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Nadine APC > Sustainability NK > Flashcards

Sustainability NK Flashcards

1
Q

What is sustainability?

A

Sustainability is meeting the needs of the present without compromising the needs of the future.

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2
Q

Why is sustainability important?

A

The construction industry has a huge impact on the environment, accounting for 36% of worldwide energy usage and 40% of CO2 emissions.

Waste and pollution can affect the environment and health of people living in the area.
Sustainability encourages an environment, community etc to support itself and surroundings.

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3
Q

What are the factors to consider with sustainability?

A

Economic - Respond to the needs of the wider community.

Social - Efficient use of resource, including labour and ensuring design and construction meet the needs of users.

Environmental - Preventing harmful and potentially irreversible impacts on the environment.

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4
Q

What are the 7 elements of sustainable building?

A

Insulation
Air tightness
Thermal Mass
Natural Light
Sustainable Material
Structural Systems
Deployment of renewable technologies

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5
Q

Over what period do you measure/access the impact of a building?

A

The entire life cycle, not just construction.

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6
Q

What is your companies sustainability policy ?

A

Reducing the use of printed materials
Car sharing
Use of public transport
Cycle to work scheme
Calculate carbon footprint to offset

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7
Q

What are the most common environmental issues experienced on
construction sites?

A

Risks of Water Pollution.
Air and Noise Pollution.
High Energy Consumption and carbon emissions.
Risk of land contamination.
Damage to wild habitats.
High Wastage production into landfill.
Release of dangerous gases and chemicals.

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8
Q

What is the Paris Agreement?

A

In 2015 a global framework was set out to avoid dangerous climate change by limiting global warming to well below 2 degrees and pursuing efforts to limit to 1.5 degrees.

Came into effect in 2016.

Each country must determine, plan and regularly report on the contribution that it undertakes to mitigate climate change.

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9
Q

Give me some examples of how the energy performance of existing building can be improved using a recent project as an example?

A

Double glazed windows
Insulation upgrade
A* rated boiler
Renewable energy
Sustainable materials
Local workforce

On LSEG, the inclusion of PV Panels has been proposed to increase the energy efficiency of the building.

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10
Q

What is a Brownfield Site?

A

Brownfield land refers to land that has been previously used for industrial purposes, or commercial usage and is now being redeveloped.

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11
Q

What is a Greenfield site?

A

Sites or land that is not constrained by any existing buildings or structures. It is the opposite of Brownfield land.

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12
Q

What is Embodied carbon?

A

Embodied carbon is considering all of the carbon that will be used in the creating of a product. From sourcing the materials, manufacture, delivery, construction, and disposal.

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13
Q

What does BREEAM stand for?

A

Building
Research
Establishment
Environmental
Assessment
Method

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14
Q

What is BREEAM

A

Independent third party certification tool used to specify and measure the sustainability performance of buildings and infrastructure projects.

Method was developed by BRE and covers new construction as well as fit outs.

It assess buildings against various performance criteria and awards credits.

Takes place at several stages in a buildings life cycle.

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15
Q

What are the BREEAM ratings?

A

Unclassified less than 30%
Pass >30%
Good >45%
V.Good >55%
Excellent >70%
Outstanding >85%

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16
Q

What are the BREEAM categories?

A

A method of assessing the sustainability of a building in terms of its design, construction and operation.

Water
Energy
Waste
Transport
Pollution
Materials
Land Use and Ecology
Management
Innovation
Health and Wellbeing

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17
Q

How is LEED different from BREEAM?

A

Rating classifications BREEAM - Pass, Good, Excellent etc.

Rating classifications LEED - Certified, Silver, Gold, Platinum

Number of credits BREEAM - 30-132
Number of credits LEED - 49-80

Evidence collection BREEAM - Assessor & Accredited Professional

Evidence collection LEED - Design Team or Accredited Professional

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18
Q

What is a Section 106?

