Government consultation on the Green Deal announced: creating energy efficient homes to help save consumers money

Energy efficient homes to be achieved with no upfront cost for consumer

The Government’s consultation on the Green Deal was published today as part of the Energy and Climate Change Secretary’s Annual Energy Statement to Parliament. The Green Deal will come into play in October 2012 and will enable house holders – including business, landlords and homeowners – to install energy saving measures at no upfront cost.

The upfront cost of energy saving measures, such as insulation and draft proofing, will be met by providers. Providers will range from local authorities to high street DIY shops and smaller family run organisations. The loan for these improvements made to the home will be attached to the property itself and the homeowner will pay back the loan using money made through savings on energy bills over a period of time.

The key points in the consultation include:

The Green Deal will help boost the economy: The Green Deal will kick start £14 billion private sector investment over the next decade, and could support at least 65, 000 insulation and construction jobs by 2015. Safeguards will be put in place to help small family run firms to get involved as well as larger high street stores.



Energy companies to help consumers: The Green Deal will create £1.3 billion a year additional help from energy companies for homeowners, in particular vulnerable and hard-to-insulate homes.

Energy bills to be reduced: The Green Deal will help reduce the overall average household energy bill. By 2020 bills will be 7%, or £94, lower than without energy and climate policies.



The Green Deal aims to make energy bills lower even in cold weather

The announcement of this consultation is already being discussed in the media, with the BBC and the Guardian reporting on the variety of reactions it has inspired from organisations representing the energy sector, the wider business community and consumers.

 

The NHBC Foundation will be unpicking the results of the consultation and will provide further information soon. Please revisit our blog to find out more about the implications of the Green Deal for consumers and the construction industry.



Ensuring new homes in the UK meet Zero Carbon Homes targets: The Government’s Housing Strategy

On Monday the Government revealed its Housing Strategy Laying the Foundations: A Housing Strategy for England, which outlines its proposals to “tackle the housing shortage, boost the economy, create jobs and give people the opportunity to get on the housing ladder”. The strategy includes measures across the housing supply chain, from unlocking land and stalled housing sites, to opening up mortgage availability for first time buyers.

All the measures are set against the backdrop of environmental sustainability in housing, and at the heart of the strategy is the Government’s “commitment to delivering the Zero Carbon Homes standard“. In the strategy, the Government lays out how both new and existing homes will be made more energy efficient, to help reduce the UK’s carbon emissions, withstand any changes to the climate and protect the natural environment.

Reducing carbon emissions

A significant part of this is developing zero carbon homes, to which the Government reaffirms its commitment in the strategy. The fourth carbon budget, recently set by the Government, is named as one tool for doing this: the carbon budget says a reduction of 50% in carbon emissions on 1990 levels between 2023-27 must be met. A report on how this target can be met will be coming soon – keep reading our blog for further information.

Improving the energy efficiency of new homes

While the strategy highlights the positive improvement to the energy efficiency of new homes built – a 26% improvement in the average energy efficiency of housing stock since the mid 1990s – there is more to be done. Updates to Building Regulations are one way the Government plans to raise the standards of energy efficiency of the built fabric of new homes. A consultation on changes to the Building Regulations will soon take place – the NHBC Foundation blog will report on these changes.

Off-site carbon reduction measures

The limitations of the commercial value in reducing carbon emissions through improving the efficiency of the built fabric of individual houses or other measures, such as installing renewable energy systems, is acknowledged in the strategy. Where this is the case, the Government will use the Building Regulations to support off-site carbon reduction measures like district heating schemes.

The Zero Carbon Hub’s report Allowable Solutions for Tomorrow’s New Homes, suggested how off-site carbon reduction would work. The Government will now work towards a detailed plan for how this will take place. The complete plan will certainly have a strong local and community focus, in line with the National Planning Policy Framework, to enhance investment in renewable options deemed to be a priority to each locality.

Improving the energy efficiency of the built structure



The built fabric of new homes must be energy efficient

In the strategy, the Government emphasises that compliance with Building Regulations alone is not enough to achieve Zero Carbon Homes standards. It highlights the positive impact of the Zero Carbon Hub, which is showing the house building industry practical ways of reaching the 2012 Zero Carbon Homes standard, and the Technology Strategy Board, which is funding projects to develop ways of meeting energy efficiency standards through changes to the built fabric alone.

