Skanska’s Journey to Deep Green – a 2 degree solution
Jennifer Clark, Senior VP Green and Corporate Community Investment
As a leading green project developer and contractor committed to responsible business, we support a progressive agreement from Paris in December since it helps deliver long term legislative certainty and incentives to accelerate green investments, that will contribute to the wellbeing of future generations.
A rise in temperature will lead to more frequent extreme weather events such as hurricanes Katrina and Sandy. This and the threat of natural resources shortages will put new and higher demands on us and our industry. Our industry needs to integrate climate and natural resource considerations into business decisions and deliver more resilient buildings and infrastructure going forward. Together with our customers and supply chain, we must think anew in terms of materials and equipment selection.
And we are firmly part of the solution. By building green we can minimise the usage of depleting natural resources and help our customers to reduce carbon emissions and cost. Green building is a great business opportunity for us as it is right for the planet, attractive to clients, communities, and employees alike; and it creates value for our shareholders. The best part is that we don’t have to wait. Skanska already have the competence and technology we need to build green.
For example, Our Journey to Deep Green™ represents a new approach to construction and development and puts climate and resource considerations at the heart of our business. Skanska Deep Green projects are projects with a near zero environmental impact and demand a Net Zero or better Energy performance. These projects are typically delivered in close cooperation with our customers, municipalities and suppliers.
In the Swedish town Växjö we have designed, developed and constructed our first Deep Green residential neighbourhood, Solallén. The townhouses generate more energy than they are using over the course of a year thanks to its roof-mounted photovoltaic solar system and geothermal energy system. Therefore Skanska offers homebuyers a lower carbon footprint as well as significantly lower energy bills.
Our first Deep Green project in the UK is Bentley Works in Doncaster, our regional engineering manufacturing and servicing hub that has been redeveloped into a state-of-the-art facility designed to achieve net zero primary energy. The facility is equipped with a solar photovoltaic system and two biomass boilers that utilize waste biofuel which saves carbon and money. By using lifecycle optioneering, the team could identify the most optimal solutions that provide the best long-term value for money and environmental efficiencies throughout the lifecycle.
We hope that a successful COP21 will lead to tougher requirements and incentives that will reward those that have started their journey to deep green and incentivize others to follow.
This post is in the #100DaysToParis series from CISL.