A

An agreement used where there’s a requirement to mitigate any negative impacts of a development that the local authority cannot be dealt with through normal planning conditions.

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19
Q

What is a Section 278?

A

Where development requires works to be carried out on an existing highway and agreement will need to be completed between the employer and the County Council under Section 278 of the Highways Act 1980.

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20
Q

What is LEED?

A

Leadership in
Energy and
Environmental
Design.

An American based Environmental Assessment.

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21
Q

What is SKA?

A

It is an environmental assessment tool for sustainable office fit-outs.

Owned and operated by the RICS.

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22
Q

What is SKA rating

A

Gold, Silver, Bronze

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23
Q

Characteristics of SKA rating assessment

A

Applicable to retail and office fit outs

only used in UK

Formal quality assured scheme

Has flexible scoping.

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24
Q

How is the UK Government improving sustainability?

A

Reduce carbon emissions by 50%.
Implement Site Waste Management Plans.
Water and Energy Conservation.
Sustainable Procurement.
Paris Agreement.

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25
Q

What is an Environmental Impact Assessment?

A

Assessment of possible positive or negative impacts that a proposed project may have on the environment, consisting of environmental, social and economic impacts.

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26
Q

How are BREEAM assessments carried out?

A

In 2 stages:-
Design stage assessment and interim certificate.
Post construction assessment and final certificate.
There is an optional pre-assessment report which can help designers understand where improvements can be made.

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27
Q

What are the Government Common Minimum Standards?

A

They are referred to in the Government Construction Strategy and require an environmental assessment to be carried out on all public projects.
Where BREEAM is used projects are to achieve ‘Excellent’.

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28
Q

What is a CIL?

A

A Community Infrastructure Levy.
Similar to a section 106 agreement however it is not necessary tied to the local area.

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29
Q

Types of SUDs?

A

SUDs = Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems
SUDS will slow down surface water run off by allowing it to infiltrate and soak into natural contours and landscapes.
Green roof
Swales
Attenuation tanks
Rainwater harvesting

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30
Q

What are the parts of Part L of Building Regs?

A

Part L - Conservation of Fuel & Power
Part L1a - New dwellings
Part L1b - Existing dwellings
Part L2a - New non dwellings
Part L2b - Existing non-dwellings

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30
Q

Are you aware of any other building regulations documents?

A

Part B - Fire Saftey
Part F - Ventilation
Part M - Access to and use of Building

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31
Q

What does Part L Regulation do?

A

Deals with energy efficiency requirement in building regulations

set targets for u-values

32
Q

What are the Energy Performance Regulation 2012?

A

Legislation that makes EPCs and DECs a legal requirement.

33
Q

What is the Energy Act 2011?

A

Legislation that gave rise to the Energy Efficiency Act 2015.

34
Q

What legislation governs CILs and Section 106 agreements?

A

The Planning Act 2008.

35
Q

What is a breathable building?

A

It is a natural ventilation system.
It relies on convection to draw air up through the centre of the building and out of an exhaust at the centre, in through vents in the façade.

36
Q

How do you price a green roof?

A

Inverted insulation
Membrane
Ballast
Drainage layer
Soil
Plants

37
Q

When was EPC Introduced?

A

2007

38
Q

Is the Code for Sustainable Homes still a requirement?

A

No, scrapped in 2015.
Now picked up as part of building regs & BRE standards.

39
Q

What current challenges is Covid and/or Brexit bringing to Sustainability?

A

Material shortages.
Improved air quality in some places, reduced travel & made everyone think about what is really necessary.
PPE protection that is non bio-degradable - helping to increase awareness on long term sustainability.
Brexit - shortage of lorry drivers saw shortages in fuel. May help encourage more electric car demand.
More demand for electric car charging stations & fast charge points required in all new homes from 2022.

40
Q

What does MEES mean?

A

Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard
To set a minimum EPC rating of E for rented residential or commercial buildings.

41
Q

What is a U Value?

