POSITIVE PROGRESS

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The phrase Net Zero and everything that surrounds it will continue to shape the way the built environment is designed and delivered over the next few decades. It will be a long haul but the signs are that the UK is serious about making it happen.

The Committee on Climate Change (CCC) reported in June on progress on the UK’s road to Net Zero carbon emissions by 2050 in its ‘Reducing UK Emissions Progress Report to Parliament’. It provides “important new advice to Government on framing a recovery from COVID-19 that both accelerates the transition to Net Zero and strengthens resilience to the impacts of climate change, whilst driving new economic activity.”

It’s 12 months since Net Zero became law, requiring the UK to reduce net emissions of greenhouse gases to zero by 2050. The CCC progress report picks out wood as a key element in achieving the required reduction – not only in the wider use of timber in construction projects – but the increased planting of the most precious of raw materials: trees. Much of the discussions surrounds energy efficiency and the national plan for insulating the UK’s draughty homes. Incentives for homeowners to pursue energy efficiency are essential with housing one of the biggest sources of greenhouse gas emissions, along with transport. The key driver underpinning everything Net Zero-related is the need to reduce the amounts of embodied carbon in our buildings and develop effective plans to ‘rapidly scale up the levels of wood used in construction and support the assessment and benchmarking of whole-life carbon in buildings.’

“Low carbon retrofits, buildings that are fit for the future, tree planting, and a movement towards a circular economy are all identified as key investment priorities for building a resilient recovery,” said TTF CEO, David Hopkins. “These principles are shared by the timber supply chain, with countless case studies which demonstrate the strength of wood – not only for delivering sustainable, innovative and beautiful buildings, but for carbon capture and storage.”

The UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) also urged the government to push forward its green ambitions by ‘pressing play’ on the publication of the new Building Regulations, more ambitious details of the Future Homes Standard and the Buildings and Heat Strategy. “We’re pleased to see that the CCC has again highlighted the key role of buildings in reaching our Net Zero target,” said Julie Hirigoyen, Chief Executive, UKGBC. “Coronavirus has transformed the context of our race to Net Zero and Government must now focus on directing economic stimulus spending towards areas that align with meeting our emissions target. The built environment is consistently cited as one of the key levers that can address all three priorities at once: jobs, climate and health.

“We fully support the CCC’s calls for Government to integrate Net Zero into all policy making and ensure procurement strategies are consistent with the UK’s climate objectives. The report’s recommendations chime closely with UKGBC’s priorities for a green recovery. Making new buildings fit for the future, improving the energy efficiency of our existing buildings and integrating green infrastructure across the board are all essential to truly building back better.”

The CCC has also picks out the huge importance of increasing the amount of UK woodland with tree planting, peatland restoration, wetlands and other natural carbon sinks seen as generating “shovel-ready” projects that create new jobs around the country – in rural areas, but also in cities where green space is shrinking. In 2018-19, Scotland accounted for 80% of new planting in the UK and rates of tree planting have varied significantly in England and across the devolved administrations. For the UK as a whole, rates of tree planting have consistently fallen below what is needed to achieve Net Zero by 2050 or start to boost the supply of homegrown timber into the construction supply chain.

Plans to accelerate tree planting and improve the management of our existing trees and woodlands are underway. Defra have launched a consultation on a new England Tree

Strategy. Everyone – from farmers, foresters and land managers, experts and environmental organisations, to members of the public – have been invited to give their views on the future creation and management of trees, woodlands and forests.

Subject to consultation, the new strategy will set out policies to expand tree cover, support woodland management and increase public engagement with trees and woodlands. It will help ensure the government’s tree planting commitment – to increase tree planting to 30,000 hectares per year across the UK by 2025 – is delivered, working closely with the devolved administrations, communities and landowners to do so. The government is asking for views on:

How to expand, protect and improve our public and private trees and woodlands The increased role that trees and woodlands can play in supporting the economy How best to further connect people to nature The most effective way in which trees and woodlands can be created and managed to help combat climate change.

Growing, protecting and restoring our trees, forests and woodlands can help reduce carbon emissions, encourage biodiversity and nature recovery plus grow the sustainable timber market. Launching the consultation, Forestry Minister Lord Goldsmith, said: “In many ways the coronavirus pandemic has shone a light on the importance of nature. Growing and protecting our nation’s forests will be an integral part of our recovery, and the England Tree Strategy will give us the tools to do this.

“This consultation will help inform a keystone strategy which will be vital for helping us deliver the government’s tree planting commitment, our commitment to the recovery of nature and reaching Net Zero emissions by 2050. But, we need input from the sector and public. I encourage everyone to give their views to design a tree strategy that delivers the maximum benefits for our environment for generations to come.”

In the March Budget, Defra welcomed the new Nature for Climate Fund from HM Treasury. The England Tree Strategy will help inform how elements of this £640million fund will be used to deliver against the manifesto tree planting commitments, alongside peatland restoration and wider nature recovery.

Forestry Commission Chair and former National Tree Champion, Sir William Worsley added: “The England Tree Strategy will set out how we plan to accelerate woodland creation, but also importantly how to manage and protect the trees we already have. Significant work has gone into developing the groundwork for a strategy which will ensure the right tree is planted in the right place, and for the right reason.”

