Tees Valley engineer Paula leads push for Government action on climate regulations

A Tees Valley engineer has signed off an open letter to Government ministers calling for it to turn rhetoric into regulations and introduce vital climate controls in construction.

Stockton-based Paula McMahon is chair of The Women’s Engineering Society climate emergency group, representing professionals in engineering and science sectors in the UK hoping to tackle issues related to climate change. 

And she hopes the letter and subsequent petition will draw attention to the need for the authorities to move faster when it comes to construction and engineering as climate tipping points continue to be passed.

The letter, sent to key ministers including Michael Gove, Theresa Coffey, Grant Shapps, Gillian Keegan as well as all shadow ministers asks the Government to act with urgency.

Among the changes called for are the need to support industry by: 

• supporting energy efficiency in homes and non-residential buildings,
• urgently creating the needed green jobs of the future,
• regulating whole life carbon,
• and improving infrastructure standards.

Paula said: “The current voluntary, bottom-up approach, needs strong legislative support to facilitate green design and the transition to net zero.

“I am delighted the WES Climate Emergency Group has taken the step to make real change through this letter. 

“We have provided the UK Government with tangible actionable ideas to support our engineering industry to tackle the climate crisis together.  

“This letter has already consolidated many organisations who support decisive action and a consistent strategic approach to enable us to deliver tangible outputs.”

Among those who have thrown their own weight behind the letter are a number of influential engineering and construction leaders and influencers including Keith Howells, the 2022-23 President of the  Institution of Civil Engineers, Neil Johnstone, President of the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation, Alison Nicholl, head of Constructing Excellence and Peter Egan of the Institution of Royal Engineers Sustainability Forum.

The Women’s Engineering Society – a charity formed more than 100 years ago – chose to release the letter on International Women’s Engineering Day, in the hope of reaching as wide an audience as possible with its plans to improve current practices.

The letter states: “We request a clear and consistent strategic approach which will embed Climate Change Committee recommendations into every new and updated policy document.

“Engineers and scientists are critical to fighting the climate emergency: we are the pioneers of innovation hence the front line of climate action. 

“Mr Sunak outlined the importance of innovation for achieving Net Zero yet engineers do not have supporting policies to drive change.

“We can provide examples of  where political will would enable the engineering sectors to deliver tangible outputs.”

Women in engineering call for Government to take control of climate goals – their main points:

The Women In Engineering open letter to Government ministers gives some practical examples of changes that should be looked at now, in order to dramatically scale up the engineering and construction sector’s contribution to combatting climate change.

It calls for rapid action to:

Regulate whole-life carbon

“The construction and buildings sector contributes 25% of total UK carbon emissions,” it points out.

“At COP26 the Government committed to achieving 68% reductions in carbon emissions by 2030. 

“However, there is little government guidance as to how these targets are to be met by the built environment industry. 

“The embodied carbon of buildings, and more generally construction, is not currently required to be assessed or controlled. 

“Project delivery does not consistently consider the full asset life and the carbon associated with the long-term operation and maintenance of buildings and infrastructure.

“This is leading to excessive and unnecessary material use which has significant impacts on global warming potential, human health, natural resource depletion and biodiversity loss.

“We ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities to urgently introduce the proposed Part Z Building Regulations to enable mandatory assessment of whole-life carbon and to establish embodied carbon limits of buildings. 

“We believe this is integral to achieving the ambitious but vital government targets.

“We ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero to mandate the alignment to and certification of all public and private sector authorities to PAS 2080: Carbon management in buildings and infrastructure 2023. 

“This practical specification and supporting guidance will support policy and assist in removing the status to optionally account for carbon within asset and project delivery.”

Ensure infrastructure standards are fit for the future

“The effects of climate change have been tangible to towns and cities across the UK.

“As engineering professionals, we are aware a consistent risk-based approach that puts in place mitigation and resilience measures, informed by climate science, is needed.

“We ask the Secretary of State for Transport and the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to invest in full updates of all infrastructure standards based on weather predictions in line with a minimum 3°C warming to ensure future infrastructure projects are climate resilient.”

Support energy efficiency in homes and non-residential buildings

“Around 18% of our annual national CO2 emissions come from existing homes which will still be standing in 2050.

“ 80% of 2050’s homes have already been built. 

“UK homes are causing our citizens undue financial stresses alongside significantly contributing to climate change. 

“To reduce carbon emissions in the energy sector, the government must urgently address energy efficiency in homes and non-residential buildings.

“Planning restriction policies and the cost of implementation is preventing real change. 

“This is coupled with the lack of retrofit installers able to deliver the plan at scale, and an absence of a plan of how to achieve EPC “C” rating by 2035 for existing homes.

“We ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero to urgently address the policy gap in owner-occupied homes and non-residential buildings and set a clear timeline of activities that align with the net zero targets.”

Facilitate the success of future green jobs

“To achieve 480,000 skilled well-paid green jobs by 2030 and facilitate new and expanding

industries we need a significant expansion in the existing workforce. 

“To create a just transition we can and should increase efforts to diversify: attract young girls, retain women, and address the needs of local communities who are currently dependent on the industries which are major contributors to the climate emergency.

“We ask the Secretary of State for Education to embed the recommendations from The Gender Pay Gap Report and the FTSE Women Leaders Review into the highly anticipated outputs from the Green Jobs Delivery Group.

“To summarise, we ask that the UK Government and all policymakers to act with urgency and put in place legislation to enable the engineering industry to build upon the work of scientific climate organisations to ensure a safe and just space for humanity.”