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NH APC Flashcards > Sustainability > Flashcards

Sustainability Flashcards

1
Q

What is sustainability?

A

Development which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” - Definition from The Brundtland report ‘Our Common Future’
Desire to carry out activities without depleting resources or having a harmful impact.

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2
Q

What are the three pillars?

A

Environmental, economic, social factors

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3
Q

How does sustainability impact the built environment?

A
  • There are ever increasing demands on governments and corporations to do more to preserve the plant.
  • Next gen also showing passion to preserve the environment.
  • The profession is a big factor in climate change, I think contributes to 30% and so it needs to embrace sustainability and responsible approaches to businesses.
  • RICS currently has a value the planet campaign which promotes the preservation of the planet through implementation of the UN’s sustainable development goals.
  • Cities consume 75% of the world’s natural resources and account for 80% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
  • It looks at things such as climate change, resource use, nature and biodiversity, health and wellbeing, socio-economic impact.
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4
Q

What are some of the industries goals in relation to sustainability?

A

There are some RICS sustainability development goals that I’m aware of;

  • Guidance and standards
  • Research and economic analysis
  • Capacity building
  • Tools
  • The business case
  • Better data
  • Sustainable finance
  • Thought leadership
  • Partnerships
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5
Q

Can you tell me more about BREEAM and WELL?

A

Ratings systems against a set criteria for sustainable buildings and buildings that behave in a way to promote occupants welllbeing.

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6
Q

What is MEES?

A
  • Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards
  • EPC (energy performance certificate) rating (A-G)
  • From April 2018, cannot lease a non-domestic property below E, if do there are fines. 2023 will be all
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7
Q

What are recent Government initiatives?

A

to be answered

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8
Q

What impact does the construction industry have on the environment?

A
  • Non-domestic buildings responsible for 12% of countries emissions
  • Around half non-renewable resources mankind consumes are used in construction
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9
Q

What is life cycle analysis?

A
  • Review of the impact from ‘cradle to grave’

* Includes sourcing materials, creating, in use and disposal

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10
Q

What is BREEAM?

A
  • Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (1990)
  • Rate new and refurbished buildings
  • Scored on points, criteria inc:
  • Energy consumption
  • Water use
  • Health and wellbeing
  • Assessed by trained assessor
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11
Q

What are the BREEAM levels?

A

• Pass, good, very good, excellent, outstanding

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12
Q

What criteria is LEED?

A

• Leading Energy Environmental Design

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13
Q

What criteria is LEED?

A
  • Innovation in design
  • Water efficiency
  • Energy usage
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14
Q

What is SKA?

A
  • RICS environmental assessment method
  • Used for non-domestic fit outs
  • More tailored towards fit out (as opposed BREEAM for whole building)
  • Reviews fitout irrelevant of base build
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15
Q

What criteria is SKA?

A
  • Has 100 criteria
  • Co2, waste, water, wellbeing
  • Bronze, silver, gold
  • Has gateway (weighted measures)
  • SKA assessor reviews
  • Assessment reviewed at design and handover
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16
Q

What are the differences between, SKA, BREEAM and LEED?

A
  • LEED – Mainly used in US
  • BREEAM – more overall encompassing, trained assessor
  • SKA – aimed at fitout, quicker, cheaper
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17
Q

What is ‘Well’?

A

• world’s first building standard focused exclusively on human health and wellness

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18
Q

What criteria is Well?

A
  • Air, water (access and quality), nourishment (access to the right food), movement (support active lifestyle), sound (acoustics), thermal comfort, innovation, mind, light.
  • Silver, gold, platinum
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19
Q

What is waste management

A

The process of treating wastes and offers a variety of solutions for recycling items. It is about how waste can be used as a valuable resource.

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20
Q

How can knowledge be shared

A
  • Articles
  • Webinars
  • Newsletters
  • Seminars
  • Training
  • Events
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21
Q

How do you optimise wellness?

A
  • Initiatives,
  • Looking after staff
  • Checking in
  • Ensuring lunch breaks
  • Having the right procedures in place
  • understanding stress
22
Q

How do you measure sustainability?

A
  • Sustainable performance indicators (SPIs) are used to measure a company’s performance and to monitor and report on future progress. Economic (Turnover, profit, quantity of sales), Social (labour practices, human rights, CSR), Environmental, greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption, waste output.
23
Q

What is the RICS’ commitment to sustainability?

A
  • Putting values into practice and maintaining public trust
  • Investing in ecological design
  • Disaster management
  • Participating in policy consultations
  • Supporting educational and charitable activities
  • Trying to create a better built environment for all
24
Q

What is EPC?

A
  • UK Government has a legally binding commitment to cut the UK’s carbon dioxide emissions by 80% on the 1990 levels by 2050 (Climate Change Act 2008). Every five years a ‘carbon budget’ is set which has challenging targets and will increasingly mean strong regulations.
  • The Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) is European legislation which compels member states to ensure buildings are subject to energy labelling and energy use reduction.
  • To reflect this directive, the Government has amended the energy requirements contained in Part L of the Building Regulations and introduced energy performance of building regulations.
25
Q

Minimum EPC ratings ?

A
  • Minimum energy efficiency standard for commercial building is an EPC rating of E
26
Q

What is CSR?

A

Corporate social responsibility

  • Uses triple bottom line as a base
  • Targets will depend on the primary focus of the business
  • A real estate investment business will have a Socially Responsible Investment policy
  • Company commitment to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workspace as well as the local community and society at large. Companies are accountable to its stakeholders in all its operations and activities with the aim of achieving sustainable development not only in the economic dimension but also in the social and environmental dimensions
27
Q

How to improve EPC rating in commercial building?

