The waste hierarchy ranking effective waste management suggests first and foremost waste needs to be prevented. This can be implemented through reducing our waste e.g. buying in bulk, other methods include using durable products. Re-using materials is also encouraged e.g. re-using bags, containers or boxes and giving items that are no longer wanted to charity shops. Recycling offered by Council’s including kerbside recycling schemes, local recycling sites as well as Household Waste Recycling Centre’s (dumps/tips) which should be used once residents reduce and reuse their waste to assist in the UK’s movement towards increasing recycling rates. Recovery of materials is a further option, including techniques such as Energy From Waste (Efw) – facilities to treat waste under controlled conditions, to reduce the volume and recover value from waste through the generation of electricity and heat (Biffa,2011). Electricity generated from a typical 300,000tpa facility would be approximately equal to the consumption in 68,000 houses (Biffa,2011). The last option is disposal, considered the least appropriate action of our waste, consisting of rubbish disposed in landfill. In 2001, the 1500 landfill sites in the UK contributed to a quarter of the UK’s methane emissions, showing the harmful impacts landfills are doing to our precious environment (Recyclenow, 2015).

The benefits of reducing, reusing and recycling our waste conserves resources, saves energy, protects the environment and most of all reduces waste to landfill hence people should continue to practice these methods and try to reach their optimum in reducing household waste if the UK is to reach its recycling rate of 50% by 2020.

References

Biffa (2011). About Energy From Waste. Available at: http://www.biffa.co.uk/waste-processing/energy-from-waste/about-energy-from-waste.html. Accessed on 12th February 2015.

DEFRA (2015). Reducing and managing Waste. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/policies/reducing-and-managing-waste. Accessed on 12th February 2015.

Perrin, D., Barton,J., 2001. Issues associated with transforming household attitudes and opinions into materials recovery: a review of two kerbside recycling schemes. Resources, Conservation and Recycling , vol 33 (1).

Recycle now (2015). Why Recycle?. Available at: http://www.recyclenow.com/recycle/why-recycle. Accessed 12th February 2015.

A rise of more than 0.7 °C in the average surface temperature has been seen in the past 100 years and there is increasing evidence that the earth’s climate is rapidly changing in response to increased inputs of carbon dioxide (Henson,2001 IPCC,2007). Global carbon dioxide emissions have increased from  an average  6.4 ± 0.4 GtC yr^–1  in the 1990’s  to 7.2 ± 0.3 GtC yr^–1 in the period 2000 to 2005(IPCC,2007).The extent that humans are polluting our atmosphere is at a staggering four metric tonnes per person per year (Henson,2001). Therefore mitigation of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere is essential. One method which has major potential in reducing carbon dioxide emissions is soil carbon sequestration (Peterson et. al, 2013).

What is soil carbon sequestration?

Soil carbon sequestration is the process of transferring carbon dioxide from the atmosphere into soil through organic solids and storing it (Sundermeier, Reeder,Lal,n.d). It is also commonly used to describe any increase in soil organic carbon content caused by a change in land management within the soil to mitigate climate change (Powlson, et al. 2011.) At present the attainable soil carbon capacity sink is only 50-60% of its potential capacity and with the added benefits of increasing food security as well improving soil quality, soil carbon sequestration seems a viable option (Halvorson,Wienhold,Black, 2002; Lal,2004a) .  It has been predicted that this technology could offset 2000-5000 Mt C/ ^yr-1 (Cannel, 2003).

What methods improve soil carbon sequestration?

Managing agricultural land

It has been well recognised that the conversion from natural to agricultural land has resulted in a significant loss of 50% of soil organic carbon globally (Kirkby, et al. 2013).  Most of the loss in soil organic carbon to the atmosphere can be explained due to reduced inputs of organic matter, increased decomposability of crop residues and tillage effects that decrease the amount of physical protection. Therefore increasing soil organic carbon through managing agricultural land is vital to increase sequestration (Post and Kwon, 2000).

Case study- Australia

Management of land use in Australia is being adopted throughout many regions and improved management of croplands through rotations, conservation tillage and stubble retention has caused a gain of 0.2-0.3  Mg C ha ^-1 yr^-1 in comparison to conventional management, even though small it can relate to large sequestration rates  of up 60 tg CO₂ per year (Sanderman, et al. 2010).

