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Sustainability is not just about the planet

Gavin Welch takes a look at the key points from this year's Ecobuild Conference, what's next for sustainable workplaces and sustainable homes?

There are many regulations that affect and control the construction of buildings. As the effects of climate change become increasingly evident and with the UK’s commitment to COP21, these regulations are only going to become more robust and numerous. One such example is the planned introduction of Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) in April 2018, which will require all privately let non-domestic properties to have a EPC rating of ’E’ or higher.

At this year's Ecobuild Conference in London, Malcolm Hanna of the National Energy Foundation spoke of how, in many cases, improving EPCs to meet the requirements could lead to 20% energy savings for little or no cost. All the more impressive is the fact that these 20% energy savings can be the equivalent of a 5% increase in sales at a retail building. However, Malcolm did highlight that an improved EPC for MEPS purposes will only reduce the energy used for building services as calculated on paper. To reduce overall energy use will require some thinking beyond the regulations and engagement with the building’s users to reduce their energy demands in daily use.

Debbie Hobbs from Legal and General outlined how this user engagement and soft landings on handover are essential so that everyone knows how the building’s services should be used and how they should be working. She also predicted future non-domestic tenants will become increasingly focused beyond pure energy use and take more of an interest in health & wellbeing, science based targets and social value. Later in the Conference, Andrew Bissell of Cundall spoke about the connection between circadian rhythm and wellbeing and put forward a case study involving their own office in Manchester, where they began to rely more on natural daylighting; even if it provided lower levels than the often-referenced, one size fits all, 300 lux. In doing this, they were able to see a tangible improvement in staff wellbeing and productivity. This also calls to mind the presentation by Oliver Heath on Biophilia at Ecobuild two years ago.

The trend to look beyond regulations is not limited to the non-domestic. At the BRE hub Gwyn Roberts gave an introduction to their Home Quality Mark. This aims to demonstrate a home's quality beyond the requirements prescribed by regulations. Gwyn says that, "as we have seen in our supermarkets, people are willing to pay more if they are assured of quality by an independent mark (think Fair Trade, Organic and MSC) and homebuyers are no different. BRE surveys have found 54% of buyers would prefer an independent mark and 1:5 would pay more?" Their Home Quality Mark aims to demonstrate enhanced quality to buyers with a five star rating and information provided on running costs, health and wellbeing, and environmental impact. In some ways this runs parallel with Debbie Hobbs predictions of future foci and potentially serves in some way to fill the vacuum caused the axing of the Government's Code for Sustainable Homes scheme.

The message from the Conference was definitive - that while the regulations are catching up with where the UK needs to be to meet international commitments, there must be a focus beyond the regulations. Sustainability is not just about the planet and careful preservation of the finite resources and fragile environment we all rely upon. Sustainability is also, and needs to be, about the wellbeing and enjoyment of those who will be using the building. Careful consideration is needed to ensure that workers are not being burnt out and made ill by their workplace but instead are nourished, supported and inspired by it.

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