BREEAM respond to Trump
US President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Paris climate accord on 1 June 2017 has many layers of complexity, and seeing the debate unravel, it is not easy to understand if it is driven by US politics surrounding employment opportunities, world politics – about making a stance on the global stage – or simply disbelief in the argument about climate change.
But one thing is becoming clear since the President’s announcement - the international response. It has been regarded by political leaders and climate experts world-wide as a major error of judgement.
Making the argument about current domestic job security is perhaps missing the opportunity of long-term creation of jobs in the fields of green buildings, communities and energy and will give greater potential than the job cuts in the current industry. An argument that is clearly understood by many, including China.
The President’s announcement leaves the United States as one of just three countries, along with Nicaragua and Syria, to oppose the Paris Agreement, which is the world’s first legally-binding climate deal.
The leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan as well as the UN chief had hoped to pressure Trump into respecting the US pledge to curb its carbon emissions.
In a rare joint statement, continental Europe’s three biggest countries said they were 'firmly convinced that the agreement cannot be renegotiated', immediately cancelling any possibility of a new deal more favourable to the US being struck. The advice went unheeded. The subsequent impacts on climate change are uncertain.
One thing is for sure, BREEAM will continue to research, and support the industry to be the best, including those in various states in the US, and through our network of assessor, and the 70+ countries in which it operates to ensure we reduce the impacts of buildings to drive more sustainable solution. Allowing the industry to innovate, and improve.
Our work and passion in this space is not about a transfer of economic power from North to South, or West to East, it is very much about enabling free flow of knowledge between like-mind institutes and corporates to support such growth and to release the potential of the market.
Such an approach of collaboration will ensure that we also reduce our impact by good design, and by sharing international best practise through BREEAM.
This article was originally published here by BRE Buzz on 2 June 2017. It was written by Martin Townsend.
--BRE Buzz
[edit] Find out more
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki
- BRE Buzz articles on Designing Buildings Wiki.
- BSRIA respond to President Trump's decision on the Paris Accord.
- Climate Change Act.
- Climate change science.
- COP21.
- Environmental policy.
- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change IPCC.
- What has the UK done about carbon reduction since the Paris Agreement?
Issue support documents
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[edit] Management:
- BREEAM Sustainability champion
- BREEAM Environmental management
- BREEAM Considerate construction
- BREEAM Monitoring of construction site impacts
- BREEAM Aftercare support
- BREEAM Seasonal commissioning
- BREEAM Testing and inspecting building fabric
- BREEAM Life cycle cost and service life planning
- BREEAM Stakeholder consultation (ac)
- BREEAM Commissioning (ac)
- BREEAM Handover (ac)
- BREEAM Inclusive and accessible design (ac)
- BREEAM Post occupancy evaluation
[edit] Health and Wellbeing
- BREEAM Visual comfort Daylighting (partly ac)
- BREEAM Visual comfort View out
- BREEAM Visual comfort Glare control
- BREEAM Indoor air quality plan
- BREEAM Indoor air quality Ventilation
- BREEAM Thermal comfort
- BREEAM Internal and external lighting (ac)
- BREEAM Indoor pollutants VOCs (ac)
- BREEAM Potential for natural ventilation (ac)
- BREEAM Safe containment in laboratories (ac)
- BREEAM Acoustic performance
- BREEAM Safety and security (ac)
[edit] Energy
- BREEAM Reduction of energy use and carbon emissions
- BREEAM Energy monitoring
- BREEAM External lighting
- BREEAM Low carbon design
- BREEAM Passive design
- BREEAM Free cooling
- BREEAM LZC technologies
- BREEAM Energy efficient cold storage (partly ac)
- BREEAM Energy efficient transportation systems
- BREEAM Energy efficient laboratory systems
- BREEAM Energy efficient equipment (partly ac)
- BREEAM Drying space
[edit] Transport
- BREEAM Transport assessment and travel plan
- BREEAM Public transport accessibility
- BREEAM Sustainable transport measures
- BREEAM Proximity to amenities
- BREEAM Cyclist facilities
- BREEAM Alternative modes of transport (ac)
- BREEAM Maximum car parking capacity
- BREEAM Travel plan
- BREEAM Home office (ac)
[edit] Water
- BREEAM Water consumption
- BREEAM Water efficient equipment
- BREEAM Water monitoring
- BREEAM Water leak detection (ac)
[edit] Materials
- BREEAM Hard landscaping and boundary protection
- BREEAM Responsible sourcing of materials
- BREEAM Insulation
- BREEAM Designing for durability and resilience
- BREEAM Life cycle impacts
- BREEAM Material efficiency (ac)
[edit] Waste
- BREEAM Construction waste management
- BREEAM Recycled aggregates
- BREEAM Speculative floor & ceiling finishes
- BREEAM Adaptation to climate change
- BREEAM Operational waste
- BREEAM Functional adaptability (ac)
[edit] Land Use and Ecology
- BREEAM Site Selection
- BREEAM Ecological value of site
- BREEAM Protection of ecological features
- BREEAM Minimising impact on existing site ecology
- BREEAM Enhancing site ecology
- BREEAM Long term impact on biodiversity (ac)
[edit] Pollution
- BREEAM Impact of refrigerants
- BREEAM NOx emissions
- BREEAM Flood risk management (ac)
- BREEAM Surface water run-off (ac)
- BREEAM Reduction of night time light pollution (partly ac)
- BREEAM Reduction of noise pollution
Once an ISD has been initially created the '(ac)' marker can be removed
This particular index is based around the structure of the New Construction and RFO schemes.