Managing peat lands

As well as managing agricultural lands, peat lands should equally be managed due to their wide global distribution and contribution to carbon dioxide emissions. They are unique soil carbon pools made from high densities of carbon which have accumulated over many years because decomposition is suppressed by the absence of oxygen under flooded conditions (Smith,2007b; Lal,2009). However increases in anthropogenic activities such as drainage and deforestation for agricultural land has released carbon to the atmosphere and reduced carbon sequestration function  (Page, et al, 2011).

References

-          Cannel, M., 2003. Carbon sequestration and biomass offset : theoretical potential and achievable capacities globally , in Europe and the UK. Biomass and bioenergy. Vol 24 (2).

-          Halverson,A., Weinhold, B., Black,A., 2002. Tillage, nitrogen and cropping effects on soil carbon sequestration.  Soil science society of America Journal. Vol 66 p906-912.

-          Henson, R., 2001. The rough guide to Climate Change. 3^rd ed. London: Penguin Group.

-          IPCC 2007. Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2007.

-          Kirkby,C., Richardson, A., Wade,L., Passioura, J., Batten,G., Blanchard, C., Kirkegaard. 2013.Nutrient availability limits carbon sequestration in arable soils. Soil biology and biochemistry. Vol 68 p402-409.

-          Lal, R., 2009. Agriculture and climate change: An agenda for negotiation in Copenhagen. The potential for soil carbon sequestration. [pdf]International food policy research institute. Available at : http://www.ifpri.org/sites/default/files/publications/focus16_05.pdf Accessed on 23rd November 2013.

-          Page, E., Morrison,R., Mallins,R., Hooijer,A., Rieley,O., Jauhianen, J., 2011. Review of peat surface greenhouse gas emissions from oil palm plantations in South East Asia . [pdf] The international council on clean transportation. Available at : http://www.theicct.org/sites/default/files/publications/ICCT_Peat-Emissions_Sept2011.pdf Accessed on 3rd December 2013

-          Peterson ,B., Knudsen, M., Hermansen,J.,Halberg, N., 2013. An approach to include soil carbon changes in life cycle assessments. Journal of cleaner production. Vol 52 p217-244.

-          Post,W., Kwon,K.,2000. Soil carbon sequestration and land use change: processes and potential. Global change biology . vol 6 p317-328.

-          Powlson, D.,Whitmore,A., Goulding,K., 2011. Soil carbon sequestration to mitigate climate change: a critical re-evaluation  to identify the true and false. European journal of soil science.  vol 62 issue 1.

-          Sanderman, J., Farquharson, ,R., Baldock,J., 2010. Soil carbon sequestration potential : A review for Australian agriculture. (pdf) National Research flagships sustainable agriculture. Available at: http://csiro.au/Portals/Publications/Research–Reports/Soil-Carbon-Sequestration-Potential-Report.aspx Accessed on 2nd December 2013.

-          Smith, P., D. Martino, Z. Cai, D. Gwary, H. Janzen, P. Kumar, B. McCarl, S. Ogle, F. O’Mara, C. Rice, B. Scholes, O. Sirotenko, 2007: Agriculture. In Climate Change 2007: Mitigation. Contribution of Working Group III to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [B. Metz, O.R. Davidson, P.R. Bosch, R. Dave, L.A. Meyer (eds)], Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom and New York, NY, USA.

-          Sundermeier,A., Reeder,R.,Lal,R., n.d.Soil carbon sequestation. (pdf) Available at: http://ohioline.osu.edu/aex-fact/pdf/0510.pdf accessed on 23rd October 2013. Accessed on 8^th December 2013.

Paper

Several measures to reduce our paper consumption can be achieved by using thinner paper, efficient printing technologies, duplexing and printing on demand (Hekkert, et al.,2002)

Lighting

Lighting control integrated with daylighting control is recognised as an important useful strategy in energy efficient buildings. Installation of proper day-lighting schemes may help to reduce the electrical demand. A study in Hong Kong reported that as much as 20-30% of the electric load derived from lighting in office buildings (Li and Lam,2001). Within the UK office lights which have been left on overnight use enough energy in a year to heat a home for 5 months highlighting how significant monitoring lighting could be (Carbon Trust, 2014).

Air conditioning

Around 40% of floor space is expected to be air conditioned by 2020 which is likely to increase our contribution to carbon emissions and our energy consumption is expected to double by 2020 because of this as well. In order to try and reduce these emissions careful consideration of its use should be adopted (Carbon Trust, 2012).

