The government has announced that all new homes and buildings will be required to install electric vehicle charging points from next year, under new legislation.
This includes the likes of supermarkets and workplaces, and also includes buildings undergoing major renovations.
Up to 145,000 extra charging points will be installed across England each year, in the run up to 2030 when the sale of new petrol and diesel cars will end in the UK. The aim is to make these charging points as accessible as it is to refuel your car today.
England will lead the world to mandate such building regulations, and this is part of the wider goal of creating further green jobs across the country.
The strategy is to adapt the economy to the green industrial revolution, and make the country “net zero”. This coincided with the COP26, the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference.
During the conference, the ways in which the construction industry could become more environmentally friendly were discussed, as it currently accounts for 38% of global carbon emissions. Therefore, there is a large-scale sector effort to develop zero carbon emission buildings, which are both energy efficient and resilient, optimistically by 2030.
To stay within the 1.5degree global warming threshold, there is a need to reduce specific carbon-producing practices: coal usage, mass deforestation, manufacturing and the use of petrol and diesel vehicles are some of these.
There is also a focus on avoiding further natural habitat destruction, so during the construction process, efforts must be made to protect and restore ecosystems, as well as building operational defences, warning systems and resilient infrastructure to protect homes, buildings and people.