Elemental

::via Green Building Press
The EA (Environment Agency) have published a guide for developers (pdf, 90 pages):

The EA guide concentrates on issues outside the building – from the building envelope to the site boundary. It has more than a passing resemblance to BREEAM with issues broken down in very similar categories.

I would recommend it to those of us who have come to sustainability via the buildings route rather than an environmental engineering route (seems to be the main two camps I have come across in the land of BREEAM).

One question arises as a result of this – are we in danger of getting bogged down by all this guidance or is the cumulative effect a good one? I can think of at least 3 other checklists or guidance documents which cover similar ground. Of course by covering similar issues in slightly different ways, the probability of implementation might increase, as what resonates with one person or team may be alien to another.

Other checklists which might be of interest:

• Constructing Excellence Sustainability Checklists
• OGC (Office of Government Commerce) Procurement Guide 11 Sustainability (pdf, 29 pages)
• TCPA (Town and Country Planning Association) Sustainable Energy by Design (pdf, 52 pages)

Know of any others? Please feel free to leave a comment or email me and I’ll update this list.

mel starrs Uncategorized BREEAM, checklists, EA, Environment Agency, environmental engineering, Green Building Press, New Year\'s Day, Office of Government Commerce, Sustainability, Town and Country Planning Association

GBP report on the launch of a new website for PassivHaus in the UK. Features which make a house a PassivHaus include:

Super-insulation: opaque fabric U-values must be less than 0.15 W/m2K, with U-values for windows and doors generally needing to be less than 0.8 W/m2K (for both the frame and glazing). Thermal bridges are also eliminated. Airtightness: 1 m3/(h.m2) at 50 Pa test pressure or less Whole house mechanical ventilation with heat recovery (75% efficient or better).

This exceeds current building regulations (2006 Part L1A) and the site cites that 4000 examples have been built.
::via Green Building Press

mel starrs Uncategorized Green Building Press, Part L, Sustainability, United Kingdom

The disastrous implementation of Part L continues with solar panels the latest technology to fall foul:

Johnston (Managing Director of Chester based company Solartwin) says ODPM red tape makes it impossible for 82% of Britain’s solar water heating panels to be installed legally, unless they are installed in a place where they will not heat up such as inside a dark garage or underground. This is because a “supplementary information” phrase requires water entering a conventional solar panel to be cold. This is impossible to achieve unless the solar panel is sited in a place which is without light because it will otherwise heat up water. Of course, solar panels in the dark don’t work.

Ooops!

::via Green Building Press

mel starrs Uncategorized Britain, Chester, Green Building Press, Part L, Sustainability