Britain’s energy transition: looking at its building stock, the challenges are daunting to meet the net-zero target

Thursday, March 30th, the UK government announced its net-zero strategy and you can get the main elements of it here in an article on the Guardian website. Jillian Ambrose wrote a very important background article on Monday on the Guardian website, focusing on the negligible progress made in improving the energy efficiency of its building … Continue reading Britain’s energy transition: looking at its building stock, the challenges are daunting to meet the net-zero target →

Member states should take more responsibility for meeting the targets of the EU buildings directive

Aneta Zachová writes on the EURACTIV website about the views of energy-saving construction expert Petr Holub that the onus for meeting targets from the EPBD should be on member states and not individual owners. Do you have any views on this?   Czech expert: EU Building Directive targets should be met by states, not owners … Continue reading Member states should take more responsibility for meeting the targets of the EU buildings directive →

Data-driven AI innovations can provide the crucial insights needed to help optimise energy usage

Souma Das writes on the Express Computer website about the benefits of improving energy efficiency through the use of artificial intelligence. What are your views?   Utilising the Power of AI to Improve Energy Efficiency While a majority of enterprises are realising the ‘green way forward’ to help reduce carbon emissions and improve the business’s … Continue reading Data-driven AI innovations can provide the crucial insights needed to help optimise energy usage →

If you look back at the examples of the past two centuries, industry-wide reuse of such materials as iron from sunken ships should have been business as usual by now

Salman Shooshtarian and Tayyab Maqsood at RMIT University in Australia provide a fascinating article on The Conversation website about being innovative in using recycling materials for our building construction.   Buildings used iron from sunken ships centuries ago. The use of recycled materials should be business as usual by now At Fremantle Prison in the … Continue reading If you look back at the examples of the past two centuries, industry-wide reuse of such materials as iron from sunken ships should have been business as usual by now →

Greening from the bottom up

High-level solutions and grand designs will not fix climate change. Christof Brandtner, Assistant professor in organisational and economic sociology at EM Lyon Business School argues in an article on The Conversation website that the bulk of the action will have to take place at the interfaces between local governments and the organised citizenry. What are … Continue reading Greening from the bottom up →

Cost, consumption, carbon – EPCs in the UK must change to measure all three

A report from Elmhurst Energy is urging an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) revamp as part of 10 act-now policy and industry recommendations it says are necessary for preventing the UK from stalling further in its journey to carbon net zero and delivering truly energy efficient homes. EPCs must change if they are to properly support … Continue reading Cost, consumption, carbon – EPCs in the UK must change to measure all three →

New EEA briefing on urgency to decarbonise heating

About half of the EU’s final energy consumption goes to heating, making it a key focus area in Europe’s efforts to improve energy security and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. A European Environment Agency (EEA) briefing, published this week, analyses this energy segment, urging investment in building renovations and modern renewable energy solutions.   Renovations and … Continue reading New EEA briefing on urgency to decarbonise heating →

Fossil fuels still dominate the German heating market

A new heating report in Germany shows that oil and gas boilers continue to dominate the heating market. Heat pump sales, however, have increased more than 50%. According to the German heat pump association (BWP), the report “clearly shows that the incentives to switch heating systems to renewable technologies are not yet sufficient.” The heat … Continue reading Fossil fuels still dominate the German heating market →

Italy is pushing back against EU directive aimed at improving the energy efficiency of buildings

As the revision of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive slowly winds its way through the approval process from EU institutions, Crispian Balmer and Valentina Za write on the Reuters website that the new Italian government is throwing up some obstacles. How serious are they?   Italy gets cold feet over EU greener buildings plan … Continue reading Italy is pushing back against EU directive aimed at improving the energy efficiency of buildings →

New study on health benefits from increased energy efficiency

Angela Symons writes on the Euronews website about a study published  inthe journal The Lancet Planetary Health showing the health effects from increased energy efficiency.   Could insulating your home make you live longer? New study shows surprising energy efficiency gains Reaching net zero emissions could prolong people’s lives significantly, new research reveals. More than … Continue reading New study on health benefits from increased energy efficiency →