One of the construction industry’s leading environmental experts has said reports the government may dilute its green agenda substantially make it even more important that the sector decarbonises.

Rob Gill, managing director of specialist building industry carbon management consultancy Green Box Thinking was reacting to widespread speculation in recent days that the government may try to create a clear dividing line between itself and the opposition political parties by backtracking significantly on its environmental plans, including steps aimed at the UK achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Speculation about the government’s green intentions has also been fuelled by subsequent developments, including Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announcing a new phase in North Sea gas and oil exploration and production, with hundreds of licenses set to be issued next month and in subsequent rounds. Mr Sunak’s official spokesperson has also said that all aspects of environmental policy are now “under review”.

In addition, cabinet minister Michael Gove has confirmed the government will delay introducing new minimum energy efficiency standards for privately rented homes and postpone making manufacturers meet the cost of collecting and recycling packaging.

Mr Gill said: “The construction industry can make a massive contribution to carbon emission reduction at the level of individual developments and buildings. So, if these reports of imminent substantial government backsliding are shown to have held water, it becomes even more vital that the sector delivers the goods in this way, for the sake of future generations and the planet.”

He said construction professionals could achieve decarbonisation through measures such as being selective over their choice of building materials and managing on-site operations carefully during construction processes. They could also refurbish and retrofit existing developments using more environmentally friendly materials than were installed previously.

Mr Gill added: “Professionals can additionally buy carbon credits, to offset any emissions which can’t be eradicated. Each of these is essentially a permit authorising a building to emit a ton of carbon, because the price paid for it nullifies the harmful effect by being invested in a project that delivers environmental benefits.”

The built environment supplies almost 40 per cent of all worldwide carbon emissions – making it easily the biggest single source of them – through a combination of embodied and operational emissions.

Embodied emissions are those locked-in during the construction process and comprise about 11 per cent of global outflows. Operational emissions are those generated during developments’ day-to-day running and account for around 28 per cent of worldwide carbon discharges.

Mr Gill said: “Speculation about the government’s intentions regarding the green agenda followed significant criticism in recent weeks of its environmental record since Mr Sunak became Prime Minister last October. Among those to have publicly voiced concerns were: Friends of COP 26, a group of leading experts set up to support the United Nations climate conference in Glasgow during November 2021; over 100 leading British businesses; the Climate Change Committee, a group of independent government advisers; and Lord Zac Goldsmith, who resigned as international climate minister at the Foreign Office, saying Mr Sunak was ‘simply uninterested’ in the environment.

“These criticisms followed developments such as the government giving the go-ahead for a new deep shaft coking coal mine in Whitehaven, Cumbria, and apparently delaying loosening the planning system for new onshore wind farms.”

Green Box Thinking was set-up last year by Mr Gill, who previously founded and headed Yonder, one of the UK’s leading building physics engineering consultancies. Green Box Thinking is a team of expert consultants who advise and provide practical help to construction industry companies on all aspects of carbon emission management, including targeting, verification and the obtaining of carbon credits.