Selected Reference Material on Sustainable Housing Design
The following are considered to be core references for the sustainable design of housing.
- ACTAC (1998) Green Building Digest
- Still one of the best UK sources of information on environmental building issues, and well worth subscribing to. There are easy to read charts, which clearly assess products and materials on a range of environmental issues.
- Anik, D et al (1996) Hand Book of Sustainable Building: An Environmental Preference Method for the Selection of Materials for Use in Construction and Refurbishment
- An easy to read guide that offers sustainable alternatives to standard material/product specifications.
- ACTAC (1998) Green Building Digest
- Still one of the best UK sources of information on environmental building issues, and well worth subscribing to. There are easy to read charts, which clearly assess products and materials on a range of environmental issues.
- Anik, D et al (1996) Hand Book of Sustainable Building: An Environmental Preference Method for the Selection of Materials for Use in Construction and Refurbishment
- An easy to read guide that offers sustainable alternatives to standard material/product specifications.
- Barton, H. et al (1995) Sustainable Settlements: a Guide for Planners, Designers and Developers, University of the West of England, Bristol.
- A comprehensive and detailed guide to the planning of settlements and the design of developments that achieve sustainability objectives.
- Borer, P and Harris, C (1998) The Whole House Book
- This well illustrated and technically detailed book on sustainable housing is rapidly becoming the bench mark reference for sustainable housing design. Covers individual dwellings only.
- BRE Scottish Laboratory (1995) Findings and Recommendations from the Scottish Energy Efficiency Initiatives
- Informative research, which compares the cost-benefits of different energy efficiency measures for housing in Scotland, based on a variety of case studies. Also includes a section on embodied energy. Highly relevant.
- BRECSU GPG79 Energy Efficient New Housing: Low Energy Design for Housing Associations
- A basic technical guide that elaborates on items covered in Chapters 3 and 4, on The Site and Energy Use.
- Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1998b) Planning for Sustainable Development: Towards Better Practice London
- A comprehensive guide to sustainable land use planning with guidance on residential density and urban design.
- Energy Research Group (1996) The Climatic Dwelling: an introduction to climate responsive residential architecture
- A general introduction to the issue of climate and housing, with an interesting historical context which is still relevant today. Well illustrated.
- English Partnerships (1998) Time for Design 2: Good Practice in Building, Landscape and Urban Design London
- An introduction to the principles of sustainable urban design.
- English Partnerships and the Urban Villages Forum (1998) Making Places: a guide to good practice in undertaking mixed development schemes London
- An introduction to mixed use development.
- Hall, K and Warm, P (1998) Greener Building :Products and Services Directory
- Subscription based directory, which contains the most comprehensive listing of sustainable products and materials in the UK. Also has excellent address list for producers and explanatory background information.
- Johnston, J and Newton, J (1994) Building Green:
- a guide to using plants on roofs, walls and pavements Beautifully illustrated small paperback which is packed with information on using planting sustainably.
- London Hazard Centre (1989) Toxic Treatments
- A powerful argument is provided against chemical treatment of timber with a comprehensive directory of toxic chemicals present in some timber treatment products.
- Lowe, R, et al (1996) Directory of Energy Efficient Housing
- Another “guide to the guides” packed with technical detail and references. Not highly illustrated, but a very comprehensive reference manual in an A5 format.
- Scottish Homes, COSLA, Scottish House Builders Association and Scottish Natural Heritage(1999) Quality Greenspace for Residential Areas
- A useful guide provided on a CD-ROM.
- Talbot, J (1993) Simply Build Green
- This book describes in detail one group’s attempt to build ecological houses by themselves in Scotland. It covers the mistakes made as well as the successes and is an invaluable introduction to sustainable housing.