In September 2018 the World Green Building Council (WGBC) launched a global initiative called “Advancing Net Zero” to promote and accelerate the development of net zero carbon buildings to 100% by 2050 for all new and existing buildings.
In line with the South African National Climate Change Response Policy and National Development Plan (Frankson, 2018) South Africa implemented a carbon tax from 1 June 2019 which effectively penalises businesses and individuals that exceed their carbon budget with higher tax rates.
As a result, businesses are having to re-evaluate any carbon intensive practices which form part of their business practice, and hopefully provide alternative energy consumption methods which don’t negatively impact their bottom line.
To assist businesses to assess, quantify and certify their goal of reducing energy consumption, the Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA) provided goal-specific areas of the built environment to target, these being:
Tried and tested passive technologies such as prevailing breezes, direct and indirect insolation, solar heating, use of natural bodies of water, embodied low temperatures of the earth, shading and the use of built thermal mass would typically be incorporated into the building designs to reduce their net impact on the environment.
Due to the greater upfront cost of incorporating net zero technologies into buildings, these technologies need to be assessed and integrated into building designs from the outset rather than incurring extra-over costs to retro-fit these later.
Over the long term though, businesses and individuals would reap the benefits of embracing a net zero stance, such as:
The above benefits are largely practical and commercial by nature, but there is also the satisfaction of knowing that by achieving net zero status you are reducing your personal environmental impact as a business or individual and contributing to reducing global emissions, which benefits everyone in the long run.