-          Consideration of layout, design and operation are important as this impacts the room temperature,

-          The design and efficiency of the air conditioning plant is very important.

-          The amount of fresh air provided per person should also be considered.

Turning computers off

Profiles from 94 computers in Canada indicated that there were long periods during the night and day when computers were turned on but not being used, and it was predicted that significant energy savings could be achieved if the electricity was used efficiently. The company used stickers to remind colleagues to turn off their computers when not in use and as a result over 14% reduction in consumption over a 2 month period was achieved (Newsham and Tiller,1994).

Simple changes within the office can therefore help you to reduce greenhouse gases and reduce your carbon footprint for a cleaner and more efficient environment!

References

Carbon Trust, 2014. Climate change at work. (online). Available at: http://www.carbontrust.com/media/195259/pfl306_lighting.pdf. Accessed on 24^th August 2014.

Carbon Trust, 2012. Air conditioning. (online). Available at: http://www.carbontrust.com/media/17824/j7906_ctg005_air_conditioning_aw_interactive.pdf. Accessed on 24^th August 2014.

Counsell,T and Allwood,J.,2007. Reducing climate change gas emissions by cutting out stages in the life cycle of office paper. Resources, Conservation and  Recycling. Vol 49. P340-352.

Hekkert,M.,Reek,J.,Worrel,E.,Turkenburg,W.,2002. The impact of material efficient and end-use technologies on paper use and carbon emissions. Resources, Conservation and  Recycling. Vol 36, p241-266.

Li,D and Lam,J.,2001. Evaluation of  lighting performance in office buildings with daylight controls. Energy and Buildings. Vol 33. P793-803.

Newsham,G.R. and Tiller,D.K.,1994. The energy consumption of desktop computers: measurement and savings potential. IEEE transactions on industry applications. Vol 30 (4)

The issue of sustainable development is high on the global agenda and SUDS can help towards this movement (Butler and Parkinson, 1997). SUDS, or Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems are a sequence of water management practices and facilities designed to drain surface water in a manner that will provide a more sustainable approach than what has been the conventional practice of routing run-off through a pipe to a watercourse (SEPA,2014). There are a number of practices which can be undertaken in the movement towards more sustainable water systems:

-mitigation of accidents that may result in pollution incidents

-reduction in pollution incidents

-reduction in polluting materials

-Water harvesting

Facilities may also be constructed to help contribute to SUDS which include permeable surfaces, filter strips, swales, detention basins and wetlands for example.

Permeable surfaces

Permeable pavement systems (PPS) are suitable for a wide variety of residential, commercial and industrial applications. They can act as a technology for pollutant control contain surface run-off from areas such as roads or parking spaces where contaminated water may infiltrate into the soil (Scholz and Grabowiecki,2007).

Filter strips

Filter drains or filter trenches can be used beside roads and other impermeable surfaces, but should be avoided at busy road junctions or where rainwater can become heavily contaminated. Filter drains allow the run-off to soak away into the surrounding soil. Filter drains are filled with stones or gravel. This stone fill collects particles and helps to prevent pollutants from entering groundwater (NIEA,2014). Furthermore filter strips are easy to construct as well as having low construction costs (Susdrain, 2012).

Swales

Swales integrate stormwater management into urban structures and creates new structures such as bioretention swales (Lloyd, 2001; Kazemi,Beecham and Gibbs,2011) Bioretention swales harvest stormwater, whilst filtering it through to an engineered soil media. This wastewater can be stored for reuse or discharging downstream (Melbourne Water, 2005; Kazemi,Beecham and Gibbs,2011). Their maintenance can be incorporated into general landscape management and these systems are inexpensive as well (Susdrain, 2012).

Detention basins

Detention basins are surface storage basins or facilities that provide flow control through attenuation of stormwater runoff. They also facilitate some setting of particulate pollutants. They provide the advantages in that it can cater for a wide range of rainfall events and they are simple to design and construct. However there is little reduction in run-off volume (Susdrain,2012).

Wetlands

Wetlands are vegetated water bodies that use methods of sedimentation and filtration to provide treatment of surface water run-off. Furthermore they aid in providing high aesthetic, ecological and amenity benefits therefore potentially adding value to local properties (Susdrain, 2012).

Urban planners should therefore consider the use of SUDS in their development programs as they are able to reduce runoff volumes, enhance water quality, often provide an attractive habitat therefore producing a world in which many people have a better quality of life (Susdrain,2012).

