UK comes third in sustainable construction poll

Posted by Andrew Marshall

Britain has ranked third in a global league table of sustainable construction and the use of eco construction products, an industry group has revealed.

According to a new report from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), which names Norway and Brazil as the two countries making the most progress towards creating a zero-carbon built environment.

The RICS Global Zero-Carbon Capacity Index uses data from the International Energy Agency to analyse the energy efficiency of homes and businesses as well as investments in renewable energy.

Yvonne Rydin, the report''s author, said that the world''s built environment was accountable for around 40 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions.

She said: ''This is an urgent responsibility for those building new developments as well as those owning, managing and occupier existing ones.''

Ms Rydin added that households and commercial organisations would need to make significant contributions in order to maintain the progress towards a greener economy.

Earlier this week, The Renewable Energy Centre.co.uk suggested that investment into technologies like photovoltaic solar panels would be essential if Britain is truly to contribute to the renewable energy industry.