4086816031

CENTRAL & EASTERN EUROPEAN ENERGY EFFICIENCY FORUM

21-24 APRIL 2021

POIANA BRASOV, ROMANIA

MORĘ THAN “NICE TO HAVE”: NATIONAL LONG-TERM BUILDING RENOVATION STRATEGIES CAN BE THE ROAD TO RECOYERY AND GROWTH

On March 10^th 2020, EU Member States were expected to submit their third Long-Term Renovation Strategy (LTRS), in linę with requirements of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) By September, BPIE found that less than half of Member Stcte~s strategies had been submitted. and of those, few were compliant with EU legislation. Now at the beginning of 2021, twetve national strategies are still missing (over nine months late), including all strategies from Central and Eastem European Countries. [1]

Amidst the backdrop of the pandemie and economic crisis, putting building renovation on the backburner may seem only logical; Idee a “wish-list* or 'nice to have' item, as opposed to a non-negotiable, top priority. 2020 was certainly a difficutt year to look ahead, and many plans beyond buildings were delayed or put on hołd. In reality, however, now is the ideał moment for countries who have not yet submitted their strategies to prioritise finalising them, and for all countries to ensure that their respective Recovery and Resilience Plans are used to finance national renovation priorities.

Indeed,the pandemie has shown that building renovation is an important investment; one that countries cannot afford nono make. Beyond energy savings and decreased GHG emissions, healthy, Iow energy buildings can have a measurable impact on quality of Life and economic growth. In France, for example, research from BPIE shows that medical costs of about €950 million per year are linked to poor quality housing. Including the indirect consequences of such ill-health (absenteeism, lower productivity etc.), poor quality housing could be costing the French economy as much as €20 billion per year.

The same report also indicates that for every €1 million invested in energy renovation of buildings, an average of 18 local and long-term jobs are created that will stimulate economic aaivity. Holistic, energy efficient renovation of Office buildings inereases productivity by about 12% leading to a potential benefit of about €500 billion to the economy per year, and well-designed and executed energy renovation of hospitals reduces the average patient stay by about 11%, producing potential savings of about €45 billion per year to the healthcare sector. The link between building renovation, health and well-being of citizens and economic recovery has never been morę elear - the opportunity is too