SUSTAINABLE DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION POLICY APPROVED BY CAMDEN COUNCIL

16 March 2007

Making existing buildings and future construction projects more environmentally friendly are the aims of a new policy approved by Camden Council this week.

Under its new Sustainable Design and Construction Policy, the council has committed to consider and assess the environmental impact of the construction, refurbishment and landscaping work it manages – at all stages. This means right through from the early phases of design to the eventual disposal of building materials.

The principles that have been agreed, and to which the council will work in more detail over the coming months and years, include:

• Minimising energy consumption and CO2 emissions when constructing, refurbishing and using buildings – for example maximizing the use of renewable energy technologies
• Auditing all council buildings to see how environmentally friendly and energy efficient they currently are – then prioritising work to make improvements
• Choosing sustainable construction options, for example green roofs – wherever they are the same or lower in cost than conventional methods
• Designing buildings to produce minimum waste throughout their lifecycle, from construction through to eventual demolition
• Using recycled, sustainably-produced and reusable materials for building and landscaping – for example as with the council housing department’s current use of Forest Stewardship Council timber
• Cutting water consumption in new and existing buildings and their grounds – for example by using technologies such as sustainable drainage systems
• Using procurement procedures that ensure more consultants and contractors have expertise in sustainable building and landscape design and construction
• Using sustainable design and planting methods for all council landscaping works – for example as with previous council parks schemes like Waterlow Park’s rockery and the planting at Cumberland Market

Sustainability will also be a feature of the council’s forthcoming community strategy, Camden Together, which sets out what kind of place the council and its partners want Camden to be by 2012.

Cllr Mike Greene, Executive Member for Environment, Camden Council, said:

“With this policy we want to lead by example in making our existing buildings more environmentally friendly, and ensuring that any future building, maintenance or landscaping work is done in as sustainable a way as possible.”

The policy was approved by the council’s Executive committee on 14 March 2007. To read the full report visit www.camden.gov.uk

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