Skanska UK's president and chief executive Mike Putnam, has called for a 'deep green society' at the JCT Povey Lecture.
Mr Putnam is calling on politicians at all levels to play their part to accelerate the 'greening' of society, and encouraged all parts of the industry to drive green building development.

Speaking at the annual lecture held at Local Government House, in London, he said: 'Together we can build a society that minimises environmental impact, saves energy, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, prevents mountains of waste, avoids hazardous substances and saves water. A society that is less dependent on non-renewable resources. A Deep Green society.

'To our clients, architects, designers, surveyors and supply chain partners, I would say you can drive green building development by setting even more demanding targets in your own projects, engaging earlier, working in a collaborative way to deliver, and by looking at the big picture the whole life cycle, include the operations and maintenance benefits. JCT 2011 Guidance Note Building a sustainable future together is, I believe, a very useful document and captures well the role clients can play in green leadership.'

Mike went on to say that although the UK's expertise in construction and sustainability is valued the world over, much of the green innovation and great collaborative work is taking place in international markets. He said: 'We need to be part of this. The UK has provided BREEAM and CEEQUAL certification systems but we cannot stand still or we will be drawn back into the vanilla zone.'

The annual Povey Lecture was established in 2003 as a tribute to Philip Povey in recognition of his 50 years of service to the JCT and the construction industry. It has become an important fixture in the construction industry calendar.