Building a New House? How to Make the Project More Environmentally-Friendly
Building a new house is an enormous undertaking. Whether you’re a self-builder or leading a construction business of new ranch homes, many factors are just as important as your satisfaction with the build.
Among these factors, sustainability stands out as a critical consideration. Across industries, there’s a growing emphasis on adopting eco-friendly practices to minimize environmental impact. This commitment to sustainability extends to knock down rebuild canberra projects, where efforts are made to reduce carbon footprints and maximize energy efficiency.
Moreover, many critical eyes are trained upon the property sector, looking for ways residences can be more sustainably built and managed. There are still important strides to be made here. While vital policies are now being implemented, those overseeing build projects should go the extra mile with their responsibilities.
So, if you’re building a house, how can you make that project more environmentally friendly? Explore some of our answers.
Start with Finances
Sustainability shortcomings are often blamed on a lack of financial resources. If you’re building a house, you must account for greener measures and reroute spending accordingly. For instance, instead of purchasing your own equipment, it may be more practical to hire an aerial lift rental and other equipment if you’re only going to use them once.
Some materials and services can be more expensive when constructing a greener home. Therefore, if financial factors cause concern, it’s best for the eco-friendly house building project to be otherwise straightforward. Complex designs can be pricier, and often what is sustainable is also simple.
If you’re a self-builder, think about the size of your property. Unfortunately, it’s highly unlikely you can oversee any project without at least a little bit of a carbon footprint. If you make sure the build is smaller in scale, it will undoubtedly have less of a negative environmental impact and keep running costs down on the project simultaneously.
Work with Sustainable Suppliers
Building projects of any type are never a solo endeavour. All the entities you work with should share your values around sustainability.
Mix on site concrete is a game-changer in the construction industry. It guarantees consistency, reduces waste, and is incredibly efficient. When I had a project in Dorset, I didn’t think twice and went straight to https://cartersconcrete.co.uk/. Their service was top-notch. If you need a green cement and concrete supplier, Hanson is working towards producing net zero carbon cement as early as 2027. It also considers its strides in safety, health, environment, energy, carbon reduction, quality, and responsible sourcing imperative to its success. By engaging with others like this concrete supplier, you can be confident that your project will be as eco-friendly as possible.
Working with others that prioritise sustainability can also inspire you. Eco-friendly measures are often perceived as inconvenient hurdles to clamber over clumsily, but efficient businesses perfectly showcase how achievable these higher aspirations are. Everything becomes more doable, and that energy can also reinvigorate other aspects of your projects.
It could also be a good idea to work with local businesses where possible. Doing that can help you cut down on transport emissions associated with your project.
Otherwise, revisit the budget and pick away at costs where you can. Account for scheduling delays too, and only redistribute money from nonessential areas of the project.
Overhaul Your Fleet
Of course, it’s not just supplier vehicles you should worry about. If you’re heading up a construction business with fleet vehicles at its disposal, making a few changes might be the best.
You could make sure that these vehicles are electric or use biodegradable fuel. If you can’t make these changes straightaway, you could also collaborate with drivers and pre-plan their routes to ensure they’re wasting as little fuel as possible.
It may be most cost-effective to lease electric vehicles rather than buy them outright. If you’re prepared to be flexible, running a sustainable operation becomes more realistic.
Remember, overhauling your fleet can be a process. So long as you’re setting greener targets over a prolonged period, any inch of progress your fleet makes to be eco-conscious is worth taking. Even monitoring the fuel your vehicles consume is enough if that’s all you’re presently capable of. Each time your fleet vehicles head to the house construction site, they can do so sustainably.
Manage Pollutants
There’s no wiggle room when managing pollution on a building project. It was only last May that the construction of new homes was halted in multiple areas due to concern for nearby nature reserves, wetlands, and rivers.
You’ll need to dispose of things like asbestos safely and securely as it is very hazardous to your health and linked to causing mesothelioma. Revisit your on-site waste management systems to see if measures need to be refined. Utilise dedicated software to help you streamline these processes and build your awareness of what needs doing. If everyone on the site pre-sorts waste, it can also generate a lot of savings. Ensure all your staff are brought up to speed on the latest measures.
Some measures go back to how you procure materials too. If you can secure silica-free abrasives, it can reduce the risk of any blasting measures. Pre-cut building materials will also help you avoid situations where you or workers could potentially pollute your build site.
Managing parts of the production off-site can also be a good idea. Pollutants and waste can be carefully managed and contained in a factory environment and leave your main build site much less hazardous. These facilities may also be better equipped to handle recycling measures.