Green Construction Board launches new infrastructure practitioner network

Riley David
07 April 2015

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Sustainability

Anglian Water’s carbon manager David Riley explains the new Economic Infrastructure Carbon Practitioner Network.

Throughout the many interviews completed by Mark Enzer, lead author of the Infrastructure Carbon Review (ICR), one message became clear – there was little opportunity for carbon practitioners in economic infrastructure to meet and share ideas.  

In response to this demand, on the 29th April the ‘Economic Infrastructure Carbon Practitioner Network will be launched at the BIS conference centre in London.

"At present there are a number of lobbying, policy or sector groups doing great work in raising awareness of the issues surrounding carbon reduction and its link to reducing cost. But they don’t always meet the needs of practitioners across a fully aligned value chain."

And while the Green Construction Board and Infrastructure Carbon Review are aimed specifically at influencing the industry’s leaders, this new network is targeted directly at the practitioners – the individuals who influence or are directly involved with developing and implementing capital and operational carbon measurement and reduction strategies.

At present there are a number of lobbying, policy or sector groups doing great work in raising awareness of the issues surrounding carbon reduction and its link to reducing cost. But they don’t always meet the needs of practitioners across a fully aligned value chain.

To meet this need, the key aims of the network will be to share knowledge and learning, foster best practice and encourage a consistent approach. 

There are a number of actions the network will focus on initially, including:

• Promoting case studies for Fundamental Truths. The fundamental truths of low carbon construction was developed and launched by the Green Construction Board Infrastructure Working Group in 2013. This simple interactive tool provides the user with the streams of activity required to deliver low carbon solutions, backed up with case studies from a range of organisations covering a variety of sectors.

• Undertaking presentations and workshops to promote ‘reduce carbon reduce cost’ awareness.

In addition the group will contribute to and challenge the drafting of a new ‘Carbon Measurement and Management in Economic Infrastructure PAS’, for which work has now commenced. 

The first meeting of the Economic Infrastructure Carbon Practitioner Network will be at 10am on the 29th April at the BIS conference centre at 1 Victoria Street, London.

This follows work by the Green Construction Board Infrastructure Working Group last year which released a tender through the Construction Industry Council for an organisation to develop and author the PAS together with BSI. 

In March, a combined bid from Mott MacDonald and Arup was successful in being awarded the contract to draft the PAS, the purpose of which is to define best practice and provide consistency in reducing carbon and reducing cost for carbon practitioners. 

The network will have the opportunity to consult on the PAS from it’s earliest development and provide feedback. 

If you are interested in joining the ‘Economic Infrastructure Carbon Practitioner Network’ and attending the first meeting to contribute to any of these issues then please contact me at Anglian Water (driley3@anglianwater.co.uk) or Mark Enzer, Group Practice Manager at Mott MacDonald (Mark.Enzer@mottmac.com).

The first meeting of the network will be at 10am on the 29th April at the BIS conference centre at 1 Victoria Street, London.

David Riley is Carbon Manager at Anglian Water and a member of the GCB Infrastructure Working Group

For more information on low carbon go to http://www.infrastructure-intelligence.com/environment-hub