ABSTRACT
To those with scant knowledge, or little care, appraisal tools and techniques may be perceived as a constraint or a source of conflict, or they may be used too rigidly and become a prescription or a crutch. Many of the techniques can be faulted for taking a complex array of issues and weightings to arrive at a single figure, which may not always be a fair assessment in any given context. They can give undue emphasis to what is readily measurable at the expense of
Overview: a hierarchy of tools It is important that designers and clients are able to understand the breadth and comparative value of different techniques in order to best assess their real contribution to sustainable construction. There is growing consensus on the issues to be addressed but little agreement on priorities and targets. This would require agreement on the severity of the problems, and there is little robust information.