References

Butler, D. and Parkinson,J.,1997. Towards sustainable urban drainage. Water Science and Technology. Vol 35 p53-63.

Kazemi,F., Beecham,S., Gibbs,J.,2011. Streetscape biodiversity and the role of bioretention swales in an Australian urban environment.  Landscape and Urban Planning. Vol 101, p139-148.

Lloyd, S., 2001. Water Sensitive Urban Design in the Australian Context, Synthesis of a Conference Held in 30–31 August 2000, Melbourne Australia. Melbourne, Cooperative Research Centre for Catchment Hydrology.

Melbourne Water, 2005. WSUD engineering procedures: Stormwater. CSIRO Publishing Melbourne.

NIEA,2014.Sustainable Urban Drainage systems. (online) Available at: http://www.netregs.org.uk/library_of_topics/water/sustainable_urban_drain_system/filter_strips_and_filter_drain.aspx. Accessed on 6^th July 2014.

Scholz,M.,and  Grabowiecki,P., 2007. Review of permeable paving systems. Building and the Environment. Vol 42, p3830-3836.

SEPA, 2014. Sustainable Urban Drainage systems.(online). Available at: http://www.sepa.org.uk/water/water_regulation/regimes/pollution_control/suds.aspx. Accessed on 6^th July 2014.

Susdrain.,2012. SUDS’. (online). Available at: http://www.susdrain.org/delivering-suds/using-suds/suds-components/retention_and_detention/Detention_basins.html. Accessed on 6^th July 2014.

The term ‘eco-city’ is a relatively new idea however its concept has existed for a very long time (Roseland, 1997).  In 1987 the Brundtland commission defined sustainable development as meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (WCED,1987) and these eco-cities can help towards a sustainable future. In simple terms an eco-city is an ecologically healthy city which incorporates a number of factors (Ecocity builders, 2014);

-An ecologically healthy human settlement modelled on the self-sustaining resilient structure and function of natural ecosystems and living organisms

-An entity that includes its inhabitants and their ecological impacts

- A sub system of the regional, national and world economic system

Case study

Perhaps one of the most avowedly experimental responses taken place on an urban scale in response to climate change are new low carbon cities including that of Masdar City in the United Arab Emirates whereby in 2008 the city embarked on a journey to become the world’s most sustainable city (Bulkeley et al., 2011; Madsar,2012). The city has now started a process of ‘transforming oil wealth into renewable  energy leadership’ and has set long term goals of a transition from a 20^th century carbon based economy into a 21^st century sustainable economy (Reiche,2010). Described as a living laboratory, Masdar City is designed to capture the lessons of developing new technologies  and ways of real living time. On one hand the city itself is characterised by a test bed for a carbon free-lifestyle however the city, developed by the UAE provides space to exploit and develop the clean technology sector (Bulkeley et al., 2011).

Some of the major developments of Masdar City includes the Masdar Clean Energy projects; the concentrated solar project which include Masdar City’s 1 MW rooftop installations has been one movement towards sustainability. Further plans include a 100MW photovoltaic plant as well as carbon sequestration and carbon capture projects (Masdar,2012). However Masdar City is not only focused on sustainability in the region, internationally Masdar Clean energy has developed wind farms in the Seychelles as well as renewable projects in Tonga and Afghanistan (Masdar,2012).

However even though eco-cities seem viable in a world increasingly concerned with global warming actual implementation can be hard to obtain and poses a lot of obstacles with regards to social and economic costs making these cities not as appealing as first thought.

References

Bulkeley,H., Broto,V.,Hodson,M.,Marvin,S.,2011. Cities and the Low carbon Transition. The European Financial Review.

Ecocity builders, 2014. Ecocity definition. (online) Available at: http://www.ecocitybuilders.org/why-ecocities/the-solution/ecocity-definition/. Accessed on 26^th May 2014.

Masdar,2012. Masdar City. (online) Available at: http://www.masdar.ae/en/city/detail/one-of-the-worlds-most-sustainable-communities-masdar-city-is-an-emerging-g. Accessed on 26^th May 2014.

Reiche,D.,2010. Renewable  Energy Policies in the Gulf countries: A case study of the carbon-neutral ‘Masdar City’ in Abu Dhabi. Energy policy. Vol 38 (1) p378-382.

Roseland,M.,1997. Dimensions of the eco-city. Cities.  Vol 14 (4) p197-202.

