Energy consumption within buildings is responsible for nearly half of the UK’s total carbon dioxide emissions.
- Around 27% of these emissions come from domestic buildings and 22% from public and commercial buildings.
- Approximately 75% of carbon emissions from homes are produced from heating and the rest from lighting and domestic appliances.
- Around 4 million homes in England were built before 1919 and can be described as being of traditional construction.
National Targets
To reduce the UK’s dependence on fossil fuels and to cut carbon dioxide emissions the Government has set national targets. These aim to reduce carbon emissions by 33% by 2020 and 80% by 2050 relative to 1990 levels.
The Government's key method of regulating energy use in buildings is through the Building Regulations, which set minimum standards for new work on a property. Included within the Building Regulations are Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs), which give an idea of the energy efficiency of a particular property and a list of possible improvements that could be made.
Green Deal
The Green Deal is a proposed Government initiative that is currently scheduled to be launched in late 2012. The idea is to give householders the opportunity to access energy saving improvements for their home, without upfront costs and repayments to be made for up to 25 years. Properties will be assessed for energy efficient improvements that could help householders save energy and money.
For further details, see Department of Energy & Climate Change
