SUSTAINABLE PARCTICES FOR FACILITIES MANAGERS

2.0 BUSINEESSS TOTAL CARBON FOOTPRINT 2.1 ABSTRACT Carbon footprint is one of the measure impact of human activities on our environment in terms of how much green house gases are produced. Carbon foot print is made up of two parts, the primary or direct foot print and secondary or indirect foot print. Primary or direct foot print consists of our daily use of cars planes and the burning fossil fuels. Secondary or indirect foot print is a CO2 emission from all the lifecycle of products we use, associated with the manufacturing and distributing of these products. Carbon footprint is mainly created from GHG which comprises of Co2, methane (CH4), CFCs and nitrous oxide. Carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere by the burning of solid waste, wood and wood products, and fossil fuels (oil, natural gas, and coal). Methane is emitted when organic waste decomposes, whether in landfills or in connection with livestock farming. Also, Methane emissions occur during the production and transport of fossil fuels. CFC-Chlorofluorocarbon is created by using refrigerant, gases, aerosol propellants, foam blowing agents, and from the solvent in the electronic industry Nitrous oxide emissions occurs during various agricultural and industrial processes and when solid waste or fossil fuels are burned. Figure 2.1 shows annual greenhouse gas emission by sector.

Fig A ( Source : Greenhouse_Gas_by_Sector.png, Author : Robert A. Rohde )

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SUSTAINABLE PARCTICES FOR FACILITIES MANAGERS

2.2 CRITICAL ANALYSIS 2.2.1 HOW A BUSINESS TOTAL CARBON FOOTPRINT IS MADE UP IN TERMS OF ITS ACTIVITIES, SERVICES, PRODUCTS AND ASSETS The UKs stock of 1.8m non-domestic buildings are responsible for around 18% of the total Co2 emission. Since our company is responsible for water, electricity, cleaning and maintenance of our building; it is important to evaluate the environmental impact caused by considering how a businesss carbon footprint is made up in terms of its activities, services, products and assets through the usage of water and electricity and the process of cleaning and maintenance.

2.2.1.1 ELECTRICITY (ENERGY) USAGE Electricity is an essential source to run every business and activity. Electricity is a vital need in setting up offices as it is needed for lighting, heating, ventilation & air conditioning, and to operate almost every office equipment. Energy costs form a significant portion of the total occupancy cost in all buildings. A study revealed that 45% of national primary energy is consumed by the building services in UK. Heating, ventilation & air conditioning (HVAC) and lighting are the main sources emitting Co2 in non-domestic buildings. Figure B, shows the carbon emission by different services in the UKs non-domestic buildings. This shows that 58% of carbon is emitted from heating, ventilation & cooling (HVAC), 23% of carbon is emitted from lighting and 8%, 4% & 3% of carbon are emitted from catering, hot water, and office equipment, respectively. Fig B, Carbon emissions by end use in the UKs non-domestic buildings, % ( Ref : CTC766 Carbon Trust )

3% 4% 4% 8% 47%

Heating Lighting Cooling and Ventilation Catering Hot Water Office Equipment

11%

23% Other

As HVAC, lighting & office equipment are the major part consuming electricity in office buildings; hereunder evaluating carrying out in terms of carbon emission.

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a)

HVAC In recent years, with the current weather changes, the winter is becoming colder and the summer warmer, for example the month of December 2010 in UK the coldest since 1910 while temperatures were rising during the summer and even spring and continuing till September, than to the global environmental effect. It is evident that one factor is affecting the other and vice versa. Hence all domestic and nondomestic building owners should start thinking seriously to keep the environment. It goes without saying that the more carbon is emitted (Fig-B) means the more energy is consumed by the non-domestic buildings through heating, ventilation & cooling (HVAC), and ultimately more money, resources, and efforts are spent. Environmental impact by HVAC System 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Any heat produces wasted energy. Poor control of humidity. Dust accumulation. Indoor and outdoor contaminant due to migration and infiltration. Dust or dirt ducts. Refrigerant leakage. Steam leakage from boilers.

b) LIGHT Lighting is another vital source required to run our daily business activities even during the day light due to the poor design of the natural lighting in mast of the buildings. Lighting consumes 19% of generated electricity and cost up to 40% of the companys total electricity bill and yet causes 23% emission of carbon (Fig-B). If at 100w bulb runs for 3 hours a day, this means 100 Kwh a year while running a 100w bulb for 100 hours emits the same quality of Co2 emitted by 1 gallon of gas. At least a combination of day light and electric light should be considered in order to reduce energy consumption in addition to the use of high efficiency bulbs, which uses about 25% of the electricity consumed by a normal bulb. Figure C illustrate the work rate against Ill luminance in terms of lighting and productivity.

Fig C, Lighting and Productivity ( Ref : CTV021 Carbon Trust )

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