NEWS All the latest news from around the building industry In Brief
INDUSTRY LEADERS RIDE HIGH IN SUSTAINABILITY TOP 50 Several figures in the building services engineering sector are among the ‘50 most influential people in UK sustainability’, says a new list compiled by architecultural magazine Building Design. The top place goes to Paul Morrell, the government’s Chief Construction Adviser. Paul King of the UK Green Building Council is at number three in the list; engineering consultancy founder Max Fordham is at nine; Professor Doug King, who has compiled the recent Masterlcass series in the Journal, is at 11; Bill Bordass of the Usable Buildings Trust, is at 12; Patrick Bellow of Atelier Ten, a former CIBSE awards winner is at 19; consultant Adrian Leaman is at 24; Arup director Chris Twinn is at 27; and Andy Ford, CIBSE president and technical director of Mott MacDonald Fulcrum, is at 36.
www.bdonline.co.uk
COST REVIEW FOR RHI A consultation on the costs of the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) is to be launched soon, the government has announced. Climate Change Minister Greg Barker said: ‘We will ask industry for its views in the summer, and in the meantime will arrange for interim measures to be in place to manage the scheme’s budget.’ The Renewable Energy Association said such an interim plan would be ‘unnecessary and unhelpful’.
www.decc.gov.uk
PLANNING CHANGE DUE The new National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) was due to be published by the government as the Journal went to press. The NPPF will bring in changes aimed at favouring ‘sustainable development’, say ministers.
6 CIBSE Journal April 2012
Stunell lambasts quality of ‘zero carbon’ homes
l Andrew Stunell tells Ecobuild conference thatnew homes, unlikenewcars, ‘leave the factory broken’
Building Regulations minister Andrew Stunell has questioned whether all new homes can be zero carbon in 2016 without a much better quality assurance and energy performance. During a question session at last month’s Ecobuild conference in London, Stunell was asked whether the UK would meet the target for all new homes to be zero carbon by 2016.
Stunell replied that compliance with standards would be a key factor in whether the target would be met.
He said: ‘We can set regulatory requirements for zero carbon homes [to meet the 2016 target] but if there is a gap in performance, we have to close that gap.’
Stunell was also outspoken over the quality of new homes. He said: ‘Twenty years ago, British cars were a joke because they left the factory broken. Well, British houses are still a joke because they leave the factory broken.’
A new quality assurance regime has already been proposed as part of the government’s consultation on changes to the Building Regulations next year. Stunell said this assurance scheme would be aimed at ‘avoiding overdesign [of new homes], that actual performance will match design expectations’. Climate Change Minister Greg Barker revealed to the conference that a new ombudsman service would be set up for consumers who take advantage
Andrew Stunell: highlighting the building performance gap
of schemes under the government’s flagship energy efficiency intitiative, the Green Deal, due to launch in October.
He added that 10 regional events would be held later this year to provide advice to companies on the Green Deal. Separately, a top government official told the conference that details on plans for the Green Deal are expected ‘after Easter’. Moira Wallace, permanent secretary at the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC), said: ‘We know how important these decisions and announcements are to those of you who are building the supply chain.’ For more Ecobuild reports, including CIBSE sessions, see next month’s Journal
Ministers concede defeat in solar tariff fight Energy ministers have finally
thrown in the towel in their legal battle to enforce their timetable for cuts to feed-in tariffs. They had asked the Supreme
Court to hear an appeal against a High Court judgement that plans to cut the tariff for photovoltaic (PV) panels was unlawful. But last month the Supreme
Court refused to hear the case, which means that the tariff cut will now only apply to PV
installations completed up to 3 March this year.
Ministers had wanted the cut to apply to installations made up to 12 December last year, but the High Court ruled that this was unlawful because it would take place before the end of a consultation on the changes. Following the Supreme Court’s rejection of the case, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Ed Davey said the ruling
‘draws a line under the case’. He said: ‘We will now focus all our efforts on ensuring the future stability and cost effectiveness of solar and other microgeneration technologies for the many, not the few.’
Under the new regime for solar installations, those completed before 3 March will attract the higher 43p per KWh rate, with the new, lower 21p rate applying to installations made after this date.
www.cibsejournal.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68