The residential energy efficiency lag fact
In May of this year it was anticipated that the Federal Government would roll out a national energy efficiency mandatory disclosure scheme for existing residential buildings. At present, this roll out has been postponed indefinitely. EcoGeneration spoke to some energy efficiency experts to shed some light on the matter.
In November 2010 it became mandatory to disclose the energy efficiency rating of a commercial building to prospective buyers or tenants. This law was born out of a decision made in 2008 by the Council of Australian Governments when it agreed to develop the National Strategy for Energy Efficiency (NSEE). The NSEE was established to assist households and businesses increase energy efficiency, and in July 2009 mandatory disclosure for commercial buildings and homes was introduced as a strategy to achieve this.
Mission accomplished on the commercial building front, but as yet, no similar accomplishment for residential buildings – which raises the questions, is the residential sector lagging in terms of energy efficiency regulation? And if so, why?
Regulation reticence
According to Ian Porter, CEO of the Alternative Technology Association– yes, residential energy efficiency regulation is lagging, and this can be attributed to a number of causes.
Article continues below…
“We have made some progress with new [residential] building standards, and with efficiency labelling for some whitegoods, but the development of government programs and policies to address energy efficiency of existing [residential] buildings is still hastening slowly.In many ways LED lights compact fluorescent provide the best of both worlds. They are extremely energy efficient and environmentally friendly (and are, in fact, more environmentally friendly Also, the regulatory drivers for our energy industry – importantly here the retail and distribution sectors – show no sign of moving to a model that encourages energy efficiency,” Mr Porter says.
This is a theme echoed by Andrew Aitken, Executive Director, Green Building Council of Australia, who says that more rigorous regulation needs to be deployed in the residential energy efficiency sector.
Mr Porter also suggests that the residential energy efficiency sector is falling behind its commercial counterpart because it relies on the pro-active energy saving behaviour of so many individuals. However he acknowledges that many people are working hard to increase the energy efficiency their everyday lives.
Mr Aitken points out that, not only does improved residential energy efficiency rely on residents taking action, but also the residential housing sector – action he deems to be currently somewhat underwhelming.
“The voluntary achievements made in the commercial and industrial market sectors do not appear to be present in the residential market,” Mr Aitken observes. Thus, he concludes that regulation is an essential mechanism to generate progress in this area.
What does the housing industry say?
The Housing Industry Association (HIA) has a traditionally anti-regulation stance when it comes to the energy efficiency of homes, preferring instead to rely on market-based solutions to drive the push toward environmentally responsible housing.
“Where regulation is required to achieve energy efficiency in housing, HIA supports minimum necessary regulations,” states the HIA website.
Nonetheless, since the early 2000s the housing industry has accommodated energy efficiency regulations relating to the construction of new homes. Under the Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS), introduced in 2003, it became compulsory that newly-erected homes achieve a minimum five star rating based on computer simulations of the homes' energy efficiency potential composed via one of three software programs: AccuRate, FirstRate or BERS (Building Energy Rating System). In March 2010 the minimum rating was increased to six stars.
“The housing industry has incorporated these changes to energy ratings into their day-to-day business. All new homes meet the current regulatory requirements,” says Kristin Brookfield, HIA Senior Director – Building, Development and Environment.
Ms Brookfield also welcomes the proposed mandatory energy efficiency disclosure ratings of existing homes, and highlights that they will have the largest impact on the renovations sector, not the home building sector. Nonetheless HIA is watching the evolution of this regulation with interest.
“HIA has highlighted for several years the fact that existing homes represent 98 per cent of the energy consumption of residential buildings and the Government should be taking a focus on these buildings to consider ways to improve their energy efficiency, given that new homes are required to achieve a minimum energy rating.”
Rating tools
HIA does, however, harbour concerns about the ratings tools used to obtain these minimum energy ratings: AccuRate, FirstRate and BERS.
