IRENE RONDINI, Communications Lead and Biodiversity Support Officer, Irish Green Building Council, looks at some of the latest developments in green finance and provides details on upcoming IGBC events, including the Better Homes Conference 2024 in November and an important webinar on the Home Performance Index.
The current surge in house prices and the need to deliver more homes will be one of the main topics of the upcoming general election. However, with summer 2024 being the hottest on record globally, one cannot forget the other major crisis we face: Climate. In this article, we explore the role of innovation and green finance in providing the homes we need while ensuring we remain within the planet’s ecological boundaries.
Designing, building, and maintaining sustainable homes and communities
When we think of sustainable homes, energy efficiency is often the focus, but many other factors are just as critical. Green homes should prioritise good indoor air quality through proper ventilation, use of low pollutant and low embodied-carbon materials and be built in accessible, walkable locations. To be truly sustainable, a home must also be adaptable to significant changes over time to remain in use for as long as possible, conserve water and enhance biodiversity. This goes far beyond achieving a good BER certification.
Home Performance Index
The Home Performance Index (HPI), developed by the Irish Green Building Council (IGBC), supports the consideration of all these aspects in new homes built in Ireland. HPI is the national certification system that sets the standard for energy efficiency, environmental responsibility, and overall performance in residential developments. Similar to widely recognised certifications such as LEED and BREEAM for commercial buildings, HPI is tailored specifically for the Irish housing sector and aligns with Irish building regulations and the international WELL certification.
There are simple steps that the industry can take to reduce embodied carbon and deliver sustainable homes. First, renovating existing buildings can save substantial carbon emissions associated with new properties and infrastructure. The embodied carbon emissions associated with a deep residential renovation are a quarter of a new build. When we do build new, the types of homes being built can have a significant impact on carbon emissions. For instance, connected dwellings, such as terraced homes, can significantly reduce the embodied carbon of a development (A side gable wall in semi-detached houses generates four to five times more embodied carbon per square metre than a party wall between terrace dwellings).
Furthermore, greenfield housing developments outside towns and cities can contribute up to 30% more embodied carbon per home than equivalent infill developments that use existing infrastructure (Viable Homes, 2024). External area and infrastructure associated with lower-density developments, such as semi-detached houses, produce 32% additional carbon emissions, while those associated with higher-density development, such as apartment buildings, only generate an increase of 13% (As part of the RE-CUGI project, 2024).
‘PLACE’ Early-stage carbon evaluation tool
To support planners and developers in delivering sustainable homes and building on these insights, the IGBC is developing a tool that allows for early-stage carbon evaluations of different residential designs and their relationship with the surrounding area. The tool, called PLACE, will account for embodied carbon in both the construction of buildings and the infrastructure serving them, as well as operational carbon and the transport emissions of future occupants.
Beyond carbon evaluations, the tool aims to standardise a method for assessing the liveability of residential areas, with benchmarks being developed in consultation with key stakeholders.
To be genuinely sustainable, a building also needs to be properly operated and maintained, and good communication with homeowners and tenants is key. To improve the handover process for homeowners, the IGBC is working on the development of a user-friendly guide. Written in plain English and free of technical jargon, the guide focuses on maintaining and operating essential home systems like ventilation and heating while also offering practical tips for saving energy and water, as well as enhancing biodiversity. The guidance document is being developed in collaboration with Cairn Homes with support from Construct Innovate.
Green Finance
Sustainable financing mechanisms are also required for greener homes to become the new norm. This means financial institutions and developers have the tools and frameworks needed to support green home initiatives.
Key to supporting this transition is the EU Taxonomy, a classification system which provides developers, investors, and policymakers with appropriate definitions for which economic activities can be considered environmentally sustainable. The aim is to create security for investors, protect private investors from greenwashing, help companies become more climate-friendly, mitigate market fragmentation and help shift investments where they are most needed. It will play an important role in helping the EU and Ireland scale up sustainable investment, including in the construction sector.
Home Performance Index webinar
Collaborating with other European Green Building Councils, the IGBC is working on the national interpretation of the EU Taxonomy while helping banks, residential investors, and solution providers align with it, paving the way for green homes and the development of green loan and mortgage programmes. A new version of the Home Performance Index (v 3.1), aligned with the EU Taxonomy, will be launched by the end of the year. A webinar on this topic will be hosted on 07 November by the IGBC in collaboration with the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB).
In Ireland, AIB and HBFI already offer discounted loans to residential developers who adhere to the HPI certification. By providing this financial support to developers, they ensure that the transition to sustainable housing is not only environmentally responsible but also economically viable, encouraging more stakeholders to invest in eco-friendly, energy-efficient developments.
Better Homes Conference 2024
These topics will be explored in depth at the upcoming Better Homes Conference on 15 November. The event – focusing on affordable, sustainable homes – will feature morning panels on innovation and green finance, followed by an afternoon roundtable with international experts.
For more details on the Better Homes Conference 2024, visit www.igbc.ie/events
