Sustainability
Carbon Accounting
Carbon accounting is historically focussed on the emissions created by the burning of fossil fuels during the buildings lifetime once built (e.g. heating and cooling), whereas embodied carbon looks at the fossil fuels used in relation to the construction of a building.
In general Elvet have found that by quantifying and identifying means of reducing the embodied carbon it can reduce the capital spend required to construct a building, due to direct relationship found between spend and embodied carbon.
Code for Sustainable Homes
Elvet Consultants are licensed assessors for The Code of Sustainable Homes, which is a new standard introduced by the Housing Cooperation to assess the environmental performance of new-build homes. The Code identifies a route towards low and zero carbon domestic dwellings as part of a suite of measures to achieve the Governments target of all new housing being zero carbon by 2016. This enables developers from both the public and private sector to measure and improve the design specification and construction quality of schemes against a unified nationally recognised rating. From April 2008 Government funding released through the National Affordable Housing Programme will be reserved for developments awarded a level three code rating or above.
Similarly the private sector is also being encouraged to demonstrate their compliance with key aspects of the code via a series of planned amendments to the Building Regulations.
2010 - 25% more energy efficient and 50% more water efficient than 2006 standards (Code level three).
2013 - 44% more energy efficient and 50% more water efficient than 2006 standards (Code level four).
2016 - zero-carbon and 80% more water efficient than 2006 standards (Code level six).
Furthermore the Housing Regeneration Bill requires that from May 2008 all new homes need to state whether a Code rating has been sought, by either providing a sustainability certificate or a written statement to document its absence.
Appointment of Elvet Consultants during the early stages of planning will provide the client with a detailed design brief, which encapsulates the criteria necessary for attaining the desired credit rating.
Energy Performance Certificates
It is a legal requirement that all houses including new build properties have an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) prior to being either bought or sold in the UK. Furthermore from the 1st October 2008 any property which is being rented for the first time is also bound by this legislative requirement.
An EPC provides information about a property’s energy consumption, and CO2 emissions together with recommendations for improvement by examining loft insulation, boiler efficiencies and waste management etc. Each property is assigned a grade ranging between A to G; where an A-rated property represents high efficiency and a G-rated low.
Prospective homebuyers and tenants are attracted by properties which offer low running costs making an EPC an excellent marketing tool for any client renting or selling property.
Elvet have recently been successful in securing a framework to deliver EPC’s for North East Procurement consortium due to our competitive rates and client focussed service.
