According to the 2020 Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction released by Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction (GlobalABC), the Building & Construction sector accounted for 38% of CO2 emissions, and the CO2 emission increased to 9.95 GtCO2 (gigatonnes of carbon dioxide) in 2019.
i.This is the 5th Edition of the Annual Report.
ii.GlobalABC was launched at COP21 (2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference) and is hosted by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
Key points:
i.The increase in emissions from the buildings sector is due to usage of coal, oil and natural gas for heating and cooking.
ii.The electricity consumption in the Building sector represents 55% of the Global electricity consumption.
iii.The report has stated that in order to achieve net Zero Carbon Building stock by 2050 Direct Building CO2 emissions need to halve by 2030.
iv.COVID-19 has caused construction activities to drop by 10-25% compared to 2019.
v.The International Energy Agency (IEA) has estimated that due to the Pandemic the Global Energy demand and CO2 emission have declined by 5% and 7%.
Impact of COVID-19 on Construction Sector:
i.Canada recorded a slowdown of 7%, Germany recorded 4.4% & Malaysia recorded 7.7% in the Construction sector compared to the 2019 levels.
ii.India recorded a slowdown of 2.2 %.
Regarding India:
i.The report highlighted India’s updation of Energy Efficiency Standards for a wide range of domestic appliances between 2018 & 2020. It included air conditioners, refrigerators, tubular fluorescent lamps and washing machines.
ii.It also highlighted the state law of Himachal Pradesh – Energy Conservation Building Code 2018 to reduce energy demand from buildings by 30%.
iii.Indian Cooling Action Plan introduced in 2019 aims to reduce cooling energy demand by 25-40% by 2037. Under the Cooling Action Plan 100, 000 technicians would be trained and certified to achieve the objective.
iv.The energy efficiency investment continued to increase at a moderate rate of 7% in India.
GlobalABC:
i.It is a voluntary partnership of national & local governments, inter-governmental organisations, businesses and networks.
ii.The common aim of the organization is zero-emission, efficient and resilient buildings and construction sector.
iii.Members – 130 members including 29 Countries.
About Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction (GlobalABC):
Head – Martina Otto
Headquarters (HQ) – Since it is hosted by UNEP, the HQ is situated in Paris, France
