Policy and Value: A Case Study of Local Authority Energy Management and Investment

was reported by respondents, these kinds of top-down regulatory moves are not occurring and are not being funded. As a result, the understanding of respondents was that energy management and deep retrofit are seen as much less important than cutting costs or maintaining the status quo.

SEAI’s Energy MAP programme was mentioned as playing a role in motivating change in energy management practices in SDCC and DLRCC. In DCC, Codema’s survey audits and reports are communicating building information to departments that may not have considered their energy use previously and outside experts recently been examining bills to find savings. The database of information on DCC buildings will clearly be of great use in DCC energy management in locating facilities where unexpected changes in energy use occur and identifying potential buildings for further assessment with a view to retrofitting. It was not clear from interviews how strongly departments respond to the advice given by Codema.

According to respondents, implementing energy management is most likely to be motivated by individual managers with a personal interest in energy saving, as in was noted in Corporate Services or in Poppintree Leisure Centre, or by EU supported, large scale projects run by the council’s energy agency. In EMM terms these are both seen as isolated and sporadic approaches rather than continuous localised improvement throughout an organisation.

Findings regarding behavioural change were well defined. Respondents noted Codema’s Switch Off campaign as a success, though the achieved savings were modelled rather than metered and it was difficult to know if its effect was continuing.

Elsewhere though, behavioural change has been difficult to implement and has lacked support. The contrast with the Green Plan could not be more clear: behavioural change began at Kilbarrack with collecting batteries, and has continued through constructing 124