Are we focusing too much on building energy efficiency in Ireland?

During Plan Expo earlier this month I had a chat with Amanda Gallagher and Eanna Nolan from BRE Ireland. Both raised what I thought was a valid point - that so far the drive towards green building in Ireland has focused a lot on energy use and very little on the embodied energy of building materials. After all, if we're to drastically reduce the carbon footprint of buildings, both must be tackled.

Green building standards in other countries aim to do just that: In the UK there's the voluntary Code for Sustainable Homes, which rates homes based on criteria including water efficiency and use of materials as well as energy efficiency. The BRE's own Breeam rating system (which is just taking off in Ireland) for non-domestic buildings examines a similarly wide range of criteria, as does the US Leed system.

Why have we been comparatively slow to focus on materials and other sustainability criteria here? Is it a result of the dominance of a carbon-intensive building industry - traditional concrete - here, or is it down to something else?