A

Thermal transmittance.

a measurement of how quickly heat moves through a structure, such as a wall, floor, or roof:

How effective a material is as an insulator.

The lower the value, the better the material is as a heat insulator.

42
Q

What is a G value?

A

A measure of how much solar heat (infrared radiation) is allowed in through a particular part of a building.

43
Q

What is net zero carbon?

A

Its striking a balance of what we emit and what we remove in terms of carbon dioxide with the equivalent amount offset.

44
Q

What is the RICS futures report 2020?

A

Detailing how community & industry are changing the focus to technology & sustainable goals.

45
Q

What is a Well rating?

A

Assessment rating for wellness of inhabitants.
More focused on end user - quality of air, water & food – CBRE office platinum 2021.

46
Q

What is passive haus?

A

Passivhaus or ‘Passive House’ is an energy performance standard for dwellings, commercial, industrial and public buildings that can be adopted throughout the world.
For very low energy buildings, which can help create buildings that use 90% less energy than standard UK buildings.

The Passivhaus standard can be achieved by measures including:
Shading.
Pre-cooling of the supply air.
Natural ventilation.
Air-tightness.
Mechanical ventilation heat recovery (MVHR).
Insulation.
Avoidance of thermal bridges.
Passive solar gains.
Exploitation of internal heat sources.

47
Q

What are carbon emissions?

A

There are both natural and human sources of carbon dioxide emissions. Natural sources include decomposition, ocean release and respiration.
Human sources come from activities like burning fossil fuels for electricity, heat, and transportation, deforestation.

48
Q

What are the key pieces of legislation that affect sustainability in
construction?

A

Energy Act 2011
Energy Efficiency Regulations 2015
Environment Act 2021
Building Act – This is the primary piece of UK Legislation that enables the Building Regulations to be enforced.
Climate Change Act 2008 – This is a legally binding framework to tackle climate change. It imposed targets to cut greenhouse emissions compared with 1990 levels. 34% by 2020 and 80% by 2050.

49
Q

What are the different forms of taxation relating to sustainability?

A

Landfill Tax which is an environmental tax payable in addition to landfill rates charged by private disposal companies.
The tax was introduced as a means to encourage alternative methods of disposal such as recycling.
The tax is charged by weight at varying rates depending on whether the waste is inert or active.

50
Q

Name some sustainable building methods?

A

Use of recycled materials such as reclaimed timber, recycled tiles and plastics.
Ground Source Heat Pumps.
Air Source Heat Pumps.
Solar Panels.
Wind Turbines.
Solar Shading.
Rain water harvesting.
Green Roofs.
Automated Building Systems (Lighting sensors).
Natural ventilation
Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS)

51
Q

What is your understanding of the term ‘Green Roofs’?

A

A green roof is a roof covering that is partially or completely covered with vegetation that is placed over a waterproof membrane.
Additional layers such as drainage layers, irrigation systems or root barriers may also be placed over the membrane.

52
Q

What are the advantages of ‘Green Roofs’?

A

Advantages of Green Roofs are that they absorb rainwater, provide extra insulation, increase
biodiversity by providing habitats for wildlife, are aesthetically pleasing and lower urban air
temperatures.

53
Q

What is a soakaway and how do they work?

A

Soakaways offer a means of surface water drainage attenuation.
They consist of large holes or pits that receive surface water from a drainage pipe.
The soakaway allows the collected surface water to gradually infiltrate through the soil.

54
Q

What is meant by the term solar gain?

A

Solar gain is the name given to the increase in temperature in a space, object or structure due to solar radiation (the heat from the sun).

55
Q

How can solar gain be managed in buildings?

A

Limiting the size and area of openings such as doors and windows
.
Shading or orientating doors and windows from direct sunlight.

Using reflective materials on the glass and building fabric.

Insulating walls and roof spaces to prevent indirect solar gains into the building.

56
Q

How does a ground source heat pump work?

