Recently, companies have been pointing out their environmental, social and governance (ESG) credentials and communicating their ESG standards. Construction companies, where ESG is the main aspiration, have been displaying their standards on signboards.
However, there are no guides for how ESG credentials are presented, so most people are unaware of the advantages of ESG, which is exacerbated by most people being largely indifferent to the initiative.
The most straightforward way to ensure that construction firms make environmental protection a top priority would be for “green building labels” to be awarded for using sustainable building materials. The labels would be reflected in the company’s ESG information.
The Taiwan Green Building Council has investigated waste and carbon emission reduction in the production of green building materials. The results show that, for example, using at least 15 percent recycled materials to produce ceramic tiles would reduce carbon emissions by 60kg per tonne, while replacing cement with coal combustion residuals from power plants to produce green concrete would cut down at least 140kg of carbon emissions per tonne. Green buildings with recycled materials not only raise the circular material use rate, but also lower waste and carbon emissions.
If construction companies use recycled green building materials, they could record the benefits they created to their ESG disclosures, such as pollution reduction, and carbon emissions and raw materials procurement. When financial observers read the disclosure, they would know the company’s actions to fight climate change and take them into account when considering financing.
If the financing benefits were reflected in mortgages, people would better understand the benefits of ESG.
Chen Wen-ching is a director of the Taiwan Green Building Council and a convener of the Taiwan Sustainable Green Construction Union.
Translated by Polly Chiu
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