Small businesses in the UK’s sustainable construction sector are lacking vital support to enable the transition to greener building practices, according to a new survey of green entrepreneurs by the University of Hull.
The survey of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operating in the green construction sector found they were being hampered by inconsistent policies and lack of access to funding. Poor planning rules and a shortage of skilled labour in sustainable building practices were also cited as hindrances.
All new buildings will have to be zero carbon by the end of the decade and to help meet the UK’s target to reduce carbon emissions by 80 per cent on 1990 levels by 2050, a mass retrofit of the UK’s existing housing stock is urgently required. Estimated to be worth £500 billion, this represents one of the biggest opportunities for jobs and growth in the UK.
Hanson Structherm has been awarded the international environmental standard ISO 14001.
Organisers of Ecobuild, the world’s largest event for sustainable design, construction and the built environment, announces today the line-up for its highly acclaimed conference programme returning to London’s ExCeL from March 5-7, 2013.
Experimental concrete that patches up cracks by itself is to undergo outdoor testing.
Britain must not “be afraid” of starting major construction projects because of environmental concerns, Owen Paterson said today.