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5 Int'l J.L. Built Env't 5 (2013)

handle is hein.journals/jppel5 and id is 1 raw text is: The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at www.emeraldinsight.com/1756-1450.htm Regulating sustainable Regulating sustainable construction in Europe construction An inquiry into the European Commission's harmonization attempts 5 Jeroen van der Heijden Australian National University, Canberra, Australia and University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, and Ellen van Bueren Deft University of Technology, Delt, The Netherlands Abstract Purpose - The purpose of this paper is first, to gain insight into how the European member states have addressed the concept of sustainability in their building regulatory frameworks; and second, to gain insight in the effects of harmonization attempts of these frameworks by the European Commission (EC). Design/methodology/approach - Data on the member states' building regulatory regimes were gathered using a survey questionnaire. The survey questionnaire addressed over 60 different aspects of sustainable construction that may, in various ways, be regulated by the member states. Findings - The data obtained show mixed results. Some aspects of sustainable construction show far-reaching homogeneity, whilst others do not. It appears that current EC directives have a positive effect on homogeneity of sustainable construction regulation throughout Europe. However, this does not provide a firm base to advise more directives, as these often appear a too resource-intensive tool to achieve sustainable construction in a timely fashion. Additional and complementary approaches to such directives are proposed. Originality/value - The paper presents an overview of how European member states have addressed various aspects of sustainable construction in their construction regulatory frameworks. This provides valuable insights for further studies on regulatory change, regulatory convergence and divergence, and policy outcomes related to sustainable construction in the European Union. Also, the study presents a number of approaches to achieve homogeneity that may complement earlier approaches taken by the EC. Keywords Europe, Building regulations, Construction works, Sustainable construction, Policy making, Regulation and enforcement, European Commission Paper type Research paper 1. Introduction The construction industry and the buildings it produces have a major negative impact on our ecological environment. In the European Union (EU), buildings account for roughly 40 per cent of all energy consumption and about 35 per cent of all greenhouse gases (EC, 2007). Battling climate change and having the targets of the Kyoto Protocol in mind, the European Commission (EC) has introduced and implemented a range of policies and International Journal of Law in the programmes to improve the environmental performance of its construction sector and its Built Environment built environment (for an overview, see WGBC, 2011). The most far-reaching attempts to 5. 2 do so are a range of directives aimed at harmonising the construction regulatory © Emerald Group Publishing Limited frameworks in EU member states. Such harmonisation serves a dual goal: on the one hand DOI 10.1108/17561451311312793

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