A

Heat from the ground is absorbed at low temperatures into a fluid inside a loop of pipe (a ground loop) buried underground.
The fluid then passes through a compressor that raises it to a higher temperature, which can then heat water for the heating and hot water circuits of the house.

57
Q

What are the key advantages of BREEAM certification?

A
  • Demonstrates a level of achievement.
    -Compliance can lower environmental impact.
    -can improve internal environment (productivity)
    -Can reduce operating costs.
    -Improves marketability of client/developer.
58
Q

What is the key target of the climate change act ?

A

Carbon neutral by 2050.

59
Q

L1 - What is the legislation in the UK that deals with the issue of sustainability in building construction?

A

Climate Change Act 2008
Energy Act 2011
Energy Efficiency Regulations 2015
Building Saftey Act
Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard (MEES): Requires new and existing tenants to meet minimum EPC standards.

60
Q

L1 - What is an EPC?

A

Energy Performance Certificate.

61
Q

L1 - When would an EPC document be required?

A

Required before a building is marketed for sale or rent.

62
Q

L1 - How are the requirements BREEAM, which itself is not a legally binding document, enforced?

A

It can be made a contractually-binding requirement, stipulating a certified rating of pass, good, very good, excellent, or outstanding.

63
Q

L1 - What steps do you take in your business activity to ensure that your company operates in a sustainable manner?

A

When the opportunity arises I will car share when travelling to site.

64
Q

L1 - Can you give me an example of a method of sustainable construction?

A

A method of sustainable construction would be the use of recycled materials, solar panels

65
Q

L1 - What are the levels for BREEAM? How are they achieved?

A

Unclassified
Pass >30%
Good >45%
V.Good >55%
Excellent >70%
Outstanding >85%

66
Q

What current challenges is Covid and/or Brexit bringing to Sustainability?

A

Material Shortages and shortage of lorry drivers
Improved air quality
Greater demand for electric car charging points

67
Q

Name some different legislation on reducing greenhouse gases?

A

Net Zero Strategy: Build Back Greener
Sixth Carbon Budget

68
Q

Can you name 5 of the sustainable development goals?

A
  1. End Poverty
  2. End Hunger
  3. Achieve Gender Equality
  4. Sustainable Cities and Communities
  5. Clean Water and Sanitation
69
Q

Have there been any updates to part L of the building regulations?

A

From 15 June 2022 an important update to the Building Regulations l take place which includes an uplift to Part L.

All new homes must produce 31% less carbon emissions than what is currently acceptable in the present Part L regulations.

70
Q

How is BREEAM measured?

A

Each of the categories are scored and then multiplied by the weighting.
Undertaken in 2 stages, 1st during the design stage and 2nd post construction.
Interim and final certificates are issued.

71
Q

How does a ground source heat pump work?

A

Uses the ground natural heat to cool or heat a building.

  • They are made up of a ground loop (a network of pipes buried underground) and a heat pump at ground level.

-Fluids are pumped through the ground loop which absorb naturally occurring heat stored in the ground.

-The liquid is compressed and goes through a heat exchanger, which extracts the heat and transfers it to the heat pump.

-The heat is then transferred to the heating system in the building.

72
Q

What is the rating for EPC rating B

A

81-91 SAP score (Standard Assessment Procedure)

Suggest its highly energy efficient and has a low environmental impact

73
Q

What is NABERS?

A

NABERS measures the
energy efficiency
water usage
waste management
indoor environment
quality of a building or tenancy and its impact on the environment.

74
Q

How is NABERS measured

A

1-6 stars poor to most efficient and sustainable

75
Q

Why would you want a sustainable accreditation

A
  • Increased asset valuation: high rating can enhance the value of your property
  • Cost savings: in operational cost so lower utility cost and long term savings.
  • Improved tenant satisfaction and retention: comfortable and healthy work environment which can increase productivity
  • Increased marketability: higher occupancy rate, increased renal income. desirable to tenants and investors
76
Q

What is PV Panels

A

Whar

77
Q
A

Nadine APC (21 decks)

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