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Green Building Manifesto says government must act |
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10 Mar 2010, 2:30 PM
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"We know how to reduce the emissions cost-effectively from almost any given home or building by 50%", say the UK Green Building Council in their recently released Green Building Manifesto. The group are urging the government to implement measures to achieve this target and view it as an opportunity to create jobs, improve energy security and tackle fuel poverty. UKGBC say that pursuing an ambitious target such as this should not be seen as a burden, but as an opportunity for industry and the economy as a whole.
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The private sector can and should do more to make this happen. But clear and stable government policy is also essential. Only government can ultimately set the policy framework within which industry can flourish. The Manifesto says government should stick to the original 'zero-carbon' target, that the world-leading target for all new homes to be zero carbon from 2016 has had a profound impact on the industry and should be supported. It has led to innovation in design, closer working between developers, architects and engineers and will lead to fundamentally higher quality new homes.
The definition of a zero carbon home needs to be finalised as a priority, say UKGBC. And not only that, but we need ambitious and stretching targets for non-domestic buildings to ensure that all new buildings are delivered to the best possible standards.
In the domestic sphere, the Manifesto says everyone should have a warm, comfortable and attractive home, which is affordable to run. The low carbon home refurbishment market is potentially worth billions of pounds a year to the UK economy, could create over 100,000 new jobs and could make a vital contribution to ensuring affordable warmth and energy security.
Innovative schemes, such as ‘Pay As You Save’, that spread the cost of refurbishment over time, should be rolled out as soon as possible, say the UKGBC. This idea is based on the premise that action by government could unlock significant private sector finance to fund the upfront costs of refurbishment, with no public expenditure. Pay As You Save can work in conjunction with Feed in Tariffs and the Renewable Heat Incentive, which make renewable energy more affordable for home owners.
It should also be subsidised by an ongoing Supplier Obligation to help guarantee the delivery of carbon savings and provide an attractive proposition to householders. Low carbon refurbishment could be delivered by a range of providers, from energy companies to local tradespeople to high street retailers.
In 2009, Government chose not to mandate higher levels of energy efficiency for homeowners carrying out extensions – so-called ‘consequential improvements’. This was a missed opportunity and should be rectified, say the group. But to really galvanise the market, government should send a clear signal that the worst performing properties must be upgraded over time, based on EPC ratings.
When homes change hands, green refurbishment could be encouraged through preferential tax rates for low carbon
properties, which could be fiscally neutral to the Treasury. We have no choice but to radically improve the energy efficiency of our homes. People will accept this if they are given the incentives and the means to do so.
In terms of refurbishment of existing non-domestic buildings, responsibility currently falls between government departments, but with 17 per cent of UK carbon emissions coming from our non-domestic buildings, we need a comprehensive strategy for action in this sector. The Carbon Reduction Commitment is a start, but will not be enough. Robust data for non-domestic buildings is notoriously scarce, undermining efforts to reduce carbon and causing confusion. To help in this regard, Display Energy Certificates (DECs) should be made mandatory for all non-domestic buildings and the private sector should pre- empt this by voluntarily commissioning DECs.
Government can drive change and lead by example through public procurement, but to make really significant progress, government should mandate refurbishment of the worst performing buildings in both public and private sector. Minimum performance standards, based on A to G ratings, should increase over time. Schemes to help spread the cost of refurbishment over time could apply to the non-domestic sector, a form of Supplier Obligation could subsidise costs and the tax system could also be used as a way of incentivising action.
The manifesto also encourages the idea of community-scale infrastructure such as heating, water harvesting, waste disposal and waste re-use all have an important role to play in a sustainable built environment and when integrated, can offer considerable carbon and cost savings and community benefits. Local authorities should develop ‘Sustainability Option Plans’, to identify opportunities to deliver joined-up sustainable community infrastructure and work in partnership with the private sector to supply this. Public sector buildings should be required, where viable, to connect to existing or planned community heat networks, to provide an ‘anchor load’ of demand, and large businesses should be encouraged to do the same.
Government has said that developers will be able to invest in so-called ‘allowable solutions’ in order to meet the required standard when constructing new zero carbon buildings. This mechanism should be used as a way of providing additional ring fenced capital to support the delivery of community infrastructure.
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