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Large swathes of buildings constructed in UK towns and cities
during the sixties and seventies may need to be demolished
to meet new carbon emission standards.
According to the British Property Federation (BPF),
real estate is responsible for a huge 50 per cent of the country’s
current emissions.
However, the UK government has had no strategy to-date to
deal with existing commercial properties - only new ones.
It has introduced targets stipulating that all new commercial
buildings must generate zero carbon emissions from 2018.
Paul Morrell, who was appointed as the government’s chief
construction adviser in November last year, has now been tasked
with eradicating carbon from the building industry. The aim
is to help the government hit its targets of cutting UK emissions
by 80 per cent by 2050 based on 1990 levels.
To achieve this goal, Morrell told the Times newspaper
that there may be no choice but to tear down many sixties
and seventies-era buildings, as it could simply prove impossible
to refurbish them to a sufficiently high standard.
Morrell, who works for the Department for Business, Innovation
and Skills, explained - "In the sixties, everything was built
cheaper, faster and nastier. If you’re going to try to fix
buildings, then really you won’t have too many problems with
anything built earlier than the fifties or after the eighties."
The buildings posing the most difficulties, however, were
those that were "semi-industrialised, highly inefficient,
badly insulated and so ugly” that they were not worth refurbishing,
he added. However, it could be possible to rescue some better-constructed
ones by replacing their roofs, for example.
Problem cities likely to undergo such an eco-makeover include
Newcastle, Slough and Aylesbury.
Listed buildings are likely to remain exempt from carbon
targets. Modern refurbishment measures such as installing
plastic windows and wall insulation were not suitable for
many historic buildings, as they did not allow them to breathe
and increased the risk of mould or rot, according to English
Heritage. Other measures such as introducing more efficient
boilers and loft insulation were fine, however.
Public policy think-tank Policy Exchange estimates that the
UK would need to spend about £400bn on new and refurbished
infrastructure by 2020 to address historic underinvestment
and kick-start a transition to a low-carbon economy.
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