Set up in Dublin today, the Irish Green Building Council anticipates €2bn in annual contract opportunities for Irish firms that look to ‘green’ Ireland’s built environment, with the potential to create 30,000 jobs in the process.
The first founder meeting of the Irish Green Building Council (IGBC), a not-for-profit body hat’s aiming to transform the built environment in Ireland into one that is environmentally sustainable, took place today in Dublin. The group has 40 founding members, including leading Irish firms and public bodies from the entire supply chain to the built environment.
The IGBC says it will work to ensure that Irish firms are properly equipped to capitalise on the dividend in jobs and contracts from the ‘greening’ of the built environment in Ireland and internationally.
Commercial opportunity and ‘green’ jobs
It estimates the value of these contract opportunities within Ireland to exceed €2bn per annum, taking in green retrofit and new build construction products and sustainability services across public procurement, domestic, commercial and industrial buildings.
“The level of commercial opportunity for green products and services across all construction sectors exceeds €2bn per annum, which would underpin over 30,000 Irish jobs. The Irish Green Building Council will play an important role in supporting and helping to co-ordinate this process and realising this opportunity,” said Philip Lee, the IGBC’s interim chairman, today.
Lee said that recovery in the construction sector, both in Ireland and internationally, could not ignore the sustainability agenda.
“We now have important considerations of sustainability, including how we use scarce resources such as energy and water in our buildings, how we plan our buildings and infrastructure, the materials we use and the construction methods we employ.
“Success at home in meeting this vital challenge will translate into commercial opportunities for Irish business, jobs for Irish workers and will enable Ireland become a global leader in this field,” he added.
The IGBC will be part of an international movement, with Green Building Councils already established in more than 80 countries worldwide.
The Green Economy 2011
Business & Leadership will be hosting The Green Economy 2011 on the morning of 31 May at the Four Seasons Hotel in Dublin.Visit the event’s website or contact Niamh Carwood for more information.
