Sophie Zimmermann 15/03/2014

Sustainability in the Built Environment

Current Global Economy and Building Procurement
The Brundtland Commission, published in 1987, gave both sustainable development, as well as
economic growth substantial importance and placed these at the forefront of the report (Dresner, 2008,
76). However, economists and environmentalists have been unable to find a compromise and continue
to argue about economic growth versus environmental protection. This ongoing debate, combined with
other factors, has severely hindered our progress towards sustainability.
The current economy prioritises profit maximisation and efficiency and systems have been refined over
the years to enhance capital gains. As it is difficult to unpack the term sustainability and sustainable
development, it is even more difficult to try and implement such concepts, let alone attempt to alter a
functioning economic system. As a result, environmentalists have turned to implementable systems
which define a clear set of guidelines which are punishable (normally financially). These include
ecotaxes, Ecological Tax Reform (ETR) and emissions trading. ETR and emissions trading are alternative
ways to attempt to exploit market forces to counter the tendency of existing market forces to squander
resources (Dresner, 2008, 105). However, economic growth makes these challenging ideas even more
difficult to achieve (Dresner, 2008, 106).
Procurement describes the activities undertaken by a client interested in starting a building project
(Joints Contract Tribunal,2014). The cost and construction time period are of great importance to the
client, as a projects requires considerable financial investment. External factors such as the economy,
commercial, technological, political, social and legal factors (Davis,2008) influence the client and the
project greatly during its lifecycle. As a result, a system has been developed where clients are exposed
to a tender process where, commonly, the cheapest price gets the job. However, the FIDIC (2001) has
linked this tender process to the deterioration in construction quality in both developed and developing
countries. It has resulted in construction projects commencing with tight budgets, inadequate
supervision, poor materials and poor workmanship. The consequences have resulted in inefficient use of
natural resources and the implementation of unsustainable designs. Green considerations are
overlooked for their financial implications.
Therefore intentions of sustainability require a change in our approach to development. The concepts
and ideas mentioned earlier such as ETR etc. have not yet been optimally developed and will hopefully
be refined over the next few years. These concepts sound much more plausible than the green
economics scheme, as they work together with our current economics model. Instead of taking a step
back in time, technologies and skills have yet to be developed and advanced, so as to compensate for
the loss of natural resources and not impact the environment negatively upstream and downstream. It
may be costly from the start, but over time we will reap the rewards of sustainability. For example, with
the drastic increase in petrol prices, awareness was created, technological innovations have been
developed, and people can now buy more fuel efficient cars.
I believe that in order to accelerate the progress of sustainability we must implement government level
sanctions which impose either incentives or financial repercussions for unsustainable designs.
Noncompliance fines could be used to fund eco-friendly developments. Additionally, this will create a
demand for environmentally friendly systems which can be achieved through technological advances
and innovations. This will ultimately reduce the financial burden of a sustainable design and therefore
encourage a greater interest in a sustainable approach to building procurement.
Sophie Zimmermann 15/03/2014

References:
1. Dresner, S (2008) The Principles of Sustainability. 2
nd
Rev Ed. Earthscan Ltd, pp.69-114

2. The Joint Contracts Tribunal (2014), London,

Available at: http://www.jctltd.co.uk/procurement.aspx[Accessed 15 March 2014].

3. Davis, P (2008), Report: Building Procurement Methods, CRC Construction Innovation
Available at: http://www.construction-
innovation.info/images/pdfs/Research_library/ResearchLibraryC/2006-034-C/reports/Report_-
_Building_Procurement_Methods.pdf [Accessed 15 March 2014].
4. International Federation of Consulting Engineers (2001), Geneva,

Available at: http://fidic.org/node/751 [Access 16 March 2014].