Government drops vital change to Part L
The Government has been accused of backing down over a key proposal that would have made existing homes more energy efficient under planned changes to Part L of the Building Regulations.
Housing minister John Healey finally announced the launch of the delayed consultation last week and highlighted the headline proposal of a 25 per cent improvement in energy efficiency targets compared with the 2006 version of the regulations. However, the
plan to require existing houses to be made more energy efficient when they are refurbished or extended has been dropped.
So called 'consequential improvements', which have been required on commercial buildings over a certain size since the last revisions to Part L, were seen by many industry observers as the best chance for tackling energy waste in the existing housing stock. It is also likely that the recast version of the European Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD2), which is due to come into force late next year, will call for consequential improvements when homes have loft extensions and other major work carried out making it legally binding for the UK government to introduce this measure at some point.
One significant development, however, sees the introduction of a requirement for all new domestic conservatories to comply with the revised energy targets.
The industry now has until 17 September to comment on the proposed changes to Part L (Conservation of Fuel and Power) and Part F (Means of Ventilation) of the Building Regulations, which will apply to England and Wales. M&E Sustainability is encouraging its members to look at the documents (by clicking on the links in this story) and make their voice heard.
If the proposed changes are adopted all new buildings will need to meet a 25 per cent improvement in energy efficiency standards from October 2010.
The consultation also includes a major revision of how carbon content of fuel is calculated. Based on the emissions factor used in the SAP 2009 software for calculating building emissions, the carbon content of electricity will increase by 40 per cent per kWh. This makes it very difficult to achieve low- and zero-carbon homes with electrically powered appliances and is deeply unpopular with proponents of electric heat pumps and air conditioning.
Mechanical ventilation systems will also be penalised whether they have heat recovery built in or not.
As reported earlier, designers will have to submit a commissioning plan at the start of every project and there are revised limits on solar gains in commercial buildings. Updated weather data is also to be included in the new SAP calculations.
Air tightness levels will also be increased to reduce energy consumption under Part L 2010, which is why the revisions to Part F are being debated alongside to tackle ventilation standards.
“The new Part L of building regulations will mean homes of the future must be built with better insulation, better low carbon lighting and better boilers," said Mr Healey. "This consultation on changes to the Building Regulations means we are not only building to better standards, but making homes cheaper to heat and run for the families living in them. It could mean savings of up to £100 a year for an average home," he added.
The 25 per cent improvement in 2010 will be followed by a 44 per cent jump, compared with the 2006 version, in the planned 2013 version as the Government aims to reach zero carbon standards for new homes by 2016 and new commercial buildings by 2019.
The Code for Sustainable Homes will also need to change next year to reflect the new energy efficiency requirements and to ensure that the lower levels of the Code do not fall below the minimum standards set by the new regulations. The Government also plans to consult on the Code later this year.