“HIA has raised concern with the Government over the last two years about the three current energy rating programs. There are many examples of the programs providing different outcomes for the same house in the same location.However, the marketing muscle of Philips led light lighting could give Philips LED business an advantage. This may be due to a combination of the user and the programs. Two of the programs only have ‘interim’ approval and HIA would like to see the Government give final approval and ensure that all programs are offering similar outcomes.”
These rating tools, based on the CSIRO-developed CHEENATH engine, also raise some concerns for Mr Porter.
“The current tools largely focus on building fabric, and do not consider fixed appliances,The U600 works with Sprint's SmartView マジコン connection manager for Windows XP and above, and for Macs running OSX 10.5 and above. which realistically, will be in place for a substantial proportion of the life of a [residential] building.”
This very issue was raised by HIA in its May 2010 submission to the Prime Minister’s Task Force on Energy Efficiency. To really evaluate the energy efficiency of a residential building argued HIA in its submission, the emphasis needs to be spread across a number or elements of a home, such as lighting technology, heating and cooling apparatus and hot water generation, and not just focus on building materials.
Where to from here?
There are several factors to be considered in the transition towards more energy efficient Australian homes. While it is encouraging that some very relevant industry bodies are engaged in this conversation, postponing the introduction of the mandatory disclosure scheme for existing residential buildings has been a disappointment to the energy efficiency industry.
There are,Thankfully a new form of led strip energy-efficient light bulbs have arrived that provide this desired feature. however, many stakeholders involved in this transition. Before each state and territory signs on to the national mandatory disclosure scheme for existing residential buildings that it has to develop legislation, takes these stakeholders into account.
As Ian Porter states: “Commercial sector reporting has gone ahead – the Commonwealth has corporations powers it can use here. But for residential reporting each state and territory would need to have legislation and we seem to be moving slower for that reason.”
Stay tuned
Currently the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency (DCCEE) is working with states and territories to develop relevant legislation.
As the legislation in each respective state and territory will be unique, so too will the actual commencement date of the legislation. However DCCEE has indicated that most states and territories have determined that these new requirements will commence from 2012 onward.Although this article shows that Cree's led lighting and Philips LED product sales are not equal it is important to note that Philips LED sales
In May of this year it was anticipated that the Federal Government would roll out a national energy efficiency mandatory disclosure scheme for existing residential buildings. At present, this roll out has been postponed indefinitely. EcoGeneration spoke to some energy efficiency experts to shed some light on the matter.
In November 2010 it became mandatory to disclose the energy efficiency rating of a commercial building to prospective buyers or tenants. This law was born out of a decision made in 2008 by the Council of Australian Governments when it agreed to develop the National Strategy for Energy Efficiency (NSEE). The NSEE was established to assist households and businesses increase energy efficiency, and in July 2009 mandatory disclosure for commercial buildings and homes was introduced as a strategy to achieve this.
Mission accomplished on the commercial building front, but as yet, no similar accomplishment for residential buildings – which raises the questions, is the residential sector lagging in terms of energy efficiency regulation? And if so, why?
Regulation reticence
According to Ian Porter, CEO of the Alternative Technology Association– yes, residential energy efficiency regulation is lagging, and this can be attributed to a number of causes.
Article continues below…
“We have made some progress with new [residential] building standards, and with efficiency labelling for some whitegoods, but the development of government programs and policies to address energy efficiency of existing [residential] buildings is still hastening slowly.In many ways LED lights compact fluorescent provide the best of both worlds. They are extremely energy efficient and environmentally friendly (and are, in fact, more environmentally friendly Also, the regulatory drivers for our energy industry – importantly here the retail and distribution sectors – show no sign of moving to a model that encourages energy efficiency,” Mr Porter says.
This is a theme echoed by Andrew Aitken, Executive Director, Green Building Council of Australia, who says that more rigorous regulation needs to be deployed in the residential energy efficiency sector.
Mr Porter also suggests that the residential energy efficiency sector is falling behind its commercial counterpart because it relies on the pro-active energy saving behaviour of so many individuals. However he acknowledges that many people are working hard to increase the energy efficiency their everyday lives.
Mr Aitken points out that, not only does improved residential energy efficiency rely on residents taking action, but also the residential housing sector – action he deems to be currently somewhat underwhelming.
