C O N T E X T 1 1 1 : S E P T E M B E R 2 0 0 9 17 IHBC Annual School 2009 IHBC Annual School 2009 IHBC Annual School 2009 As with all good speakers, Latham fully appreciated that a picture is worth a thousand words. The illustrations peppered throughout his presentation were well chosen and in some cases highly amusing, as in the case of a slide of broken teeth which was used to draw an analogy with conservation. Some clearly needed filling and there were gaps where new ones were required, but wholesale extraction and surgery was unnecessary and probably wasteful of a useable asset. Conservation can fall into and out of fashion, depending on the pace of change and market forces prevailing. But its underlying philosophies should enable it to weather even severe storms. It is a necessary process that contributes to cerebral and social, cultural and aesthetic sensibilities while providing tangible economic benefits.These benefits can often be realised more rapidly than redevelopment, which involves demolition and rebuilding. And, crucially, conservation will usually have a greater shelf-life since the end results are almost always better loved and valued, and hence have no need for replacement due to fashionable whims. I was impressed by the creative approach to planning issues and regulations, as exemplified by the designation of derelict barns as ‘stone tents’ under the provisions that relate to caravans and mobile homes. By taking this view, there was no need to provide anything other than the most basic of facilities, ensuring that walkers/ campers had a sound roof over their heads for the night in a building whose modest structure was soundly protected. This was the final example that Latham showed. Inevitably, his conclusion was that conservation was an inherently sustainable activity for a hugely diverse range of reasons that go far beyond the accepted wisdoms of embodied energy. They include the human energy, the blood, sweat and tears that went into the structures that formed the focus of our activities and which provided the raison d’être for IHBC members. Dave Burton-Pye MBE, principal conservation and design officer for South Staffordshire District Council Climate change and the historic environment: a European perspective Alexandra Coxen Introducing the subject, Alexandra Coxen ran through the background to current joint initiatives between European states with respect to the historic environment and climate change. Something like 60 per cent of the UK’s legislation now originates in Brussels. When it comes to the environment that figure increases to 80 per cent. Under Article 151 of the Maastricht Treaty (1992) the EU has no remit for cultural matters, but its policies and legislation do have impacts across the sector. Coxen gave as an example the 1998 Biocidal Products Directive. This had the inadvertent result of stopping the production of wood tar, a crucial component in products used for the preservation of old boats, wooden buildings and the famed stave churches of the Nordic region. In 2002 the EU ratified the Kyoto Protocol, which called on signatories to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 2012. There has been a corresponding increase in the number of European directives, for example on energy performance in buildings, which can have potentially damaging impacts on the historic environment. Barry Joyce (standing), Alexandra Coxen, Derek Latham, Mark Hoare (with the microphone) and ChrisWood answering questions from the floor.
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