UN report: Global greenhouse gas emissions 1/3 related to buildings

China News Agency, December 11 (Xinhua) The United Nations Environment Programme said in a report released 11th that One-third of global energy use and related greenhouse gas emissions are related to building energy consumption.　　As a result, greenhouse gas emissions are expected to be significantly reduced by pushing buildings to conserve energy. The report says global buildings produce 8.6 billion tonnes of equivalent carbon dioxide a year, up to 15.6 billion tonnes of equivalent carbon dioxide by 2030.　　Affected by population growth, urbanization and modernization, the number of buildings in developing countries will be almost one-fold by 2050. The report stresses that carbon emissions from buildings can be significantly reduced through the formulation and implementation of appropriate policies and the full use of existing energy-saving technologies. For example, 23% of the greenhouse gases currently emitted by South Africa are in the construction sector, and investment in new buildings will increase by 2% per cent a year between 2008 and 2050, and if uncontrolled, carbon emissions will increase by twice times.　　Conversely, increased policy regulation, improved building design and the use of energy-efficient technologies are expected to increase the energy efficiency of commercial and residential buildings by 50% and 40% respectively. The report notes that, while building energy efficiency needs to be invested, reduced energy consumption and carbon emissions can offset the cost of investment.　　The Empire State Building in New York, for example, plans to invest 20 million of dollars in energy-saving improvements to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 38% by 2013, a move that could save 4.4 million of dollars a year. The United Nations Environment Programme has called on countries to promote building energy efficiency as an important means of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. To help decision makers around the world to determine energy efficiency and carbon emissions from buildings, UNEP has launched a report with a special set of common measures for building carbon emissions.