The Environment Agency has opened a consultation on a permit variation application from the operator of Jameson Road Landfill in Fleetwood, Lancashire.
Britain’s overheating buildings have become a present risk as persistent European heatwaves and a strong El Niño expose the limits of under‑ventilated, poorly shaded stock.
Schools are most affected, with unconditioned classrooms disrupting learning, underscoring the need for passive cooling, fabric upgrades and energy-efficient buildings across the public estate. Demand is rising for Passivhaus-level comfort, signalling a shift toward sustainable building design, eco-design for buildings and low carbon design that deliver summer resilience as well as winter efficiency.
Policy and finance are lagging. Schemes deemed “viable” at planning are stalling once realistic performance, resilience and life cycle cost are priced in, while contractor insolvencies weaken capacity for deep retrofit and high‑performance new build.
A performance-based regime is required, aligning planning and finance with measured outcomes: overheating resilience, verified energy use, whole life carbon and embodied carbon.
Adoption of whole life carbon assessment, lifecycle assessment and life cycle thinking in construction should be standard, supported by BREEAM and breeam v7 to evidence building lifecycle performance.
Delivery must prioritise low embodied carbon materials backed by environmental product declarations (epds), sustainable material specification and resource efficiency in construction. Circular economy in construction, circular construction strategies and end-of-life reuse in construction should be embedded, alongside green infrastructure and renewable building materials to cut the carbon footprint of construction. Aligning pipelines and risk with lender and insurer expectations for net zero carbon buildings, net zero whole life carbon and carbon neutral construction is essential to decarbonising the built environment, achieving carbon footprint reduction and advancing sustainable construction, sustainable design and sustainable urban development. The alternative is measured in disrupted lessons and uncomfortable homes.
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