Ørsted’s decision to halt its Hornsea 4 offshore wind farm highlights concerns over the economic viability of large-scale renewable energy projects in the UK. This announcement amplifies questions about the nation’s ability to reach its 2030 clean energy targets, a key factor in decarbonising the built environment. Offshore wind plays a major role in enabling net zero whole life carbon and reducing the operational carbon of new infrastructure. Uncertainty in project delivery may challenge progress towards net zero carbon buildings and low carbon design in construction.
On a positive note, a new Green Industrial Partnership between the UK and Norway aims to advance green construction by promoting joint investment in clean energy projects across the North Sea. This partnership is expected to offer opportunities for sustainable construction, resource efficiency in construction, and the expansion of green infrastructure. The agreement is anticipated to accelerate adoption of eco-friendly construction and renewable building materials, supporting the shift to a circular economy in construction.
The UK government’s newly launched Marine Energy Taskforce is gathering industry expertise to drive progress in marine energy. Broader deployment of marine-based renewables supports environmental sustainability in construction, expands the energy-efficient buildings market, and potentially delivers low embodied carbon materials. Developments in marine energy could also advance circular construction strategies by reducing the whole life carbon impact of coastal and port-related infrastructure.
Sustainable building design and whole life carbon assessment are under greater scrutiny, with industry commentators highlighting the key role of architects in embedding low embodied carbon materials and life cycle thinking in construction. Remediation, responsible material sourcing, lifecycle assessment, and reducing the carbon footprint of construction are now central to sustainable building practices. These measures align with increasing regulatory demands and the drive for transparent environmental product declarations (EPDs) across the supply chain.
Growing calls for stricter sustainability reporting standards reflect the industry’s move towards net zero carbon and life cycle cost transparency. Adopting comprehensive carbon footprint reduction metrics is seen as crucial for the sector to align with global best practice and accurately evaluate building lifecycle performance and embodied carbon in materials. Enhanced reporting will support wider adoption of green building products and sustainable material specification, enabling the construction sector to truly achieve environmental sustainability goals.
Recent studies reveal that transitioning logistics fleets to electric vehicles could significantly cut emissions associated with supply chain and transport. Integrating sustainable logistics and eco-design for buildings is becoming vital for reducing the carbon footprint of construction, supporting efforts to achieve operational carbon reduction, and enabling low-impact construction across all project phases.
