UK: Housebuilders to win reduced carbon target for homes
One of the UK's most radical environmental policies – requiring all new homes from 2016 to be "zero carbon" – is set to be scaled back amid pressure from the housebuilding industry.
Click here for full storyFigures released today show that carbon emissions have plummeted by as much as 44 per cent and energy bills will be cut by around £50,000 a year at ten fire stations involved in the Mayor of London’s RE:FIT programme. The completed stations are now saving 242 tonnes of CO2 per year - enough to fill the Sydney Opera House five times over.
Click here for full storyToyota's tri-gen plant will use a gas powered turbine to generate electricity for the building, while also using the waste heat from the turbine in assisting to heat and cool the building, resulting in improved energy efficiency and less greenhouse gas emissions.
Click here for full storyWHEN Monica Oliphant started studying her electricity bills 37 years ago the threat of climate change barely cast a shadow over the environment.
Click here for full storyThere’s been a lot of talk lately about energy efficiency. There have been various manifestations of new meter programs around our states and, most recently, federal proposals for “energy efficiency certificates” as a new program to drive behaviours to reduce electricity demand.
Click here for full storyA HIGH-TECH company has called for a less draconian, more flexible approach to ''greening'' old buildings to encourage small business to spend money on refurbishments.
Click here for full storyLABOR'S push to cut greenhouse gas emissions through the use of energy efficiency schemes was yesterday dealt another blow when building industry heavyweights discredited the star ratings being applied to hundreds of thousands of homes.
Click here for full storyTHE efficiency of Australian homes built to cut greenhouse emissions is in question due to errors in software that performs the calculations.
Click here for full storyLast week it was lean pickings for the green property in election promises so far. By Sunday the worm had turned in the sector’s favour with big welcome news from the Labor Party of a 50 per cent tax deduction bonus for green building work, possibly enough to stave off the inevitable hangover as the stimulus package for construction dribbles to an end.
Click here for full storyThe Government has launched its new drafts for energy efficiency and conservation strategies. According to Energy Minister Gerry Brownlee, the strategies are restructured in order to make them in line with the new policy preferences by the Government. These new strategies will also aim for a better economy of the country.
Click here for full storyA global index to measure the progress of countries towards creating a zero carbon built environment in terms of energy consumption and production has put Norway at the top, with Brazil second and the UK in third place.
Click here for full storyThe doubled Victorian Energy Efficiency Target is promised to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 5.4 million tonnes a year - roughly equivalent to 1 per cent of national emissions.
Click here for full storyThe Victorian government has beaten the federal government to the punch on climate-change policy, announcing it will double an existing state energy efficiency target.
Click here for full storyThis week the federal government is expected to announce a national energy efficiency scheme following months of consultation with industry and numerous submissions from stakeholders.
Click here for full storyGünther Oettinger, the EU's energy commissioner, said last week (8 July) that he would assess the need for stronger EU regulation on energy efficiency in the context of a new policy "action plan" to be presented in 2011.
Click here for full storyTHEY generate their own power, cook with native plants from their garden and even have a robot for a vacuum cleaner.
Click here for full storyThe majority of the UK's least energy-efficient homes could be brought up to near-average green standards for less than £3,000, a new analysis claims. The Energy Saving Trust says the cost of upgrading such properties may be less than many consumers think, while also revealing that the numbers of energy-inefficient homes in both the private and rented sectors has decreased.
Click here for full storyA POPULAR grant scheme that offers the public up to £4,000 towards the cost of installing solar panels and other renewable energy devices in the home has been scrapped by the government to save money.
Click here for full storyWhen it comes to reducing the use of fossil fuels, energy efficiency tends to take a back seat to technologies like wind and solar.
Click here for full storyIf you choose to make energy conscience purchases for your home you may be able to receive a tax credit for these items. You can feel confident in these purchases as long as they meet certain energy efficient requirements. You can receive up to a 10 percent credit for energy efficient home improvements.
Click here for full storyGriffith University in Queensland will soon have an emission-free, completely sustainable highrise building featuring cutting edge Australian and world technology.
Click here for full storyA national recycling scheme for cans and bottles would save the NSW public $168 million a year, according to an independent study using data from a secret federal government report.
Click here for full storyAustralia’s First Zero-Energy Teaching and Research Building Unveiled, Inhabitat by Bridgette Meinhold, 06/25/10 Griffith University in Australia recently secured funding for a $21 million dollar research facility that will be the country’s first zero-emission and self-powered building driven by solar-hydrogen energy.
Click here for full storyAustralian architecture firm Cox Architects has designed the country’s first zero-emission self-powered teaching and research building.
Click here for full storyThe Rudd government is refusing to release the results of 57,000 safety inspections of homes insulated under its botched $2.45 billion program.
Click here for full storyWhen Ikea announced this week that its 48 U.S. and Canadian stores will stop selling traditional incandescent light bulbs by the end of the year, the real story wasn't the bulbs. It was how a shift from the soft white glowing globes of decades past will affect the design of lamps, sconces and chandeliers of decades future.
Click here for full storyThe U.S. Department of Energy announced that 20 communities have been selected for more than $60 million in funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to implement local energy efficiency and renewable energy programs.
Click here for full storyPerth has been ranked the least sustainable city in an assessment of the carbon footprint of Australia's 20 largest cities.
Click here for full storyThe top 100 businesses that received about $360 million from the government's insulation program had among the highest incidence of safety breaches, damning new figures reveal.
Click here for full storyThe Department of Energy announced that three manufacturers -- Aspen Manufacturing, Inc., Summit Manufacturing, and Advanced Distributor Products -- must stop distributing 61 heat pump models and 1 air conditioner model that DOE has determined do not comply with federal energy conservation standards.
Click here for full storyAs the Air Force seeks to realize both its own and federally mandated energy efficiency goals, its top energy official is pressing for better ways to measure progress.
Click here for full storyXiamen ranked 1st in terms of sustainable urban development among 35 Chinese cities, according to a report released by the Institute of Urban Environment of Chinese Academy of Sciences on Thursday.
Click here for full storyThe U.S. Department of Energy announced today four new agreements valued at a total of $52.5 million under its Energy Savings Performance Contracts (ESPC), which are designed to help the federal government save energy and water. The new "task orders" will result in energy-saving upgrades at the Bureau of Land Management, National Wildlife Center, and two General Services Administration (GSA) facilities.
Click here for full storyInstallers may have ripped-off millions of taxpayer dollars fitting ceiling batts in public housing units, which were not covered by the axed $2.45 billion home insulation scheme.
Click here for full storyCisco Systems Inc. tops a new ranking of information technology companies' climate policies prepared by Greenpeace.
Click here for full storyEnergy efficiency advocates in Australia have called for the country to immediately adopt a national target to save at least $1 billion every year through energy efficiency, by 2012.
Click here for full storyA small Perth home design and development company has pioneered possibly Australia’s most sustainable house from a rock bottom price of $205,000.
Click here for full storyFollowing advice received from Dr Allan Hawke in his Review of the Administration of the Home Insulation Program, the Government has decided it will not proceed with the insulation component of the Renewable Energy Bonus Scheme (REBS).
Click here for full storyEnergy Australia will allow almost 200,000 New South Wales households to switch back to flat rate charging because of unintended consequences of its time-of-use tariffs.
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