Efficient use of water

Water efficiency is highlighted as a way of enabling consumers to save money on their utility bills. The NHBC Foundation report Water Consumption in sustainable new homes, produced earlier this year, looks at the success of some of the design techniques aimed at improving water efficiency. The report highlights that more consumer engagement is needed for home occupiers to really embrace water efficient measures.

The Government’s long term aim is to embed sustainable design techniques into the house building industry’s approach to design and construction, so that the Zero Carbon Homes target is met, both through improving the energy efficiency of the built fabric and off-site carbon reduction. The Foundation eagerly awaits the results of the results of the Government’s further consultations.

Making your home more energy efficient to save money and reduce carbon emissions

We have all enjoyed the mild Autumn but now, as temperatures drop across the UK, it seems the bitterness of winter is fast approaching. The BBC has today published a comprehensive guide for homeowners on how to make their homes more energy efficient, which will help both save money on energy bills and decrease household carbon emissions.

Back in July, the NHBC Foundation published nine simple steps to reducing energy bills. We would suggest it is now time for homeowners and landlords to put these steps into practice, and take the advice of the BBC, to prevent their energy bills escalating while also making a positive change to benefit the environment.

Changes to Feed in Tariffs for solar installation: A hurdle in the journey towards an energy efficient UK?

Government changes to Feed in Tariffs for solar installation

Early in 2011, the NHBC Foundation reported that the Government would restrict subsidies paid to solar power plants through the Feed-in Tariffs (FITs) initiative, to plants of less than 50kW capacity. At the time, this provoked great debate among the solar, and wider renewable, industry.

Cuts to FITs are forecast to affect the solar industry

 Now, the Government’s changes to FITs have gone even further – last week a 50% cut in subsidies for solar power was announced. Climate Change Minister, Greg Barker, quoted in the Guardian, said this is due to the declining cost of installation of solar panels, combined with higher than expected take up of solar.

The impacts of the cut to FITs subsidies are still being debated among commentators on the topic.



Architecture and sustainability blog The Green Register has expressed concern that jobs in the solar industry will be lost as companies will no longer benefit from subsidies. On a domestic scale, The Guardian pointed out that the payback period on initial cost of installation for solar panels will almost double, meaning potential money saving will not be realised for up to 18 years for homeowners who install £10-12,000 of solar panels.

According to Energy Efficiency News, solar companies, housing associations and politicians have come together appealing to Prime Minister David Cameron to intervene over the changes. Environmental group Friends of the Earth is taking a more forceful approach, challenging the Government on the legal grounds that the date that cuts to FITs are due to come into play, 12th December 2011, is unlawful as the consultation period on the proposals actually closes two weeks after this.

Will changes to Feed-in Tariffs impact on zero carbon homes?

To achieve the Government’s zero carbon homes targets, renewable energy systems will play an integral role. The NHBC Foundation’s appraisal of the Feed-in Tariff scheme’s success in Germany in our report, Introduction to Feed-in Tariffs, shows the potential for the scheme to improve the energy efficiency of housing stock.

It is true that recently announced changes to Feed-in Tariffs are forecast to impact on the renewable industry, jobs and consumer spend on energy. However, it is still intended that they are leveraged to make houses more energy efficient.

One of the changes suggested in the Government consultation on FITs, according to a recent article in Inside Housing, is that payments will be restricted to homes that either have already achieved a minimum energy performance certificate energy efficiency C rating or have had all the work that can be done through the Green Deal energy efficiency scheme.

These changes, while no doubt spelling changes for the solar and housebuilding industry, strongly imply that the goal of creating more energy efficient homes has not been overlooked.

While the housebuilding and renewable energy industries wait to see the outcome of the Government’s proposed changes to FITs, and existing installation of solar systems continues, it is vital the quality of workmanship in installation remains high. NHBC Foundation recently published a Guide to installation of renewable energy systems on roofs of residential buildings, which contains best practice advice on installing solar, as well as PV and micro wind, energy systems to withstand the effects of wind and rain.

The evolution of consumer attitudes towards zero carbon homes

In order for sustainable homes targets to be achieved it is vital that homeowners understand the importance of reducing carbon emissions of UK homes and the benefits zero carbon homes can bring to their lives. In 2008 the NHBC Foundation published a study entitled Zero carbon: what does it mean to homeowners and housebuilders. This research brought various issues into the spotlight, which would impact on whether zero carbon homes targets could be achieved. Some of the key findings were:

1) Homeowners want to save energy: homeowners were interested in climate change and, in principle, interested in saving energy and reducing their carbon footprint. However, when it comes to making tangible changes to their lives, homeowners were stopping short. Switching electrical items off after use and recycling were commonplace, but few people were committed to making substantial lifestyle changes to reduce their household carbon emissions. Indeed, while 90% of homeowners were able to name ways of saving energy in the home, a quarter (24%) of homeowners had not put any energy saving measures into practice in recent years.

