The case in summary: – For the second year in a row, the construction industry has been required to keep climate accounts, but no one is collecting the figures. – The construction industry is responsible for around 16 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in Norway, with production and transport of material as the biggest source of emissions. – There is frustration in the construction industry about doing paperwork without having anyone to report to. – Climate and Environment Minister Andreas Bjelland Eriksen has announced that he will put the construction and construction industry on an “emission shed”. – The initiative from the government came after input from the construction industry , which has called for stricter requirements. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAI. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. Summer is exhausted and a little tired of itself at Skudeløken in Førde, but there is activity on parts of the plot. Here, 270 apartments will be built in what will become a new district in Sunnfjord. In line with the accounting requirement that was introduced last summer, all emissions are accounted for. One year later, all discharges are therefore logged and submitted. Well, that’s not quite right. The discharge is being mapped, but so far there is no one to deliver the account to. At Skudeløken in Førde, 270 apartments are to be built. Video: Steinar Lote – The government is dragging its feet Impatient representatives on Løvebakken have therefore begun to grumble: – It is quite incredible that the government is delaying this when the industry itself wants to collect data, says Lars Haltbrekken (SV) to news. Last autumn, the Storting decided that the government must “ensure that the state collects and makes available the climate calculations for construction matters”. – The government is dragging its feet, says Norwegian Liberal representative Alfred Bjørlo. See the minister’s reply further down. The construction industry currently accounts for around 16 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions in Norway, and it is calculated that the savings potential is as large as the emissions from the car fleet. The biggest source of emissions from construction is the production and transport of material. The construction industry is required to deliver climate accounting. But at the other end, there is no one to accept the emissions figures. A climate requirement in building technical regulations has already been introduced in Denmark and France. Photo: Håkon Mosvold Larsen / NTB scanpix – We expect the government to pick up speed In the construction industry, the frustration of doing paperwork – without having anyone to report to – is possibly even greater than in the Storting. – We have high expectations that the government will pick up the pace, says Liv Kari Skudal Hansteen, who is director of the Association of Consulting Engineers (RIF). She says climate accounting for buildings is “absolutely crucial” if Norway is to achieve the goal of climate neutrality by 2050. – Openness about emissions from buildings will increase knowledge and awareness of climate emissions. This will lead to even more people being motivated to make good and empowering choices, she says. – Within five years, we will halve Norway’s emissions. Then we need stricter building regulations, says Katharina Bramslev, who is the day-to-day manager of Byggalliansen. See more reactions from the construction industry below. Nicolas Tourrenc Liv Kari Skudal Hansteen, as director of the Association of Consulting Engineers (RIF) Securing data from climate accounting for buildings will provide a better basis for reporting on progress in accordance with international obligations, such as the Paris Agreement. By including all phases in the life cycle of the building, from planning, design, material selection and construction to operation and reuse, it is possible to better and more easily identify where the largest emissions occur. SINTEF Kristin Fjellheim, Head of Research at Sintef Community It is important to start collecting and archiving greenhouse gas reports. It would be nice to start collecting data as soon as possible, but it must be clarified who will collect, operate and maintain a database overview, and also who will have access to data at what level. NHO Guro Hauge, director of sustainability and social policy in NHO Byggenæringen The introduction of proactive and concrete emission requirements in building technical regulations is important for the construction industry and for Norway to reach its climate targets. The construction industry is prepared for stricter requirements to be imposed on us, and we have been calling for such requirements for a long time. For the industry, it is a prerequisite that the requirements are gradually introduced according to a timetable that gives the companies opportunities for good adjustment. Oddmund Reisæter Haugen Alfred Bjørlo, VenstreThis is very unfortunate, but at the same time not unexpected. The government is constantly dragging its feet when it comes to climate and energy transformation of the construction industry. This is an industry that is really “in the lead” when it comes to the green transition and the desire to put an end to the waste of energy – but is experiencing a government that is simply not on board. Snorre Tønset / news Katharina Th. Bramslev, day-to-day manager of the Norwegian Building and Construction Authority, may very well introduce a requirement in technical regulations for a 20 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from material use with an associated escalation plan. We have long believed that we do not have time to collect more data to determine such a requirement. The industry already has reference values that can be used. Tormod Strand Frank Ivar Andersen, head of business policy and working life at Bygghändverk Noreg (BHN) From our side, greenhouse gas accounting is desirable. At the same time, there is a need to sort out and propose relevant measures linked to standardisation, reporting and information sharing. The industry is also keen that this be done properly and for this to work effectively in the entire value chain. Therefore, this will take some time. NTB Morten Andreas Meyer, general secretary of HuseierneWe are positive about all good initiatives, and know that the necessary green effort will come at a cost – for all of us. Nevertheless, it is the players in the industry themselves who must take action here. If it ends up that consumers alone have to foot the entire bill for climate measures in the construction industry, it is a very bad solution. NTNU Tore Kvande, NTNU It makes sense that experience figures are collected before any requirements are set for maximum greenhouse gas emissions from materials in the construction process. When a collection system for such experience numbers is drawn up, it is important that it is done in such a way that it does not entail additional work. We have plenty of small, well-intentioned actions that contribute to raising the construction cost. – This is work that should be finished before the election. On 13 August, Climate and Environment Minister Andreas Bjelland Eriksen announced that he would put the construction industry on an “emissions shed”. Quite concretely, the Ministry of Climate and the Environment proposes to make it possible for the municipalities to introduce climate requirements for private construction projects. Today, the municipalities can only set climate requirements in their own orders, and not for other building and construction activities. – This will contribute to increasing demand and the roll-out of emission-free solutions, says Climate and Environment Minister Andreas Bjelland Eriksen (Ap). Municipal and District Minister Erling Sande answers this – The Government will assess how requirements in building technical regulations can contribute to reducing the climate footprint from construction, and in 2024 has commissioned the Directorate for Building Quality to sort this out. The Directorate for Building Quality must also sort out and propose relevant measures linked to standardisation, reporting and sharing of information from building projects. Collection of data and further development of greenhouse gas calculations will be considered as part of this work. I will return to the Storting when the findings have been completed. On 13 August, Climate and Environment Minister Andreas Bjelland Eriksen announced that he would put the building and construction industry on an “emissions shed”. Now he has a papa perm. Photo: Javad Parsa / NTB The initiative from the government came after a series of input from the construction industry, which for a long time has called for stricter requirements from its “climate partner”. As late as the beginning of August, NHO construction industry and the Swedish Confederation of Trade Unions wrote a joint letter in which they asked the partner, i.e. the state, to get involved. – We ask that the ministry initiates a rapid investigation, it said. – This is work that should be completed before the election, and which will receive broad support from Norway’s largest mainland industry. Norway’s emission sources 1990–2023 Select year 19901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142 01520162017201820192020202120222023 Million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents? Press for explanation of CO₂ equivalents Extraction of oil and gas11.5 Go to news’s Climate Status Published 28.08.2024, at 06.03
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No one to report climate accounting to – news Vestland
