OVERVIEW
The UK Government has committed itself to lead by example on Sustainable Development. On the global stage, it has positioned itself at the centre of the policy debate on many elements of the Sustainable Development agenda, most visibly on Climate Change.
At the national level, the UK Sustainable Development Strategy established in 2005, 'Securing the Future', sets out a long-term vision for Sustainable Development in the UK, including a package of challenging targets and commitments, some of which were highlighted in our conference Carbon Reduction 09 – Delivering a Low Carbon Economy on the 14th May 2009.
Meeting these goals requires concerted action from government, business and consumers. But the Government believes that this cannot be achieved for the country as a whole, if it is not prepared to lead the way.
'Securing the Future' committed Government to review its targets for the sustainable operational performance of its Estate (SOGE) and Sustainable Development was embedded in the heart of every business process across the public sector.
In its own words, "a sustainably managed estate" is one that has:
- Modern, resource efficient, low energy usage buildings;
- Well conserved and managed land;
- Efficient use of space and ways of working; and
- The principles of Sustainable Development embedded into working practices.
This Strategy contained 4 priority areas:
- Climate Change and Energy
- Natural resource protection
- Sustainable Communities
- Sustainable Consumption and Production
'The 7th Annual Sustainable Development in Government (SDiG) Review', covering the financial year 2007-8, revealed that the Government as a whole is on track or better in all major target areas, except carbon emissions from offices and increasing the proportion of energy from combined heat and power (CHP) and renewables:
- A decrease of 6.3 per cent in carbon emissions from offices since the baseline year. This is an improvement of 2.3 per cent from last year. However, government is still not on track to meet the 2010-11, target of a 12.5 per cent decrease, and the rate of reduction still needs to be accelerated to meet the SOGE target.
- Good progress against the renewables target with 22 per cent of electricity derived from renewable sources. However, government is performing less well than last year, when 28.3 per cent of electricity was derived from renewable sources.
- Some progress against the CHP target with a total of 8.7 per cent of electricity derived from CHP, compared to last year's 5.8 per cent. However, government is still not on track to source at least 15 per cent of electricity from Combined Heat and Power (CHP) by 2010.
- Figures continue to show poor performance against the BREEAM commitment, with only 42 per cent of total projects (new build and major refurbishments) achieving the required standard. However, this is up significantly from last year, when only 8 per cent of total projects achieved the required standard
The newly established Department for Energy and Climate Change now has a clear remit as the lead Department for energy and climate change policy.
The latest consultation strategy driving this remit to be launched by DECC is the 'Heat & Energy Saving' Strategy, which sets out an aim for emissions from all existing buildings to be approaching zero by 2050. This means increasing the scope and ambition of energy saving measures, as well as decarbonising the generation and supply of heat.
With this Strategy, all areas of government are engaged in order to ensure the necessary changes in behaviour occur and Sustainable Development is at the heart of every business process and procurement decision - providing the foundations for delivery of SOGE targets specifically related to the decarbonisation of heat and energy across the Government Estate.
The Office of Government Commerce and the new Centre of Expertise for Sustainable Procurement (CESP established 2008) published the 'Sustainable Procurement and Operations of the Government Estate Delivery Plan' in August 2008, in order to assist all Government Departments with their sustainable procurement action plan (SPAP) objectives. Simultaneously, encouraging industry to provide best value in meeting the needs of the sector, creating innovative sustainable products and services by harnessing the collaborative purchasing power of the sector.
In December 2008, the CESP published the first of its six-monthly Updates on progress against the Delivery Plan.
With every vertical of government currently working towards delivering/developing their own contributions for saving carbon, improving energy efficiency, and creating a more sustainable estate, there is a real need for communication, knowledge transfer, and best practice sharing between all Departments.
Heat & Energy '09 – SOGE – Leading the 'Shift' to a Low Carbon Economy Conference and Exhibition will begin with the morning session giving an overview of policy and strategy now being implemented and the afternoon session will then examine best practice and progress in three key priority areas: the NHS, Building Schools for the Future and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
A crucially timed event, Heat & Energy '09 – SOGE – Leading the 'Shift' to a Low Carbon Economy will explore both current and future strategies for sustainable operations on the Government Estate, focusing on the problem areas of heat and energy saving and carbon reduction across key Departments, whilst highlighting the shared priorities on which every vertical must deliver.
