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It’s Time to Get Serious About Net Carbon Zero Homes

Most climate experts believe we are nearing crisis point with global temperatures. Ocean temperatures, for example, are at record levels, which will fuel more extreme weather events. This may also mean we have passed the stage where net zero carbon building can remain a long-term goal or a market niche – the need for change is urgent.

Building and heating homes is a major contributor to carbon emissions. 14% of the UK’s carbon emissions are created by domestic heating. In the meantime, we have to continue building because the UK has a housing shortage that cannot be ignored. Hundreds of thousands of new homes each year could add to the climate problem, or they could just be part of the solution.

A Matter of Choice

The point is that we have a choice. We know how to build homes that are better insulated and easier to heat. We also know how to build homes that consume less energy in construction and can lock up atmospheric carbon in their fabric. Best of all, this needn’t come with a cost penalty thanks to Modern Methods of Construction (MMC).

It’s time to be more radical and ambitious – particularly where projects are supported by public money and targeted at the affordable and homes for social rent markets. We can’t afford to avoid the question of how these new homes should be built to ensure there is the lowest possible impact in terms of net carbon emissions.

A Systemised Solution

Rising to this challenge, Osborne and Innovaré have developed a Systemised Housing solution. The solution uses MMC and standardised design templates to reduce construction times and costs. The homes are factory-built using SIPs, which offer exceptional and proven levels of thermal insulation. The sustainably sourced timber used in SIP construction also sequesters large amounts of atmospheric carbon.

The UK can make a significant difference to the environmental impact of new homes. We don’t have to invent new methods or technologies to achieve this, we just have to use what’s already available.

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