MWH appointed to Thames Water carbon accounting project
Posted: Monday 27th October 2008
Environmental engineering company and water expert MWH, has partnered with Thames Water to carry out an embodied carbon accounting project which will enable them to plan their forward investment programme in the most sustainable manner.
Embodied carbon emissions, as opposed to operational carbon emissions which result from the day-to-day business of delivering clean and wastewater services to millions of customers, result from the construction and maintenance of the treatment and distribution infrastructure crucial to delivering the excellent service Thames strives for.
Thames Water is keenly aware of the importance of its status as a guardian of the regional environment, and is proactive in preserving and enhancing waterways and habitats across the Thames valley. As part of this role Thames has taken the initiative to account for carbon emissions in its investment planning, to deliver the best value for customers and the environment.
Dr Keith Colquhoun, Thames Water climate change strategy manager, has been involved with MWH’s carbon accounting efforts from the beginning of its work for UK Water Industry Research (UKWIR), which will set a common benchmark for carbon measurement for all water companies across the UK. He said: “MWH’s experience positions them uniquely to be able to deliver in this area and the results to date have been excellent.”
MWH, working out of its office in High Wycombe, has already completed Phase 1 of the project, the results of which were used to inform Thames Water’s recent draft business plan submitted to the water regulator Ofwat. Phase 2 is now underway, which will provide further embodied carbon accounting information for inclusion in the final business plan at the end of this year.
Craig Robertson, MWH Principal Civil Engineer with responsibility for delivery of the project explains: “Thames Water asked us to look at a large number of projects they may undertake to assess how carbon estimation can be undertaken. We have reviewed all the significant project types likely to be carried out as part of their investment programme for the next investment period: 2010 to 2015, and now move on to Phase 2.
“We have developed a means of calculation which will provide estimates of the embodied carbon impact of these investments. This will ultimately allow Thames Water to ensure that judgements on which options to progress are fully informed by the amount of carbon that will be generated, along with other considerations.”
The calculation framework developed by MWH with Thames Water looks at the carbon emissions generated from construction of the asset and the manufacture and use of materials such as concrete and steel, as well as for activities such as pipe-laying. These figures are combined with those for operational carbon, including the carbon emissions generated by the day-to-day energy requirements over the life of the asset, to produce a ‘whole life’ carbon assessment.
