It is necessary to pay attention to the energy efficiency and climate resilience of buildings, UN Environment Programme Executive Director Inger Andersen said at the ministerial meeting on "Green Building, Energy Efficiency of Buildings and Climate Resilience of Cities" held on the sidelines of COP29, Report informs.
According to Andersen, in 2023, greenhouse gas emissions not only didn't decrease but increased by 1.3%: "Today, as we approach 2030, it's important to realize that to keep warming at 1.5 C, we need to reduce emissions by 41% by 2030."
She emphasized that 57 gigatons of pollutants are released into the atmosphere annually, and only 200 gigatons remain before exceeding the permissible temperature increase level of 1.5 C: "In this context, the construction sector has special significance as it accounts for 21% of all greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, we must think about reconstructing existing housing stock and infrastructure to make them more climate-adapted and low-emission."