Mainstreaming Building Energy Efficiency Codes in Developing Countries
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Box 4.1. Control of BEEC Compliance in Denmark In practice, control of new buildings is performed by energy consultants who also issue the energy performance certificates. Before the official permit to use a new building is given, an energy audit has to be performed by the certified or approved energy consultant, who checks that the energy calculation is correct, and performs quality and compliance checks. Proof of compliance with the energy requirements for new buildings must be given after the completion of the building in order to get the permit to use the building. If a building does not comply with the energy performance requirements, remedial measures must be undertaken. Source: Engelund Thomsen (2009).
Box 4.2. BEECs and Their Enforcement in Netherlands National BEECs have existed in the Netherlands since 1978. A substantive change took place in 1995 when prescriptive standards were replaced with energy performance standards for new buildings and major renovations of existing buildings (EPN), allowing flexibility in the choice of energy saving options for building fabric, space heating, sanitary water, ventilation and use of solar energy. The performance standards have the goal of generating energy savings of 15 to 20 percent, compared with the previous prescriptive standards. To abide by the standard, a maximum energy performance coefficient (EPC) has to be complied with, with separate EPCs for residential (set at 1.4) and different types of commercial buildings (ranging from 3.6 to 1.5). The 1995 standard was closely related to the building practice at the time and was relatively easy to comply with. Since 1995, the standards have been tightened several times, going down to an EPC of 0.8 for residential buildings in 2006. The Dutch energy agency SenterNovem provides a range of supporting instruments, such as guidebooks, workshops, and demonstration projects. Standard packages of energy saving measures that fulfill requirements of the tightened standards are developed and are used by many architects and installers. Together with the national government SenterNovem had an estimated budget of euro 10-30 million for the implementation of the EPN. Preparation of the market for introduction/tightening of standards: Inform and educate the market (guide books and workshops), provide financial support for buildings that go beyond the standard, and show that building according to the standard is feasible and has only minor cost implications. Investigations in 1997 show that the market participants were indeed well informed about the introduction of the EPN. Compliance: Under the current national building regulations, proof of compliance must be provided at every step of the building process (design, calculations, realization). Control of this legal provision is the responsibility of the local authority where the building is located. De facto building permit requirements were in general not checked and verified until about 2000–2001. After that time, municipalities received more support in checking requirements, such as help with the correct use of software, and most municipalities checked EPC calculations. Experience with enforcement during the construction phase was unsatisfactory also. Even though it improved during the past few years, it is still not adequate. Impact: Targeted energy savings of 15 to 20 percent were more or less achieved by 2004 (if ignoring the fact that there is usually a 2- to 3-year delay between introducing/tightening the BEEC and constructing buildings according to the standard). Side effects: The EPN contributed to growing market shares for condensing boilers and highperformance glazing such that they have become standard techniques. Rotterdam: 70 staff are in charge of about 500 applications of building construction permits per year, six of which handle energy and sanitation. They check applications and give recommendations on whether to issue a permit. If an application is deemed insufficient, the applicant has eight weeks to improve it. Only about 20 percent of applications are correct, 10 percent are completely wrong, the rest have some errors. Almost all applications are corrected within the allotted time frame. Controls of building energy efficiency aspects on site or after completion of a building are rare; they occur in only 1 to 2 percent of all building permits. Sources: Joosen (2007) and Rieder et al. (2005).