Sustainability

Diesel will have disappeared from most construction sites by 2035, according to an industry-wide ‘route map’ supported by government. On Monday (6 June), minister of state Nusrat Ghani attended HS2’s Old Oak Common site (pictured) to launch a Zero Diesel Sites Route Map, an industry-authored document pledging to support the…

Buildings that are designed to use less energy during peak periods could be incentivised under a proposed update to BREEAM standards. On Wednesday (24 May), BRE launched a public consultation on a raft of changes to its widely-used sustainability assessment method. The organisation is mulling over whether to give credit…

A five-strong coalition of UK housing associations has appointed more than 100 firms to a £1.48bn framework to retrofit homes for energy efficiency.  The Greener Futures Partnership (GFP) – whose members Sanctuary, Hyde, Home Group, Anchor and Abri operate a combined total of around 300,000 homes – has named 107…

The government is handing Breedon Cement £230,000 to investigate the use of carbon capture and storage facilities (CCS) in its cement production. The Derbyshire-based company said the cash injection will allow it to “significantly advance knowledge of the infrastructure” needed to push the firm’s lime and cement plants in Derbyshire…

The UK has signed a deal with the Netherlands for the world's largest multi-use power line. The mega-power line will connect the Netherlands and Britain's electricity grids via sub-sea cables, which will connect to a Dutch offshore wind farm. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero announced the plans…

Onshore wind projects must be given enhanced status within the planning system to speed up the UK’s race to net zero, a key body has insisted. The National Infrastructure Commission called for the government to classify land-based turbines as nationally significant infrastructure amid a raft of measures to get renewable…

Laing O’Rourke has announced that it will switch to using low-carbon concrete on all of its new UK projects, with immediate effect. In a statement, the firm said that the commitment was made after a research programme co-funded by Laing O’Rourke and Innovate UK proved it could use a range…

The government is not doing enough to tackle the increasing risk of buildings overheating in summer, its climate advisory body has said, warning that inappropriate retrofit strategies could inadvertently worsen the problem. In a report to Parliament published today, the Climate Change Committee (CCC) says that regulations on making new…

Contractors have called for greater involvement in developing the UK's retrofit and energy efficiency strategy after being excluded from the government's energy efficiency taskforce. The taskforce will be chaired by energy efficiency minister Lord Callanan and NatWest chief executive Alison Rose. Its target is to support cutting energy use in…

Major changes to a key planning document could help clients push through road and rail projects designed with climate change in mind. Proposed alterations to the national networks national policy statement (NNNPS) recognise the need to reduce transport infrastructure’s impact on the environment – and to boost its resilience to…