Lord Callanan: Refurbish, not just rebuild, ahead of COP26
The government is looking to tackle embodied carbon – emissions produced during the manufacturing of building materials – as part of its upcoming building strategy.
Developers have been knocking down the UK’s drafty homes to pave the way for greener, more energy efficient, new builds. But in doing so, are not preventing as much carbon emissions as refurbishing already existing buildings.
Business minister Lord Callanan told a recent Property Week conference that it was “one of the areas we want to look at”.
Callanan added that the government was in the “final stages” of its new heat and building strategy but did not reveal any details regarding when it may appear.
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has also said that demolishing building to create more sustainable ones was a mistake.
RIBA president, Simon Allford said in a recent conference ahead of COP26: “Climate change is our greatest challenge, and to successfully meet this challenge, we need to radically change our approach to designing and constructing buildings. We then become part of the solution rather than the problem.”
City PM has contacted the Cabinet Office for comment.