The England Tree Strategy will be developed in parallel with other key strategies that flow from the 25 Year Environment Plan. These include the recent Tree Health Resilience Strategy and the forthcoming England Peat Strategy and Nature Strategy, as well the future Environmental Land Management Scheme which will operate on the

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basis of providing public payments for public goods. In close alignment with the England Tree Strategy, targeted stakeholder engagement is currently underway to shape the development of the England Peat Strategy and the peatland aspects of the Nature for Climate Fund. Integrating the aims of the England Tree Strategy with the wider ongoing work in these areas enables a co-ordinated vision that delivers real, sustainable change.

As the extensive CCC report states: “The priorities ahead are clear. The most effective and decisive action to secure our recovery from COVID-19 will also accelerate the transition to Net Zero and strengthen our resilience to the changing climate. Unifying these aims is absolutely necessary and entirely possible.”

IMAGES:

01-03. The increase of timber in construction and planting of trees across the UK are both part of the challenges of achieving the 2050 Net Zero targets. Courtesy KLH/PEFC

COP26 – A GLOBAL BENCHMARK

In 2021 the UK will host the rescheduled 26th ‘Conference of the Parties’ climate summit (COP26). 2021 will also see the UK hold the presidency of the G7. The year ahead is a critical moment for global progress on climate change and a major test of global cooperation more generally after COVID-19. The core goal of COP26 is to raise the ambition of countries’ targets. As COP President, there will be huge expectations on the UK. It has never been more important for the UK to demonstrate strong climate leadership, both for the world’s future and for the UK’s standing within it.

For more information and to download a copy of the report ‘Reducing UK Emissions Progress Report to Parliament’ visit the CCC’s website at: https://bit.ly/3kCo9vh

A NATURAL

CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL

Wood is an excellent construction material from an environmental perspective. By increasing its use, we can reduce the consumption of non-renewable natural resources and the carbon dioxide emissions of construction. Metsä Wood explain more.

The world’s population will grow to 9 billion by 2050. At the same time, a billion people will move to cities, and the need for food, housing and various materials will increase. In the future, we will have to be more responsible and make more from less. “We need sustainable and recyclable solutions to meet increasing demand in areas such as packaging and construction. In terms of the climate, using renewable wood as a raw material is one of the best alternatives, because its environmental impact and energy consumption are small compared to brick, concrete, aluminium, plastic and steel,” says Mikko Saavalainen, Senior Vice President, Business Development at Metsä Wood.

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In Europe, construction consumes more raw materials than any other industry – and the majority of this consumption is based on non-renewable natural resources. Climate change is a global problem, and reducing emissions is necessary in all aspects of life. When it comes to living and construction, one solution is superior to others: wood.

When measured in weight, construction’s share of the consumption of non-renewable natural resources is as high as 50%. In addition, the built environment causes a third of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions and consumes roughly 40% of primary energy. “This is construction today, but it can no longer be that tomorrow,” says

Matti Mikkola, Managing Director of the Federation of the Finnish Woodworking Industries.

Timber construction reduces the consumption of natural resources

The member states of the EU aim to reduce their carbon dioxide emissions by 80% by 2050. The achievement of this climate goal requires us to reduce the use of non-renewable natural resources in construction and to replace them with sustainable materials. Wood can be classified as a lowenergy construction material. “Further processing of wood requires only a little energy. Furthermore, the majority of the energy used in the production of wood products is obtained from by-products such as bark and sawdust,” says Saavalainen.

“If all residential buildings in Europe were constructed from wood rather than concrete, the consumption of natural resources would decrease by as much as 70%. At the same time, energy consumption during production and construction would decrease by 40% and emissions by 60%. For this reason, wood is the best choice,” adds Mikkola.

Timber structures are urban carbon storage

Wood is a renewable, recyclable and reusable building material. Above all, however, wood stores carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. We are seeking ways to reduce the release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, but we must also find ways to bind and store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Every tree used in construction stores carbon and makes way for a new seedling – a new carbon sink.

Even small wooden items store carbon from the atmosphere. The wood used in the manufacture of a kitchen stool has stored over 8kg of carbon from the atmosphere when growing. The impact of an individual stool is minor, but when stools are mass-produced, the amount of carbon stored becomes massive.

Forests are a unique natural resource in the sense that they grow all the time. In addition, we can influence how they grow and how much they are able to bind carbon. A wisely managed and utilised forest binds more carbon dioxide than an old forest, which no longer grows that much. The sustainable use of forests regenerates them, while also improving their ability to bind carbon. The carbon sink of a forest is at its biggest when the forest is 20–40 years old.

The benefits of timber: speed and lightness

In addition, the weight and strength ratio of engineered wood products is world class. This is why wood lends itself to the production of lightweight and strong structures, ideal for high and compact urban construction.

The lightness of wooden structures reduces the consumption of natural resources, as construction sites require less of other materials. “The foundations of a wooden building do not need to be as extensive as those of a concrete building. This reduces environmental load, since nowadays the foundations account for a large part of a building’s carbon footprint,” says Saavalainen. Light wooden structures also reduce transport loads, given that the amount of wood that can be transported in a single load is five-fold compared to concrete.

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Prefabrication guarantees quality

The light weight of wood also enables the prefabrication of construction materials. Prefabrication speeds up the construction process significantly, because the finished wooden modules can be assembled on-site as precisely as Lego bricks. “The work can be moved from the construction site to factory conditions. This means that most of the work can be carried out in dry and controlled conditions, so the high quality of the construction can be maintained throughout the process. A wooden high-rise can be assembled fully, roof included, in a matter of weeks, meaning that the time during which the construction site is at the mercy of the weather is very brief. This increases the quality of the construction to a significant degree.”

www.metsawood.co.uk

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01-03. Timber is a renewable, recyclable and reusable building material that absorbs carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.