PAS 2080 could aid China’s decarbonisation, 'milestone' webinar reveals

There’s a growing appetite for decarbonisation standards such as PAS 2080 in Hong Kong and mainland China, a historic ICE webinar has revealed.

The first knowledge-sharing event ever organised by ICE China highlighted how infrastructure projects around the country have applied PAS 2080 principles.

Attended by employees of the China Harbour Engineering Company, which builds infrastructure in Asia, Africa and Europe, the webinar was led by Patrick Chan, chair of the ICE East Asia regional committee.

How Hong Kong and China view PAS 2080

The first expert presenter he introduced was Tim Wong, technical director and ESG and sustainability hub lead at AECOM, who’s based in Hong Kong.

He said that he’d promoted PAS 2080 in Beijing last year in his capacity as an ambassador for the standard in Asia. His efforts were “quite well received” by the Standardisation Administration of China.

Noting the Hong Kong Green Building Council’s target for a 40% reduction in embodied carbon in new structures by 2030, Wong encouraged viewers to align their work with the standard.

He suggested that Hong Kong’s government would be happy to see PAS 2080’s wider uptake. This was partly down to its confidence in the expertise of the standard’s creators: the British Standards Institution and the ICE.

Jinhui Jeanne Huang, professor of environmental science and engineering at Nankai University, was the other expert speaker.

She echoed Wong’s message about aligning with PAS 2080 principles in her presentation about the use of nature-based solutions in the Guangming district of Shenzhen, China’s sixth-most populated city.

Nature-based solutions form a key part of the standard and accompanying guidance document.

A call to action

Huang traced Guangming’s progress as a pilot “sponge city” development since 2016. Green spaces and the collection and repurposing of rainwater have not only aided decarbonisation but also helped to keep the district relatively cool during the heatwaves that often strike Shenzhen.

She urged attendees to focus on “nature-based solutions for our future development” and learn from each other.

Ingrid Farmer, ICE international relations and planning manager, is particularly confident in the second outcome, having helped to organise this inaugural event.

“We’ve been working towards this for years – it’s a significant milestone,” she said. “I hope it’ll be the first of many.”