Surveyors in Nigeria have opined that the buildings construction sector should be a primary target for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions mitigation efforts, in line with global climate ambitions set out in the Paris Agreement.
The president, Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyors (NIQS), Alhaji Mohammed Tor, made this known during a press conference to herald the institute’s biennial conference/general meeting on ‘Climate change and global disasters: Developing sustainable infrastructure amidst declining economic resources’ billed to hold between November 17 and 20, 2021, in Abuja.
Tor quoted a recent report by Global Status, which revealed that buildings and construction jointly account for 36 per cent of global final energy use and 39 per cent of energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. The report suggested that the intensity per square meter (m2) of the global buildings sector needs to improve on average by 30 per cent by 2030 to be in line with global climate ambitions set out in the Paris Agreement.
The NIQS president averred that the concept of sustainable infrastructure development refers to equipment and systems designed to meet the essential services required by the populace such as roads, bridges, telephone pylons, power generations etc. while recognising the principles of sustainable development.
He pointed out that this means developing environmentally friendly, economically responsive and financially-attractive infrastructure built with consideration of social factors and institutional sustainability.
The president urged the Nigerian government to consider moving away from expensive, unreliable and highly polluting carbon-intensive development to a more climate-resilient society through low carbon growth, with the right financing in place.
He further said the institute has made a giant stride to invite industry professionals knowledgeable in the concept of sustainable development
Tor said topics to be discussed would include the imperatives of a government policy framework for the implementation of sustainable infrastructure development in Nigeria; Roles of stakeholders in the implementation of sustainable infrastructure in Nigeria; Accessing green bonds and environmental, social and governance (ESG) investment funds; Challenges to implementation of sustainable construction practices; Achieving net-zero carbon emissions in city planning and zoning for sustainable development; Strategies for achieving carbon reduction in design of sustainable infrastructure projects; the place of digital technologies in the implementation of carbon reduction in construction; Cost implications of adopting carbon reduction in the design of sustainable infrastructure projects; and the quantity surveyors roles in sustainable infrastructure development amongst others.