“The voluntary achievements made in the commercial and industrial market sectors do not appear to be present in the residential market,” Mr Aitken observes. Thus, he concludes that regulation is an essential mechanism to generate progress in this area.
What does the housing industry say?
The Housing Industry Association (HIA) has a traditionally anti-regulation stance when it comes to the energy efficiency of homes, preferring instead to rely on market-based solutions to drive the push toward environmentally responsible housing.
“Where regulation is required to achieve energy efficiency in housing, HIA supports minimum necessary regulations,” states the HIA website.
Nonetheless, since the early 2000s the housing industry has accommodated energy efficiency regulations relating to the construction of new homes. Under the Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS), introduced in 2003, it became compulsory that newly-erected homes achieve a minimum five star rating based on computer simulations of the homes' energy efficiency potential composed via one of three software programs: AccuRate, FirstRate or BERS (Building Energy Rating System). In March 2010 the minimum rating was increased to six stars.
“The housing industry has incorporated these changes to energy ratings into their day-to-day business. All new homes meet the current regulatory requirements,” says Kristin Brookfield, HIA Senior Director – Building, Development and Environment.
Ms Brookfield also welcomes the proposed mandatory energy efficiency disclosure ratings of existing homes, and highlights that they will have the largest impact on the renovations sector, not the home building sector. Nonetheless HIA is watching the evolution of this regulation with interest.
“HIA has highlighted for several years the fact that existing homes represent 98 per cent of the energy consumption of residential buildings and the Government should be taking a focus on these buildings to consider ways to improve their energy efficiency, given that new homes are required to achieve a minimum energy rating.”
Rating tools
HIA does, however, harbour concerns about the ratings tools used to obtain these minimum energy ratings: AccuRate, FirstRate and BERS.
“HIA has raised concern with the Government over the last two years about the three current energy rating programs. There are many examples of the programs providing different outcomes for the same house in the same location.However, the marketing muscle of Philips led light lighting could give Philips LED business an advantage. This may be due to a combination of the user and the programs. Two of the programs only have ‘interim’ approval and HIA would like to see the Government give final approval and ensure that all programs are offering similar outcomes.”
These rating tools, based on the CSIRO-developed CHEENATH engine, also raise some concerns for Mr Porter.
“The current tools largely focus on building fabric, and do not consider fixed appliances,The U600 works with Sprint's SmartView マジコン connection manager for Windows XP and above, and for Macs running OSX 10.5 and above. which realistically, will be in place for a substantial proportion of the life of a [residential] building.”
This very issue was raised by HIA in its May 2010 submission to the Prime Minister’s Task Force on Energy Efficiency. To really evaluate the energy efficiency of a residential building argued HIA in its submission, the emphasis needs to be spread across a number or elements of a home, such as lighting technology, heating and cooling apparatus and hot water generation, and not just focus on building materials.
Where to from here?
There are several factors to be considered in the transition towards more energy efficient Australian homes. While it is encouraging that some very relevant industry bodies are engaged in this conversation, postponing the introduction of the mandatory disclosure scheme for existing residential buildings has been a disappointment to the energy efficiency industry.
There are,Thankfully a new form of led strip energy-efficient light bulbs have arrived that provide this desired feature. however, many stakeholders involved in this transition. Before each state and territory signs on to the national mandatory disclosure scheme for existing residential buildings that it has to develop legislation, takes these stakeholders into account.
As Ian Porter states: “Commercial sector reporting has gone ahead – the Commonwealth has corporations powers it can use here. But for residential reporting each state and territory would need to have legislation and we seem to be moving slower for that reason.”
Stay tuned
Currently the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency (DCCEE) is working with states and territories to develop relevant legislation.
As the legislation in each respective state and territory will be unique, so too will the actual commencement date of the legislation. However DCCEE has indicated that most states and territories have determined that these new requirements will commence from 2012 onward.Although this article shows that Cree's led lighting and Philips LED product sales are not equal it is important to note that Philips LED sales
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