Aneta Nerguti
Bachelor Degree (Hons) Environmental Science
|
Aneta is part of Carrig's research department, with a background in Environmental Science.
Aneta graduated from Trinity College Dublin with a first class honours degree in Environmental Science in 2019, in which she took a wide range of modules which improved her skills in statistical analysis, science communication and general research. As part of her undergraduate course, she completed a final year thesis which was heavily based on desktop research, critical analysis of papers and statistical analysis. Aneta is also currently taking a Geographical Information Systems (GIS) course in Technological University Dublin. Aneta's Projects include: Project: Energy Efficiency in Traditional Buildings Guidance Document (2020 - ongoing) Client: Department of Culture, Heritage and Gaeltacht Description: Ireland's government has a goal of retrofitting 500,000 homes as part of the plan to reduce emissions from the built environment. This guidance document will explore the options available to building owners to retrofit their buildings in a sustainable way which maintains the historical significance of the building while also achieving a better BER rating. Project: Understanding Carbon in the Historic Environment Client: Historic England Description: In 2019, Carrig and Prof Aidan Duffy from Technological University Dublin (TUD) were commissioned to carry out Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) study. The construction industry is responsible for a large amount of carbon emissions, but no meaningful data is available on how much of this carbon is due to new buildings and how much is due to older buildings. This project focused on the comparison of the carbon emissions of a refurbished older building with the carbon emissions of a new building to indicate which option may be better in terms of reducing carbon emissions from the industry. This study included the analysis of 5 retrofit case study buildings spanning traditional and modern construction and revealed that the level of intervention and type of materials used during the retrofit had a decisive impact on the carbon emissions associated with each project. However, it showed that the retrofit of existing buildings is almost always the lower carbon solution. This scoping study also provided key information on what would be required of a suitable LCA tool to enable building professionals to make more sustainable, lower carbon specification choices in both new construction and retrofit projects. Project: Innovation Partnership Programme Feasibility Study of Life Cycle Assessment Tool for the Built Environment Funding: Enterprise Ireland Description: In 2020, Carrig and Prof Aidan Duffy from TUD were awarded funding to carry out a Feasibility Study on the development of a new LCA tool that would be suitable for use on traditional building retrofits as well as new construction. This study was based on market and technical research, which included the review of nearly 40 existing tools to identify technical gaps in the existing market. A survey of over 30 building professionals (i.e. architects, engineers, surveyors, contractors, etc.) indicated that a simple-to-use tool which could be applied to traditional building retrofit at the concept design phase would be most useful in their respective practices. Project: Climate Change Risk Assessment for Ballinskelligs Priory Client: OPW Description: In 2020, Carrig were commissioned by the Office of Public Works (OPW) to carry out an in-depth climate change risk assessment for Ballinskelligs Priory. The Priory faces threat from coastal erosion due to increased storm events, wave overtopping and sea level rise. The risks to the site were determined using monitoring data of sea level rise, precipitation, wind speed and existing risk assessment methodologies. Alternative adaptation measures to hard coastal structures were researched and recommended as suitable measures which provide the necessary protection but are less intrusive and detrimental to the surrounding environment and ecology. Project: Monitoring of Environmental Conditions surrounding Dublin City Wall, Wood Quay Venue (Ongoing) Client: Dublin City Council Description: On behalf of Dublin City Council, Carrig are responsible for the monitoring and assessment indoor and outdoor environmental conditions (temperature, relative humidity and dew point) to investigate the optimal internal conditions for the Dublin City Wall (c.1100) which is in the conference room of Wood Quay Venue. The reasons for wall deterioration are being investigated to determine how the internal conditions should be altered to suit the wall and the occupants of the room simultaneously. Results and recommendations to be presented to Dublin City Council as a final report in 2021. |