Sustainability has been a focus for some time at Cala, and we’ve already taken significant steps to reduce our environmental impact and help our customers live more sustainably, too.
In 2021 we launched a new Sustainability Strategy to provide a structured approach to achieving our ambitious targets. These include building homes for our customers that are operationally net zero carbon enabled from 2030 and reaching net zero total greenhouse gas emissions in line with the Scottish Government’s 2045 deadline and ahead of UK Government’s 2050 target. Work is also underway to meet our target of homes being gas free on all sites starting in 2024.
New build homes are known to be more energy efficient than older properties, as detailed here in our ‘Why Buy New’ guide, however, to achieve our sustainable development goals, there is so much more we can do. We are examining the very fabric of the homes we build and the green technology we install within them to help drive down our carbon footprint.
We are researching, trialling and implementing a number of clever design features and technologies across our homes to help reduce their impact on the planet.
Some of the green technologies already in place across our developments include:
We are working towards the removal of fossil fuels in the homes we build and we are currently trialling several gas-alternatives across Scotland and England. These heating systems replace a traditional gas boiler which equates to around 70% of the operational carbon within our properties, so the alternative heating solutions are a step in the right direction towards reducing the carbon emissions of our homes.
We believe that not only must we strive to build homes that are more sustainable, we must also give our customers the tools and technology they need to operate their homes with zero emissions. From June 2023, Cala will build all homes with EV charging stations. This is a huge step forward in helping our customers who want to buy an electric vehicle to reduce their carbon footprint and reduce their fuel costs.
As well as adopting measures to help our homes run more sustainably, their very fabric is becoming more sustainable. Timber frame construction has less embodied carbon than traditional building methods and is already being used on around 40 per cent of the homes we build each year. We are significantly increasing this proportion as part of our sustainability strategy.
Photovoltaic (PV) panels, which generate electricity, can be found on homes across many of our developments, allowing customers to reduce their energy consumption and associated carbon emissions.
Water supplies across the UK are becoming less predictable and due to the processes involved, every litre of water from our taps has its own carbon footprint, so the need to reduce personal water consumption across the country is becoming ever more important. To allow our customers to increase their water efficiency and help play their part in the fight against climate change, Cala has introduced high-efficiency shower heads, and flow-controlled aerators to taps to help reduce water wastage, and potentially water bills for customers in England.
These technologies are being rolled out in more and more of our new homes, however changing construction methods and energy provision on existing sites is not always possible, so while we complete those sites, not all of our homes will have the features listed. Customers should speak with their sales consultant and read the specification for their home for the details of what is included on their development.
There’s no doubt we still have some way to go on our sustainability journey, but we are committed to investigating new ways to be greener across all of our sites, no matter the constraints, and to being ahead of legislation when it comes to carbon reduction.
As we work towards our goal of becoming operationally net zero, our customers’ impact on the environment will also reduce significantly over the coming years – it’s a journey we will take together.
To find out more about our sustainable development goals and how we plan to achieve them, visit our sustainability page.
