UK: The humble construction site cabin is set for a makeover as part of a ambitious plan to cut the carbon footprint of sites by 15% within the next two years.
The plan, launched today, was developed by the Strategic Forum for Construction in partnership with the Carbon Trust. It outlines a package of measures designed to cut the industry’s carbon emissions in England by some 750 000 tonnes a year, saving firms £180m a year in energy costs.
Cabins represent one of the biggest opportunities for contractors to cut their costs as well as their carbon emissions. The plan estimates that £45m and 200 000 tonnes of CO2 could be saved each year by using modern 'green' site offices that can cut carbon emissions and energy use by 50%, or by retrofitting existing cabins to be more energy efficient.
Over their lifetime, energy efficient cabins alone could reduce emissions by five million tonnes, the equivalent of taking 1.5 million cars off the road for a year.
The action plan from the Strategic Forum for Construction and the Carbon Trust also sets out several additional actions the construction industry needs to take in order to achieve its 15% reduction target with two years.
These include:
