Sustainability and environmental news in UK construction

‘Catastrophic failure’ on insulation schemes leads to calls for SFO probe

James Wilmore — Fri, 23 Jan 2026 12:49:35 +0000

MPs have called for the Serious Fraud Office to investigate after finding a “catastrophic failure” over government-backed insulation schemes. In a new 34-page report, the cross-party Public Accounts Committee (PAC) found that more than 30,000 homes had been left with defects due to failures under…

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Warm Homes Plan unveils retrofit competency review

Joshua Stein — Wed, 21 Jan 2026 13:08:39 +0000

New measures unveiled in the government's Warm Homes Plan (WHP) will see a review of a key competency standard for retrofit professionals and a boost in funding for training heat pump installers. The WHP, published on Wednesday, set out plans for a review to the…

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AI is turning Britain’s buildings into living systems

CN Contributor — Mon, 12 Jan 2026 11:50:08 +0000

Michael Murphy is head of information management and data analytics at Bam Imagine if your local hospital or school could sense when it’s too hot, adjust the temperature and even schedule its own maintenance. That future isn’t decades away. It’s already here. “This isn’t just…

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Balfour Beatty rolls out hydrogen engine-cleaning tech on rail plant

Colin Marrs — Wed, 03 Dec 2025 10:43:22 +0000

Balfour Beatty has become the first UK infrastructure firm to apply hydrogen-based engine cleaning technology to its rail-mounted plant. The contractor completed a year-long simulation of Engine Carbon Clean (ECC) on a compact tamping machine, achieving a 15.8 per cent cut in emissions. The firm…

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Why many sustainable office refurbs no longer add up

CN Contributor — Thu, 27 Nov 2025 09:58:02 +0000

Damien Clifford is a partner and co-owner of EthosEQ, a chartered quantity surveying practice I see the commercial realities of delivering sustainable buildings every day. The industry is being asked to meet ambitious Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) and energy performance certificate (EPC) targets at…

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Budget 2025: ‘Real relief’ as government shies away from single landfill tax rate

Joshua Stein — Wed, 26 Nov 2025 16:26:41 +0000

The construction industry has voiced relief over chancellor Rachel Reeves' Budget decision to retain two separate landfill tax rates after intensive lobbying. The move could save the government’s pledge to build 1.5 million houses, leading figures in the construction sector have said. Industry bigwigs said…

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Man arrested over ‘horrendous’ fly tipping

CN Contributor — Wed, 26 Nov 2025 12:42:22 +0000

A man has been arrested over the “horrendous” dumping of construction and other waste next to a river in Oxfordshire. It follows an investigation by the Environment Agency (EA) after huge mounds of waste materials were discovered next to the A34 close to Kidlington. The site…

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Sizewell nuclear concrete reuse project cuts emissions and costs

Colin Marrs — Fri, 21 Nov 2025 09:23:14 +0000

Crushed concrete from the decommissioned Sizewell A nuclear plant is being reused on the neighbouring Sizewell C project in Suffolk in a circular economy deal. Nuclear Restoration Services (NRS) demolished the Sizewell A turbine hall and processed more than 15,000 tonnes of concrete from the…

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Costain lands biodiversity studies at two UK airports

Ben Vogel — Thu, 20 Nov 2025 17:24:20 +0000

Costain has been appointed to carry out biodiversity surveys at Manchester Airport and East Midlands Airport as part of Manchester Airports Group’s (MAG) latest sustainability push. The work will involve developing baseline assessments across more than 1,500 hectares of land, covering grassland, scrubland, ponds and…

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UK steel bodies welcome COP30 decarbonisation agreement

CN Contributor — Tue, 18 Nov 2025 12:45:57 +0000

The UK’s steel industry has welcomed a new agreement which will see global producers adopt a common approach to the measurement of greenhouse gases (GHG) and classifications of low-carbon steel. Three major steel certification and standards bodies have signed up to the agreement at the…

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