WCED,1987. Our common future. Oxford university Press, New York.

What will you be doing March 29 at 8.30pm? Having a drink with friends? Having dinner? Spending time with your family? Instead of sitting with the lights on, why not spend an hour by candlelight and support WWF’s worldwide event Earth Hour.

Starting in 2007, Earth Hour asks individuals, businesses and governments to switch out their lights for one hour – at 8.30pm local time, whatever your location around the globe. The idea is to allow those who take part to show they are taking steps to reduce their environmental impact, and for many people it is the first step to making more significant, sustainable changes to their lifestyle.

Last year 157 countries took part, with over 10 million people in the UK alone turning off their lights at 8.30pm [1]. This year organisers WWF hope even more people to join in, with “Amazing Spider Man 2” actors Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone each pledging their support to one of the Earth Hour Blue crowdfunding projects [2].

While not every light should be turned off, for example safety lights, traffic lights etc. [3], you can choose to turn off overhead room lights, lamps, computers and other electronic devices such as televisions, and other similar light sources.

An event like Earth Hour raises awareness all over the globe about the importance of conserving energy and becoming a more sustainable society. Making the focus lighting is highly relevant to this, as typically 7% of a household’s energy bill comes from lighting [4].

There are some easy and quick ways to instantly reduce your lighting costs:

• Use natural daylight – when it’s light outside keen curtains and blinds open to let in sunlight, rather than having lamps on.
• Turn off lights when you leave the room – having lights on in empty rooms keeps your bills higher than they need to be.
• Use sensors and timers so lights go off automatically when they aren’t needed.
• Make sure the bulbs you buy are energy efficient – Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFLs) and Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) are both readily available across the country.
• Shop for Energy Efficient lights at https://www.energysavingwarehouse.co.uk/store/Lights

References

[1] WWF. Earth Hour in 2013. 2014. https://earthhour.wwf.org.uk/about-wwfs-earth-hour/earth-hour-in-2013

[2] Earth Hour. Earth Hour & Spider-Man Join Forces to Save the Planet. 2014. http://www.earthhour.org/be-superhero-planet

[3] Earth Hour. Celebrating Earth Hour. 2014. http://www.earthhour.org/celebrating-earth-hour

[4] Energy Saving Trust. Lighting. 2014. http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/scotland/Electricity/Lighting

The Guardian (2014) describes how First Capital Connect has finally completed a five year long project in conjunction with Solarcentury, to provide half of Blackfriars rail station power from 4,400 roof-mounted solar panels. In terms of CO2 emissions, trains are already the most sustainable form of transport with 0.1Kg of CO2 per passenger mile (Thameslink Programme, 2012). This massive investment is estimated to cut the stations’ carbon emissions by an estimated 511 tonnes a year, creating an even more sustainable way to travel across London.

Although some ministers warn of the risk of a disagreement regarding the way they look against London’s older buildings, Solarcentury maintains that the fact that they are so visual is actually a bonus, and that it shows off how London is striving to be a sustainable city. The iconic landmark, visible for miles along the River Thames, will hopefully provide an incentive for the growing solar panel market and enhance people’s perceptions to the way they look, especially for big businesses. This complex project was put on hold to minimise the impact on the station during the 2012 Olympic Games, and has turned out to be a complicated jigsaw trying to fit the different sections of roof in at different times, with the consideration of even shipping some of the components in via the Thames.

The BBC (2014) state that the Victorian bridge is part of a £6.5bn programme (funded through the Department for Transport’s safety and environment fund) designed to increase capacity on the Thameslink route. Yet despite the large price tag, it is expected that the cost of running the station will reduce significantly. The panels cover around 6,000 square m and are expected to generate 900,000 kWh of electricity per year, saving over 500 tonnes of CO2 annually. The bridge, built in the thirteenth century, originally used water wheels to drive pumps and grain mills, but now it has become the first bridge over the Thames since the London Bridge to generate its own power. The only other solar bridge in the world is the Kurilpain Footbridge in Brisbane, Australia, which was constructed in 2009.

The Thameslink Programme (2012) tells that the creation of the solar bridge involved stripping the old bridge to its foundations in order to reconstruct a wider and stronger one, with a 250m-long roof. This means longer trains and more frequent services, with a metro-style train every 2.5 minutes through central London at peak times. Other improvements mean the walkway is hinged so that it can be lifted when the gutters need cleaning, as well as having a socket at the end of each roof so a removable handrail can be added when major maintenance work is required (Kemp, 2013). This bridge will hopefully be one of many solar panelled buildings, designed to promote renewable energy and increase London’s sustainability.

