board is manufactured from waste wood obtained from sustainably managed sawmills. The waste wood is added to water and heated gently; this causes the natural lignum come to come out of the wood, which acts as a natural bonding agent. There is therefore no glue or formaldehyde when the woodfibre is compressed to form a board. Woodfibre board manufacutured in this way is ‘carbon positive’ because it locks up 1.2 tonnes of CO2 for every one tonne of board produced. This is possible because of the chemistry of CO2 – i.e. the carbon locked up in one tonne of board would react with oxygen in the air to produce 1.2 tonnes of CO2.

climate change

A change of climate is defined by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change as one that is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere, and which is in addition to natural climate variability over comparable time periods. Carbon dioxide (CO2), as well as five other significant gases, which are emitted when fossil fuels, for example coal, oil and gas, are burned to produce energy for electricity and heat, is scientifically accepted to be a significant cause of climate change.

combined heat and power (CHP)

CHP is the simultaneous generation of usable heat and power (usually electricity) in a single process. CHP systems can be employed over a wide range of sizes, applications, Why we like...
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Intelligent, informed and well-presented thinking. fuels and technologies. The heat produced during power generation is recovered, and can be used to raise steam for a number of industrial processes: to provide hot water for space heating, or with the appropriate equipment installed, cooling. Until recently CHP has only really be a practical solution on large-scale developments. However, a small gas-burning microCHP, called a WhisperGen, that produces electricity and heat simultaneously, is being marketed as a domestic solution.

Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)

In England and Wales, the Energy Efficiency and Environmental Impact rating of houses is based on a grading system of A to G (with a numerical rating from 1 to 100), ranging from the most energy efficient (Band A, or 100) to the least efficient (Band G or 1). Energy efficiency refers to the energy performance of a home based on the amount of energy required to light and heat the property. The rating reflects the estimated cost of energy use per square metre of floor space. A rating of 100 (Band A) indicates that a building will cost nothing to heat and light; a rating of 1 (Band G) indicates that the house requires an expensive amount of energy to light and heat. The Environmental Impact (CO2) rating aspect of the EPC is a measure of the home’s impact on the environment in terms of CO2 emissions. The higher the rating the less impact the home has on the environment. An EPC report in each of the two areas rates the current performance and indicates a potential rating. It further gives an indication of how much (based on standard occupancy levels) energy is used and carbon dioxide is emitted per year, and indicates the likely to cost to provide heating, hot water and lighting to the property on an annual basis.

EcoHomes/The Code for Sustainable Homes

In the UK, EcoHomes is an environmental rating for houses. It provides an authoritative rating for new, converted or renovated homes, and covers houses, flats and apartments and is one of the Building Research Establishment's (BRE) suite of environmental assessment tools.

The Ecohomes assessment balances environmental performance with the need for a high quality of life and a safe and healthy internal environment. Many of the issues are optional, ensuring Ecohomes is flexible enough to be tailored to a particular development or market.

Ecohomes Assessments can be carried out at both the design stage or post construction for:

• New build
• Major refurbishment projects

In April 2007 The Code for Sustainable Homes replaced Ecohomes for the assessment of new housing in England. BREEAM ratings, including EcoHomes, are entirely separate from The Code for Sustainable Homes and cannot be converted into a Code rating. EcoHomes will continue to be used within England where there is a contractual commitment to deliver a building with an EcoHomes rating, for example as a condition of planning, and for all developments which were registered before the start of April 2007. EcoHomes will continue to be used within Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as is currently the case and for all refurbishment developments within the UK.

geo-thermal energy

Geo-thermal energy is heat produced from beneath the earth's surface that emits no CO2. Depending on global location, energy can be produced from depths as little as 1.5 metres to provide sufficient under-floor heating to warm a house without recourse to additional energy sources. On a micro-level bore holes can be drilled in the ground to draw heat. Industrial processes to generate power from geo-thermal energy include dry steam, flash and binary power stations.

greenhouse gases

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) inventory includes six significant greenhouse gases: Carbon dioxide (CO2); methane (CH2); Nitrous oxide (N2O); Hydroflourocarbons (HFCs); Perflourocarbon (PFCs); Sulphur hexafluoride (SF6). Greenhouse gases, it is now widely accepted, lead to global climate change, significant aspects of which are causing a rise in air temperatures and sea levels on the planet.

passive housing

The term passive housing, ‘PassivHaus’ in German, refers to a specific construction standard for residential buildings that originates from a concept project in the country in the 1990s. A dwelling which achieves the PassivHaus standard typically includes: very good levels of insulation with minimal thermal bridges; well thought out utilisation of solar and internal gains; excellent level of air-tightness; good indoor air quality, provided by a whole house mechanical ventilation system with highly efficient heat recovery. If a typical new house was built to the PassivHaus standard it has been estimated that in the UK energy consumption would be reduced by 88 per cent. The appropriate orientation of a building to harness the sun's passive energy for warmth and to facilitate natural cooling, dependent on climatic requirements, is a developing energy saving and CO2 emission reduction consideration for architects.

photovoltaic (PV)

PV panels capture the sun's energy and convert it to usable electricity. A single panel can convert sufficient sunlight to energy to charge a mobile phone, but several panels (known as an array), are required to produce significant amounts of electricity to power standard domestic needs. Most commonly in the UK, the panels are placed on buildings' south-facing roofs in order to make maximum use of the amount of daily sun.

Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin (REGO)

REGOs (Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin) are electronic certificates attaching to electricity produced from renewable sources. They are issued as evidence that the electricity was generated from a ‘renewable source’ (as defined in the legislation) with one REGO representing one Kilowatt/hour of electricity.

REGOs were introduced on 27 October 2003 in response to the Renewables Directive - EU Directive 2001/77/EC Article 5. The purpose of this Directive is to promote an increase in the contribution of renewable energy sources to electricity production in European Member States.

Article 5 of the Directive requires Member States to ensure that a Guarantee of Origin is issued, on request, in respect of electricity produced from renewable energy sources. REGOs may be known as GoOs (Guarantees of Origin) in other EU Member States.

The Electricity (Guarantees of Origin of Electricity Produced from Renewable Energy Sources) Regulations 2003 set out the requirements for the issue, transfer and revocation of REGOs in Great Britain.

solar power

Solar energy, literally from the sun's rays, if correctly harnessed, distributed and stored, is a sustainable source that has the potential to supply the world's energy requirements several times over. On a local or individual level, solar panels are the most visible sign of our efforts to use the sun's heat to produce heat and electricity. Technically, solar panels can only be used to produce energy to heat hot water and ‘space’; photovoltaic panels are required to convert the sun's energy directly into electricity.

water conservation

Domestically, reduced flush toilet systems, and water saving devices for taps and showers have long-been in the marketplace. Innovations in recent years include grey water (shower/washing up) recycling for either irrigation and/or filtration cleaning to be reused domestically. Black (sewage) water on a micro-development level for irrigation purposes is also gaining ground. Rainwater harvesting and storage in natural lakes or dams for irrigation use is also increasing in popularity and implementation. Permeable paving and roads allow natural runoff to occur, and decreases the build up and potential of flood conditions being created by mad-made interference in the topography.

water power

Energy from water has enormous potential to provide zero-carbon energy needs. Nationally and internationally, hydropower stations can and do supply significant amounts of energy to countries' national grids. To build more hydropower stations, opponents contest, creates untold environmental damage, primarily through the damming of rivers. Wave and tidal power has yet to be explored fully, although they have vast if irregular energy-provision potential.

wind power

Wind turbines are the visible manifestation of our attempts to harness wind power to produce renewable, carbon-free energy. If developed on a large scale it is argued that wind turbines could contribute significantly to the world's energy needs; currently they produce less than 1%. On an individual level – by placing a wind turbine atop a house - it is unlikely that sufficient wind power could be created to produce greater than 5% of a household's energy needs.

zero-carbon

The UK government has yet to define its interpretation of a zero-carbon building. It is, however, generally accepted that zero-carbon status will be achieved ongoing through the use of renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind and hydropower, which emit no carbon dioxide – one of the gasses that leads to climate change. Debate surrounding whether individual buildings and/or developments should aim to achieve zero-carbon status by the implementation of localised energy initiatives or by linking into broader, perhaps regional and national, schemes where energy is produced from ‘clean’ sources, is ongoing.

Some argue that insufficient energy savings to make a significant difference to climate change can be achieved in individual homes and small-scale developments of less than 150 or so homes. Others contend that individual action in the form of recycling of non-organic waste and composting of biodegradable material, mitigating water waste through grey and rainwater recycling schemes, implementing energy – heat and light – saving measures around the home, or at the point of the start of a building's construction, will make a real and valuable difference.

Initiatives such as passive housing to maximise heat/cooling and light through the appropriate orientation of a building, for example south facing in northern countries to benefit from solar energy, reduce at source the dependence on energy. Carbon dioxide reduction measures such as these, some argue, are insignificant compared to the amount of CO2 that is emitted during a building's construction, particularly if carbon dioxide intensive materials such as concrete are used. To lessen the amount of CO2 emitted during construction, the use of carbon-free, or in some cases carbon-neutral products, for example wood, is being encouraged. Others advocate that construction (and ongoing) carbon dioxide emissions should be offset, a position that causes fierce debate in environmental circles as to its overall benefits and merits.