Page 3 - CSA INDEX - Spring Summer 2021

Join us on our journey to Net Zero

Roger Carlin, managing director of Ashford Environmental
Services, invites the whole of the CSA membership to join his
organisation on the journey to Net Zero as the UK sets its sights
on 2050.

Ashford Environmental Services is on a journey. It is one that
we share with the whole construction industry and the UK. The
destination is Net Zero carbon emissions – and we must all get
there by 2050, if not before.

I and the other directors and managers at Ashford Environmental
Services have set a target of becoming a 100% carbon neutral business
(compared with our current emissions level) within four years. We
have also given ourselves the interim milestone of reducing our carbon footprint by 85% by 2022.

We have set these challenging targets for ourselves because we want to contribute to reaching
the climate change target that the government has set for the country – to achieve national Net
Zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. There is also an interim target of a 78% reduction in
emissions (compared to 1990 levels) by 2035.

The government introduced its roadmap to achieving those national goals in November 2020
in a Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution. This document outlines how key areas
of the UK economy, from travel to finance and the built environment, will get to that Net
Zero destination.

As part of the programme of improving the carbon performance of buildings, the government
has released a Future Buildings Standard. This document outlines government proposals
for new Building Regulations, particularly Part L (Conservation of fuel and power) and Part
F (Ventilation).

The government will introduce a new Part L of the Building Regulations in 2025. However, we can
also expect an interim change to Part L in 2022 because the government wants the construction
industry to start working towards tighter carbon emissions targets as soon as possible. The
current proposal is that interim Part L will require a 27% reduction in emissions against current
Part L (2013) standards. There will also be higher standards for existing buildings when carrying
out refurbishment works.

Perhaps more importantly for those of us in the commissioning sector, the Future Buildings
Standard puts greater emphasis on our specialism. The proposal extends the commissioning
requirements and makes them more transparent by providing a dedicated section in the
updated Part L.

This change reflects the government's view that high performing services in buildings can only
be effective if the services are "tested and adjusted properly after installation."

The proposed update will include a legal requirement with guidance on how to meet the
regulations, stating: "We also propose to expand guidance on commissioning by referencing
specific commissioning guidance beyond the currently reference CIBSE Guide M."