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One issue that presents itself as a common problem to all the nations of the
world and indeed the global community is the issue of global
warming. Global warming is a process whereby the earths surface gets
warmer over a period of time due to the emission of greenhouse gases (e.g.
carbon dioxide). Over the past years, the issue of global warming has been
the main issue of global discourse and it is the main reason for the urgent
need of sustainable development. Strong scientific evidence has revealed
that the release of greenhouse gases e.g. CO2 into the atmosphere by
human activity is the primary cause of global warming (Frich et al., 2002).
The activities of the construction industry make use of almost half of all the
natural resources and also the through the manufacturing of materials and
operation of the building, the activities lead to numerous environmental
problems such as pollution, dust, production of waste, destruction of natural
habitats, noise and hazardous contamination (Berge, 2003; Griffith, 1994).
The activities carried out by the construction industry are a major contributor
to carbon emissions (Roaf et al., 2004). The carbon emissions which result in
global warming poses threats on the environment, people and the economy
and some of the impacts are already being witnessed globally (Traynor,
2008; Sawin, 2005).
Sustainable development can be defined as a development that meets the
needs of others without compromising the ability of future generations to
meet their own needs (WCED, 1987). Climate change which is as a result of
global warming is the main reason for sustainable development. Sustainable
development helps to reduce the risk to the environment posed by climate
change and also to improve the health and safety of human and animal life
while encouraging economic and social growth.
Today, sustainable construction which is an important component of
achieving sustainable development has been implemented in the
construction industry. Most importantly, sustainable construction has helped
to promote the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere
thereby reducing the impact of climate change. Sustainable construction has
led to the reduction in waste and pollution which helps to improve the quality
of life of people. The most important factors that affect productivity at work
are indoor air quality and comfort.
Also, other aspects of sustainable construction such as waste reduction,
energy efficiency and pollution prevention make economic sense because it
has led to cost savings, profitability and increased efficiency for the global
construction industry. The increase in energy efficiency through sustainable
construction has also brought about reduction in energy costs. For example,
REFERENCES
1.
Berge, B. (2003) The Ecology of Building Materials. Oxford: The
Architectural Press.
2.
De Valence, G. (2004) The Construction Sector System
Approach, CIB Publication No.293, CIB, Rotterdam.
3.
Frich, P., Alexander, L.V., Della-Marta, P., Gleason, B., Haylok, M.,
Klein Tank, A.M.G. & Peterson, T. (2002) Observed coherent changes in
climatic extremes during the second half of the twentieth century,
Climate Research, vol. 19, pp. 193-212.
4.
Griffith, A. (1994) Environmental Management in Construction.
London: The MacMillan Press Ltd.
5.
Roaf, S., Crichton, D. & Nicol, F. (2004) Adapting buildings and
cities for climate change. Oxford: Architectural Press.
6.
Sawin, J.L. (2005) Climate change poses greater security threat
than
terrorism,
Worldwatch
Institute.
[Online].
Available
at:http://www.worldwatch.org/node/77 (Accessed: 7 February 2013).
7.
Traynor, I. (2008), EU told to prepare for flood of climate change
migrants, The Guardian Newspaper. 10 March [Online]. Available
at:http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/mar/10/climatechange
.eu (Accessed: 7 February 2013).
8.
World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED)
(1987) Our Common Future, Oxford: Oxford University Press.