Green Architecture

A rough guide for the confused

Melanie Latham
RIBA CA DipConsHistEnv (RICS)
ST ANNS GATE ARCHITECTS LLP
Introduction
TECHNICAL STUDIES & EXPERIENCE
1992 Study on Regionalism
1993 Standardisation and the
intangible loss of place
1996 - Master study on the
buildings of C.A.T (Centre for
Alternative Technology, Wales)
2006 - Post Graduate Diploma in
Conservation of the Historic
Environment
2008 - Masters Dissertation
How historic building
conservation can contribute to
sustainable development


CONSERVATIONof?
Green Architecture
PART ONE
Sustainable Development
Legislation and Guidelines
Code for Sustainable Homes (CfSH)
Passiv Haus

PART TWO
Sustainable building
RURAL Case Study
URBAN Case Study
The Future of Building in 2030?
Opportunities and challenges
ENERGY CONSUMPTION

Transport & Travel
Lighting and Power
Heating
Waste
Water use
Food consumption
Leisure activities
Industrial processes
Manufacturing
Construction
44% of energy use is within buildings

The population is only increasing!...
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT?

PART ONE Sustainable Development
Sustainable Development
Sustainable Development
Development that
..meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their own needs
Gro-Harlem Brundtland - The Brundtland Commission1987
THE THREE
SPHERES
Economic Sustainability
Social Sustainability
Environmental Sustainability
The context of buildings & community
Economic Sustainability
Affordability to build, use, run and
maintain, local economy, enterprise
support, supported growth
Social Sustainability
cultural heritage, continuity, identity,
use and mindset, community, people
Environmental Sustainability
Choice of materials, design layout,
passive efficiency, specifications,
renewables, personal choices

The housing need in the UK
The minimum carbon footprint?
Our existing homes
Over 80% of 2025 housing stock already exists
ECO BUILDING
IS IT ALL ABOUT..
.. Teletubbies houses?..
..a hobbit hole?.....
..a treehouse?...
..use of renewable energies?

Teletubbies
Hobbit holes and treehouses
Technology and Renewables
Solar Thermal
Photovoltaics (PVs)
Combined Heat and
Power (CHP) units
Gas or Micro
Biomass
Ground Source Heat
Pumps (GSHP)
Air Source Heat
Pumps (ASHP)
Hydro electricity
Wind turbines


The Principles of an Eco-Home
Affordable: to build, use, run
and maintain
Environmentally friendly
materials
Minimum of energy
consumption
Low carbon footprint
Low-no reliance on fossil fuels

Off-grid?
Self build?
Self-sufficiency?

SIMPLE?......
Brenda and Robert Vale,
Thames and Hudson, 2000
Building Regulations
PART L Building Regs and SAP
TER/DER Targets and Design

Step change needed
Code For Sustainable Homes (CfSH)
Introduced 2007
Mandatory from May 2008
For all new homes
BRE Eco Homes SYSTEM
New Single national standard
Energy performance
certificates (EPCs)
9 Credit categories
Simplifying system
Flexibility
CfSH - CODE LEVELS
CfSH - Target aspirations
What is Zero-Carbon or Code 6?
Energy:
TER, building fabric, white goods/fittings, lighting, use of
renewables, cycle storage provision, home office
Water:
potable consumption (less than 80 l/p/d), rainwater collection
Materials:
Environmental impact, responsible sourcing
Surface water run-off:
SUDS, flood risk reduction
Waste:
site and household, recycling and composting
Pollution:
GWP /NOx emissions from materials in build
Health & Well-being:
Daylight, sound insulation, private space, Lifetime homes
Management:
Guide, CCS for work, security
Ecology:
Protection, enhancement, economic house footprint
Net emissions of CO
2
from ALL
energy use in the home
Relevant points in 9 categories
6 stars exemplar development
in sustainability terms
Whole building and lifestyle
considerations
CfSH Level 5/6 requires max
energy use of 46kw/m2/yr )

Basics of a CfSH House
Passivhaus
ORIGINATED IN GERMANY in 1990s
Passivhaus Institute founded in 1996
A standard for energy use in all building
types
Higher quality of design & construction
Over 6,000 buildings (mostly houses)
have been built to the standard, mainly
in Germany and Austria
Design appraised using the PHPP
(Passive House Development Package)
i.e not SAP used by the CfSH
UK established practice - Carbon Lite
programme, Bronze Silver and Gold
Likely to lead standards in future
Principles of Passivhaus
Compact plan form
High levels of insulation
Air-tight construction
Mechanical heat recovery and
ventilation system (MVHR)
No heating solar gain
Energy use max 15kw/m2/yr
for heating and cooling
TOTAL energy demand less
than 120kw/m2/yr
The Effect of Passivhaus
MINIMISE HEAT LOSS
MAXIMISE EFFICIENCY
The Zero-Carbon Challenge
Building Research Establishment (BRE)
Watford

BRE Environmental Assessment Method
(BREEAM)
Established 1980
Updated in 2008
Single dwellings not included

2003 Offsite development initiative
started
2005 - Eco-house/Code 6 competition
at the BRE
2007 OFFSITE
What is Zero-Carbon or Code 6?

Kingspan/Arup
LIGHTHOUSE
The Challenge Legacy
Passiv Haus Variety
Limitations of Current Standards
CfSH
Flexibility and choice of
points allocation
leading to manipulation
risk and trade off
No minimum standards
to certain areas of
categories
Still catering to those
who want to achieve
least worst

PASSIV HAUS
Focus on energy use i.e.
consumption and
running costs only for the
CO
2
, not whole house
footprint
Reliance on technology
Habit changing ignored
Prohibitive Costs

Denby Dale with the Green Building
Store Build cost of 140k basic cost

BRE Watford site and Ravenscraig
PASSIV HAUS COMPETITION 2012
Design a semi-detached residential
Passivhaus, one dwelling allocated for
social housing and one for mid-range
market housing both sharing the
same construction typology.
To achieve a min of Level 4 of the CfSH
Threshold of construction costs:
1,100m2 Social /1,500m2 open
market
Locally sourced, low embodied energy
materials
Future Developments
CO
2
IS MoreLess?..
The Jevons Paradox
An economic truism
Technological progress that
increases the efficiency with
which a resource is used, tends to
increase (rather than decrease)
the rate of consumption of that
resource
The it doesnt matter now
attitude
Human nature and the age of
consumerism
The challenge of habit-breaking

A change of mindset
What about?...
WILL YOU?...
QUESTIONS?