Scorching temperatures and a long, dry summer have given locals and tourists alike a rare opportunity to see the remains of a 2,000-year-old bridge that once spanned the Tiber river that weaves through the center of Rome.
The flow of the Tiber, which is fed from tributaries from the northern Apennine Mountains, has fallen below 80 cubic meters a second, half the national average for this time of year, according to Rome's civil protection coordinator, Giovanni Giganti. "We are facing a major water crisis. And it is a crisis that is also due to the fact that this winter we did have quite abundant rainfall, but then the dry periods … were quite long," Giganti told the Associated Press.
Nero's Bridge (Pons Neronianus) was thought to have been built as a triumphal monument by the Emperor Caligula around 39 AD. But it is referred to as Nero's Bridge because Nero, Caligula's nephew, renamed a number of ancient structures after himself during his rule from 54 to 68 AD, according to historical accounts.
The bridge originally connected the ancient Campus Martius area, which now houses the Spanish Steps, the Piazza del Popolo and the posh shopping streets around Via Condotti, to the Circus of Nero stadium where St. Peter was martyred and upon which St. Peter's Basilica and the Vatican City now stand.
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📸: Andreas Solaro/AFP/Getty Images
Sustainable construction is moving from ambition to enforceable systems change, with electrified buildings, resilience and whole life carbon now shaping development strategy. Calls for a UK 2035 electrification target covering heat pumps, solar, batteries and clean technologies put pressure on developers to align sustainable building design with low-carbon power, flexible demand and on-site generation. Fabric-first design remains vital, but net zero carbon buildings will increasingly depend on operational performance, smart controls and credible whole life carbon assessment.
Global energy markets are accelerating the shift. Forecasts of a 4,800GW rise in renewable capacity by 2035, supported by China’s clean-tech export strength, are changing the economics of building services. Heat pumps, battery storage and intelligent controls are becoming core infrastructure for energy-efficient buildings, not optional upgrades. Future-ready assets will need low carbon design capable of using variable clean electricity while protecting occupiers from volatile fossil fuel costs and reducing the carbon footprint of construction over time.
Regulation is tightening around measurable performance. The Future Homes Standard is forcing design teams to reassess roofs, floors, comfort, ventilation and commissioning, while building-controls specialists are urging ministers to turn efficiency policy into practical support for businesses. BREEAM, BREEAM v7 and lifecycle assessment frameworks are becoming more important for demonstrating environmental sustainability in construction, linking embodied carbon, operational energy, life cycle cost and building lifecycle performance in a single evidence base.
The next phase of green construction will demand stronger action on embodied carbon in materials, low carbon construction materials and sustainable material specification. Developers, architects and contractors face growing pressure to use environmental product declarations (EPDs), low embodied carbon materials, renewable building materials and green building products to prove carbon footprint reduction. Circular economy in construction is also moving up the agenda, with circular construction strategies, resource efficiency in construction and end-of-life reuse in construction becoming central to net zero whole life carbon delivery.
Climate adaptation is now a capital planning issue. New flood and coastal-defence schemes in England and Wales show that green infrastructure, sustainable urban development and low-impact construction must protect assets from climate risks already locked in. Sustainable architecture and eco-design for buildings can no longer treat resilience separately from decarbonising the built environment. The industry must deliver eco-friendly construction, carbon neutral construction and sustainable building practices that reduce the environmental impact of construction while preparing communities for more extreme weather.
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