References

BBC (2014), Solar bridge unveiled at Blackfriars station, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-25843677, [23/01/2014]

Kemp, D (2013), Blackfriars Station becomes world’s largest solar bridge, http://www.cnplus.co.uk/innovation/special-reports/blackfriars-station-becomes-worlds-largest-solar-bridge/8650978.article#.UuDp6RBFDIU, [23/01/2014]

Thameslink Programme (2012), World’s largest solar bridge taking shape as Blackfriars installation reaches half way, http://www.thameslinkprogramme.co.uk/worlds-largest-solar-bridge-taking-shape-as-blackfriars-installation-reaches-half-way, [23/01/2014]

The Guardian (2014), World’s largest solar-powered bridge opens in London http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/jan/22/worlds-largest-solar-powered-bridge-opens-in-london?CMP=twt_fd [23/01/2014]

With energy bills on the rise, and temperatures dropping, winter can be an expensive time of the year. It can be tricky to balance not spending too much with making sure your residence is warm enough to be comfortable. Below are several ways to cut down on energy use, from bigger projects such as insulating lofts and walls, to making sure your radiators aren’t having to work double to keep your house warm.

Insulation

• Insulation can make a huge difference in both keeping your house warm and keeping your bills down. 25% of heat is lost through lack of proper roof and loft insulation [1], so insulating these areas can make a huge difference to the warmth of your house. Insulation can save families between £45 and £110 a year [2].
• Wall and floor insulation can also help to save energy and money. Depending on when the property was built, solid or cavity wall insulation can be installed – external walls on houses built before 1920 are likely to be solid walls, which allow more heat to pass through than cavity walls, which are usually found in properties built after 1920.

Windows

• Energy-efficient glazing can help to reduce the amount of heat lost through windows during the cold winter months. Double glazing works by having two panes of glass with a gap between them, usually 16mm, which stops heat from escaping. Triple glazed windows have an extra pane of glass.
• By upgrading from single to double glazing windows you could save between £40 and £175 a year, depending on property size, and the energy rating of the windows [3].

Heating systems

• Have a look at the condition of your heating system – is it performing as it should? Does it need fixing or parts replaced to make sure it’s working as best it can? Newer more efficient models require an initial upfront cost, but save both energy and money over time.
• Set timers so that heat is produced only when you need it, rather than being on all day.

Radiators

• Don’t heat empty rooms! Make sure radiators are turned down in rooms used less often – this reduces your energy use and bills.
• Make sure not to cover your radiators. This stops heat spreading to the rest of the room, and also makes the radiators work harder.

Curtains

• Keep curtains open during the day to let sunlight in and close at dusk to stop heating escaping. Make sure only windows are covered, and not radiators.

Extra Layers

• Before central heating existed the best way (and still one of the best ways) to stay warm was to cover yourself with extra layers – blankets, jumpers and thick socks can help you to stay warmer during the cold winter months without having to turn up the heating!

References

[1] National Insulation Association. Insulation: The Facts and Figures. 2011. http://www.nia-uk.org/media-and-information/uploads%5Cnews%5Cid146%5C20110404_Insulation_Facts_and_Figures_final.pdf

[2] National Insulation Association. Loft Insulation. 2014. http://www.nia-uk.org/householder/index.php?page=loft-insulation

[3] Energy saving trust. Windows. 2014. http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/scotland/Insulation/Windows

An article by Page (2011), presented the idea that there may be a ‘tipping point’ or threshold where there is an abrupt change, a possible result could be a shift from one state to another, and for example freezing point is the threshold between ice and water (Hassol, 2004). There is previous evidence of tipping points related to climate being passed, for example the collapsing of the West Antarctic ice sheet, which raised sea levels by 3 meters (Page, 2011), or the 5ºC drop in temperature over Greenland during the period of warming after the last ice age (Hassol, 2004). It is thought that this drop in temperature was due to crossing the threshold of the thermohaline system, resulting in a reduction of currents to Europe and the Arctic as well as impacting temperature on the entire globe (Hassol, 2004). This is very similar, although on a much larger scale, to the Great Salinity Anomaly event in the late 1960s which was thought to have been caused by a change in salinity levels due to a large input of freshwater from the ice in the Arctic Ocean (Schmitt, 1996). Worryingly there is still controversy as to how this event was even was caused, as well as the exact effects of it. This means that if it were to happen again, we will be unprepared.