A
  • Ensure lighting is energy efficient
  • Use efficient heating
  • Install hot water heart
  • Insulate wall, roof etc
  • Lighting controls
  • Heating control
  • Use of renewables
28
Q

How can you make a building sustainable?

A
  • Use enough insulations
  • Design air tightness
  • Use the buildings thermal mass to best effect
  • Make the best use of natural light
  • Choose green and sustainable materials
29
Q

What is Cradle to grave?

A
  • Defining the boundaries of an embodied energy assessment which involves measuring or estimating the total energy consumed through the entire life cycle of a product, includes gas, electricity, oil etc.
  • Creating a product (Cradle) through the process then ultimately to disposal (grave).
  • The total amount of embodied energy that the product consumes during its full life cycle.
30
Q

What is a green building?

A

Maintain or improve:

  • The quality of life, and harmonise within the local climate tradition and culture
  • Environment of the region
  • Conserve energy resources and use materials that are recyclable, and, importantly recyclable upon demolition.
  • Reduce hazardous substances
  • The local and global ecosystem throughout the entire buildings life-cycle
31
Q

What is MMC?

A
  • Modern methods of construction
  • Embraces range of offsite manufacturing and onsite techniques that provide alternatives to traditional house
  • Promoted as a way of working more effectively to achieve more without using more, centres around off-site construction techniques that can benefit from factory conditions and mass production techniques.
  • Techniques include: panellised unites hybrid techniques, pre-cast concrete foundation assemblies.
32
Q

What are the Part L Building regulations?

A
  • Conservation of fuel and power
  • States that provision for conservations of fuel and power shall be made by: limiting heat gain and losses and providing building service which are efficient, have effective controls and are properly commissioned and that information is provided so that the building can be operated efficiently.
  • Requirements:
    o Carbon emission rate not to exceed target emission rate
    o Fixed building services should achieve a reasonable standard of energy efficiency
    o Solar gains to be limited
    o Maintained building services systems, through testing and commissioning
33
Q

What regulations and codes of practice govern the construction industry’s approach to sustainability?

A

Building Regulations - Part L
EPCs/ DECs
BREAAM and other environmental assessment methods

34
Q

What is grey water?

A

Waste water from showers, baths, washbasins and washing mahcines that is not considered to be potentially dangerous.

35
Q

What is white water?

A

Fresh, potable water or ‘drinking water’

36
Q

What is black water?

A

Water from toilets that may be contaminated with hazardous material. Sometimes known as brown water, foul water or sewage .

37
Q

What is embodied energy?

A

The energy consumed by all the processes associated with the production of a building, from the mining and processing of natural resources to manufacturing, transport and product delivery.

38
Q

What are the benefits of daylight in building design?

A

Utilizing daylight can reduce energy consumption and reliance on artificial lighting

39
Q

What is sustainable construction?

A

Also known as green construction. It refers to the construction and occupancy process that are environmentally responsible, and resource efficient throughout a building’s life-space from location, design, construction, occupancy, operation, maintenance, renovation, and destruction.

40
Q

what are social factors?

A 
Quality of life
Education
community
equal opportunity
law and ethics
41
Q

What are economic factors?

A 
Smart growth
Long range planning 
cost saving
R&D spending
Cost of living
42
Q

What are environment factors.?

A

Resource management
environmental protection
Habitat restoration and preservation.

43
Q

What is covered by Part L?

A
  • the maximum permitted area of windows, doors and other opening.
  • The structure’ air permeability
  • Insulation values of building elements
  • Heating efficiency of boilers
  • hot water storage
  • lighting efficiency
  • Solar heat gains
  • Ventilation and AC systems
  • insulation/ controls for heating appliances and systems
44
Q

What is an EPC?

A

A certification based on a category which explains a buildings energy use, consumption and loss. e.g heat loss, insulation, m&E installations and thermal comfort.

45
Q

What are the different categories of BREEAM

A
  1. Land use and ecology
  2. Management
  3. Water
  4. Health and wellbeing
  5. Transport
  6. Pollution
  7. Materials and waste
  8. Energy
46
Q

What is renewable energy?

A

Energy that is replenishable and doesn’t run out. types of renewables are wind, solar, water and groun.
Water - hydroelectricity
Ground - Ground source heating pumps

47
Q

What other rating systems are you aware of?

A 
BREEAM
LEED
SKA
Code for sustainable Home - BREEAM for dwellings
WELL
48
Q

What is a DEC?

A

A display energy certificate is a measure of how much energy your building has consumed over the last 12 months and therefore reflects your building’s performance in operation.

49
Q

How is Part L broken down?

A 
4 parts. 
L1A - New dwellings
L1B - existing dwellings
L2A - new non-domestic buildings
L2B - Existing buildings
50
Q

What other building regulations are linked to sustainable development?

A

Part H - Drainage and waste disposal.

this is more prevalent these days as likely to have flooding. The emphasis is on how to drain buildings and development sites.

51
Q

What do you know about net carbon

A

I know the world green building council is dedicated to supporting market transformation towards the goal of 100% net zero carbon buildings by 2050. A net zero carbon building is described as a highly energy efficient building with all remaining energy from on-site and/ or off-site renewable sources.
All new buildings are to operate at net zero carbon by 2030 and all building by 2050.
this will be done with government engagement, training and education, corporate engagement and certification.

the key principles are:

  1. Measure and disclose carbon: metered data
  2. Reduce energy demand (efficiency and not wasteful)
  3. Generate balance from renewables: s
  4. Improve verification and rigour.

NH APC Flashcards (23 decks)

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