SBE19 - the Sustainable Built Environment Conference November 21-22 is the second International event as part of the 2019 International Sustainable Built Environment conference series convened under the auspices of the five international organizations: iiSBE, CIB, UNEP-SBCI, and FIDIC.
Read MoreWith the recent spate of buildings collapsing around Malta, there has been a hiatus in new rules and regulations, seemingly - according to the factions involved, that are ineffective, unenforced, and, according to the developers, causing extra costs and with the threat of a slowing down of the otherwise expanding construction industry.
Read MoreOver the past 20 years, the building industry has systematically reduced design and construction costs as building codes around the globe become stricter, supply chains for green materials and technologies reach maturation and the design profession becomes more dexterous at delivering cost-effective green building design.
Read MoreAs the crisis deepens as to the disposal of construction waste in Malta, the case grows for the argument towards reuse and recycling towards a more sustainable end product. The latest Government solution, with a proposal to dispose of construction waste in the marine environment – should not even be considered as any sort of optional solution.
Read MoreAssessing and demonstrating compliance of buildings, building designs and building projects with environmental, social and economic objectives is becoming increasingly important to support resource conservation, towards sustainable development.
Read MoreWith urban density and rising rent prices firmly on top of the Maltese agenda, now’s the time when creativity and good design can help to solve some very real problems that the those wishing to rent anywhere in the islands are facing.
Read MoreMalta has topped the list of EU countries whose population has reported being exposed to pollution, figures released by Eurostat (2019) which recorded “by far the highest share of its population reporting that they had been exposed to pollution, grime or other environmental problem”. [1]
Read MoreCement is the source of an estimated 8 percent of the world's carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. If the cement industry were a country, it would be the third largest emitter in the world - behind China and the US. It contributes more CO2 than aviation fuel (2.5 percent) and is not far behind the global agriculture business (12 percent) [1].
Read MoreA World Bank Report, ‘Integrating Green and Grey” (2018) sets out the case for integrating ‘green and grey’ in terms of the setting today of climate change and of meeting United Nations Sustainable Development Goals as framework.
Read MoreAs rent in Malta goes up and up, and first time buyer’s capabilities of buying their first home becomes less and less tangible, is there a solution for the future in container homes? Referred to briefly in an earlier article about tiny homes, we talk more in detail on the subject of shipping containers as a realistic option.
Read MoreCurrently most industrial systems are designed around a linear model, one with a definite beginning where materials are received and an end where components leave a production line. The same is true of the construction industry; raw materials are collected, processed into building materials or components which are incorporated into buildings, which inhabited, altered and at the end of their useful lives, demolished.
Read MoreReading a paper on material waste in the construction industry in UAE from 2011, by Al-Hajj and Hamani, I was struck by the similarity in attitudes between the two countries – between the UAE then and Malta now – regarding waste in the construction industry.
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