2) Knowledge gap on understanding of carbon emissions and energy saving: Very few homeowners, and just two thirds of house builders, were aware that 27% of carbon emissions came from homes in the UK. There was also confusion about the meaning of certain words associated with energy efficiency. ‘Airtightness’ in particular was believed by many homeowners to refer to restricted ventilation, while there was also concern about the concepts of both “greywater” recycling and rainwater harvesting, very few people were willing to use treated ‘greywater’ to wash clothes in the belief it would be dirty and impure. This indicated that homeowners were being put off ways of making their homes more energy efficient, simply because they did not understand the terms used to describe them.

3) The cons of highly energy efficient homes outweighed the pros: When confronted with the prospect of buying an energy efficient home, fewer than a fifth (19%) of homeowners opted in favour of buying one; the rest were reluctant to live without the high intensity appliances they had become accustomed to, such as a power shower. Additionally, homeowners felt the extra cost of buying an energy efficient home – at the time, £6,000 extra for a Code Level 3 home – was not worth the £120 annual saving.

4) Energy efficiency was motivated by money saving: The financial gain of making small changes to become more energy efficient was the primary motivation for homeowners to reduce their energy consumption. In 2008, few knew of the wide-ranging microgeneration technologies that could be installed domestically, but those who knew about roof-mounted solar panels and rechargeable batteries were interested in their money saving potential.


carbon savings were offset by consumer desire for long distance travel

5) Rebound effect dominated: While homeowners were keen to put these energy saving measures into practice, when asked how they would spend the money saved, the most common answer was on a holiday abroad. This manifestation of the rebound effect – the process by which any potential positive impact on carbon emissions through energy saving is offset by the individual using more energy elsewhere in their lives – in this case, air travel – limited the ability of homeowners to make significant carbon saving.

Has homeowner engagement with zero carbon homes advanced?

Although there was positive sentiment towards energy saving measures amongst homeowners in 2008, we felt there lacked a tangible commitment on behalf of homeowners to truly minimise their carbon footprint. Some people simply did not want to change their lifestyle; others felt their contribution could never make a difference to climate change; and many simply didn’t connect climate change with domestic carbon emissions.

We are interested to find know if this perception still prevails today, so we are conducting research to find out and this time, have the added benefit of being able to canvas people living in highly-energy efficient homes. We have finished the first round of focus groups and, ahead of publishing the full report in early 2012, below are some initial observations.

Among those people already living in energy efficient homes there was a sense of positivity about their choice of home. But some people within that group felt there had been too little explanation about the carbon reduction technologies that had been installed within the home, as one interview pointed out: “I don’t think anybody has been told exactly how the solar panels work. All we have is this flashing light in the passage, and something clocking up. It doesn’t go down, it carries on going up.” Similarly in older homes some owners had retro-fitted energy-saving technologies but were not using them properly: “I don’t trust it [the lower volume flush] to be clean.” As we have outlined previously on this blog, incorrect or inefficient use of a technology can be a big factor in the success of energy reduction efforts.

The research considers the importance of energy efficiency in the house-buying/choosing process; but our findings indicate it is still not a top priority. As one interviewee said, the efficiency of a new home would “not be part of the criteria that would go, ‘I must have that house’.” However there was a sense that the energy efficiency of a home should be better factored into the buying process. As one interviewee pointed out:“When you are going around looking at different show homes, very rarely would the sales person say ‘look at how efficient our houses are’.”

One common factor with the last research report was the importance of financial drivers. Perhaps understandably in today’s austerity climate, the consumers we spoke to seemed to be increasingly aware of the costs of running a home and the majority said that finances come ahead of environmental concerns. In some cases, consumers had a similar attitude to lifestyle; they were happy to make efforts towards being more energy efficient, but only if it doesn’t “hamper the lifestyle that I want.”

This is just a selection of comments from the fieldwork phase. The full report will be available on this site in early 2012 but in the meantime, we’d welcome your comments and thoughts.