David HembrowDec 10, 2022

10 km round trip at -3 C today for Judy and I this morning to collect a Christmas tree from a local Christmas tree farm.

We've again bought a tree with roots as the last one lasted us for five years, growing a bit bigger each year in our garden.

On this trip we go out of Assen on cycle-paths through a suburb, then a short stretch along a main road in the countryside before returning alongside a bus road (with car trap) passing new houses under construction. Like most Dutch homes including our own these new houses are built to last, made of steel reinforced concrete (all floors and walls are made of concrete) with an insulation layer between the concrete and a brick shell around the outside.

www.dutchbikebits.com
#ChristmasTree #XmasTree #xtracycle #cycling @jhembrow

Show threadTim Fenn
@hembrow great biking but embodied energy of #concrete & #steel #houses whatever their #energy performance. #elephant in the room?
Dec 19, 2022 at 8:50pmWeb
Show threadDavid HembrowDec 19, 2022
@TimFenn Absolutely. The emissions of infrastructure, including homes, is often ignored. One of the problems here is a tendency to demolish buildings which are not very old at all before pouring even more concrete to build a replacement. This is especially a problem with public buildings e.g. railway stations. High carbon footprint buildings should at the very least be designed for long lifespans, renovated and kept in use.
Show threadTim FennDec 20, 2022
@hembrow Probably similar tax rules as here where new housing is zero rated with VAT whereas retrofit is mostly 20% VAT. Big tax incentive to knock down and start again. UK treasury used to claim coldn't change because of EU laws but will it change now???? Probably not!