09 October 2009
New building bye-laws relating to the conservation of fuel and power in all newly constructed, extended and altered buildings have been published. The proposals take account of Jersey’s international obligations as a Kyoto signatory to reduce carbon emissions, and are in line with the EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive which requires all member states to take steps to improve energy efficiency of buildings.
The new bye-laws which will come into effect in January 2010 include:
- setting annual carbon emission targets for all newly constructed buildings
- targets set to achieve a 20% reduction in emissions from dwellings and 23% from buildings other than dwellings
- new bye-laws to improve compliance by requiring sample air pressure testing for all buildings, including dwellings
- new requirement for householders to be provided with an energy rating for new homes that show estimated energy costs for space heating, water heating, ventilation and lighting together with the calculated annual CO2 emissions that will be emitted from the dwelling
- improved standards that will result in developers needing to make greater use of energy saving insulation, more efficient heating boilers and consider using low or zero carbon systems such a solar panels and geothermal technology to demonstrate compliance
Planning and Environment Minister Senator Freddie Cohen said: “Setting clear performance targets in the building bye-laws for all new buildings will not only make a significant contribution to reducing CO2 emissions but will offer householders reduced fuel bills too. We are confident this will result in improved building standards and a more sustainable built environment for Jersey. A key component of my Eco-Active initiative is to inform and encourage people on how to make energy savings. The changes we have made to the building bye-laws will complement this and provide a good platform for me to further improve the energy performance of buildings in future years.”
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