But will a large scale event like the collapsing of the West Antarctic ice sheet or the Great Salinity Anomaly happen now?

There is increasing worry that something will, and an event like this could cause catastrophic damage. The threat of global warming lies with the increasing temperatures brought about mainly due to human influence, but also natural fluctuations, for example the 2 ºC increase in temperature which followed the last ice age (Jackson and Jackson, 2000). We are already experiencing changes such as the melting of the polar ice caps, with NASA and NOAA data showing roughly a million square miles of sea ice has already disappeared in the last three decades from the Arctic alone (NRDC, 2007). This in turn will have its own direct effects, such as an increase in sea level with an estimated half a metre rise during this century (Holden, 2008; Hassol, 2004), as well as an increase in the albedo effect (The ice reflects around 85-90% of the sun’s rays back out of the atmosphere, keeping the planet cool, however if the ice melts the ocean which only reflects 10%, causing the absorption of the rays which heats the earth (Hassol, 2004)).

By looking into the past we can predict the future consequences of a warming climate, however there are still areas we do not understand and it is these that we will be unprepared for if they occur. The major historical events are linked together with the passing of a tipping point, be it temperature or salinity for example, and so if the threshold is not known we cannot predict if or perhaps when it will happen in the future.

References

Hassol, S.J, (2004), Impacts of a warming Arctic, Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA), Cambridge University Press, Canada

Holden, J, (2008), ‘Quaternary environmental change’ in Holden, J, (ed) ‘An introduction to physical geography and the environment’, Second edition, Pearsons, Essex, p572

Jackson, A.R.W, Jackson, J.M (2000), Environmental Science: The Natural Environment and Human Impact, 2^nd edition, Essex, p349

Natural Resources Defence Council (NRDC), (2007), Climate Facts: Polar Bears on Thin Ice, http://www.nrdc.org/globalwarming/thinice.pdf [01/11/2011]

Page, M.L, (2011), Climate change: What we do know – and what we don’t, New Scientist, 212, 2835, p36 – 43

Schmitt, R.W, (1996), If Rain Falls on the Ocean – Does it Make a Sound? Fresh Water’s Effect on Ocean Phenomena, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, http://www.whoi.edu/oceanus/viewArticle.do?id=2344 [01/11/2011]

As winters are getting colder and summers come with record high temperatures, we may think more and more about the comfort of a well-insulated and well-ventillated house.

Today, many companies are working on incorporating simple and easy techniques in order to achieve the best ventilation and insulation for more sustainable buildings.

As an example, cooling of spaces can consume a significant amount of energy and there are a number of innovations already available that can replace traditional air-conditioning systems.

Recent Ashden-Award-winner Monodraught has developed a low-energy cooling and ventilation system called COOLPHASE. It utilises the features of so-called Phase Change Materials (PCM), which can absorb thermal energy from their environment and hence enable the cooling of the room. Running costs of the system are said to be 90 per cent lower than traditional methods, and it’s very efficient as at night it re-charges the PCMs inside the equipment.

Natural ventilation is also a hot topic. The Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers even has a special interest group focusing on this area. One of the companies working in this field is Breathing Buildings, offering a range of natural ventilation products, including the e-stack system that keeps air exchange between the interior and the outside to a minimum in cold conditions, while in warmer weather it increases the ventilation rate to avoice overheating.

A significant number of houses are not insulated, and in these about 45 per cent of heat loss is through the walls. Hence insulation could mean a serious tool in reducing wasted energy levels and lowering bills.

For some, home insulation is equal to mess and inconvenience due to the construction work, while sometimes internal insulation can’t be done at all because of planning restrictions. These issues have been addressed by the new insulation technology called WHISCERS, developed by United House and Sustainable Energy Academy for houses with solid walls. The process is simple: dimensions of walls are mapped with a laser scanner, then insulation boards are cut exactly to measure and delivered to the location. This can happen within only 24 hours. When the boards are there, these are installed quickly and with minimum mess, so the life of residents is hardly disrupted.

These are only a few of the solutions that are already available for making buildings more sustainable. With the exponentially growing number of new technologies and innovations it is only a question of the willingness of residents to improve their homes – and save money.