Architecture in a Climate of Change Page52-Page62 Low energy techniques for housing It would appear that,for the industrialised countries,the best chance of rescue lies with the built environment because buildings in use or in the course of erection are the biggest single indirect source of carbon emissions generated by burning fossil fuels,accounting for over 50 per cent of total emissions.If you add the transport costs generated by buildings the UK government estimate is 75 per cent.It is the built environment which is the sector that can most easily accommodate fairly rapid change without pain.In fact,upgrading buildings, especially the lower end of the housing stock,creates a cluster of interlocking virtuous circles. Construction systems Having considered the challenge presented by global warming and the opportunities to generate fossil-free energy,it is now time to consider how the demand side of the energy equation can respond to that challenge.The built environment is the greatest sectoral consumer of energy and,within that sector,housing is in pole position accounting for 28 per cent of all UK carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. In the UK housing has traditionally been of masonry and since the early 1920s this has largely been of cavity construction.The purpose was to ensure that a saturated external leaf would have no physical contact with the inner leaf apart from wall ties and that water would be discharged through weep holes at the damp-proof course level.Since the introduction of thermal regulations,initially deemed necessary to conserve energy rather than the planet,it has been common practice to introduce insulation into the cavity.For a long time it was mandatory to preserve a space within t...
