SR95 A draft climate change sustainability index for houses (2007)

This is the second of a series of reports prepared on research into the implications of climate change for the construction sector.

The first report (SR94) identified the many ways that the built environment may be affected by climate change. In this report, the most important effects of climate change on houses are used as the basis for a climate change sustainability index (CCSI), which is used to assess the vulnerability of a house to the effects of climate change and the contribution of a house to climate change from greenhouse gas emissions.

The CCSI consists of two separate numerical ratings: one for impacts on a house (which include summer overheating, coastal and inland flooding; tropical cyclone risk) and another for GHG emissions for space and hot water heating.