Looking at the Big Picture

INITIAL RESPONSE to the new Energy Efficiency Certificate (aka EPC) being introduced by law into Spain on 1st June 2013 has been much as expected and mostly critical. Is it just another excuse for a government tax? Why are the certificates more expensive in Spain than the UK? Would we be better off using the certificates for wall insulation to help save energy? Cynicism aside, let’s consider the bigger picture as to what it is all about. 

Let us be perfectly clear, the EPC is not being introduced to help property owners save money on utility bills, the reason is to cut carbon dioxide (CO²) emissions from buildings. Former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero pledged to cut Spain´s greenhouse gases by 20 per cent by 2020 (compared to 1990 levels). 

Houses in Spain consume 17% of all the energy in the country. The emission of greenhouse gases caused by buildings has grown over 20% since 1990. 38% of the Spanish are not satisfied with insulation against heat and cold from their homes, and 42% also state dissatisfaction with the sound insulation. Moreover, about 60% of Spanish homes have been raised "with no minimum energy efficiency standards" (the first being in 1979). 

In national terms, Spain used to be one of the worst offenders in terms of CO² emissions, with almost a whopping 200% per cent rise between 1971 and 2007. In the first half of 2009, emissions in Spain fell by a 17 per cent, due to industrial slowdown and increased renewable power - an unexpected upside to the current economic crisis. According to the latest data published by the United Nations, Spain is currently number 20 in a list of countries by CO² emissions, producing 1.1% of emissions worldwide. 

The origin of the certificate was instigated at a United Nations conference held in 1992, which became known as the Earth Summit. The parties negotiated an international environmental treaty with the objective to "stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system.” In 1997 the Kyoto Protocol set binding obligations on industrialised countries to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. 

The Directive on the energy performance of buildings was published by the European Parliament in 2002 and came into force on 4th January 2006 which required member states to adopt the Energy Performance Certificate. 

The certificate assesses the buildings energy rating, plus gives recommendations on how to cut CO² emissions. From 1st June 2013 vendors and renters are obligated to make that information available to prospective buyers and tenants. This new legislation forces us all to consider the effect of CO² emissions in our homes.