The construction industry needs to adapt its attitude towards sustainability and begin working “with an end in mind” and strive to be “carbon negative.”
The comments were made at Construction Week’s Building Sustainability into the Middle East Conference, held at the Park Hyatt in Dubai yesterday.
Speaking on Breaking the Cycle of Inaction in Luxury Hotels, WoodsBaggot Principal Carolyn McLean said the construction industry needed to plan for the long term. She also said that in the future, financers could begin to choose which developments they would finance, according to how sustainable they were.
Geoff Sanderson, Principal at Green Concepts, also said that despite Masdar’s much appreciated attempt to raise the standards of sustainability in the region, much more was needed to be done.
“Carbon neutral is just not good enough,” he said. “We’ve already come too far now, for carbon neutral to make a real difference; what’s needed now is carbon negative.”
Other topics such as “how green is green” and “sustainability through architecture and design” were also discussed.
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Panelists at the conference also agreed that in order to implement serious changes, enforcements through law should be considered by various governments in the region.
Erik Freudenthal, manager, GlashusEtt who presented a case study on Learning Best Practice in Integrated Urban Planning and Sustainable Developments, said the governments in the region should begin to introduce regulations for sustainable building.
“A political whip is what is needed to get people to take sustainability more seriously,” said Freudenthal. “Without regulations becoming a lawful requirement, it’s just another suggestion that is presented.”
The Sustainability Conference attracted delegates from all over the GCC including heads of companies such as the Saudi Green Building Council, Dubai World facility management division Imdaad and Abu Dhabi based Aldar.
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