OFTEC IRELAND NEWS
Update:
PLUMBING & HEATING MAGAZINE PROVIDES AN INSIGHT INTO OFTEC IRELAND AND THE PROMOTION OF THE LIQUID FUEL INDUSTRY IN IRELAND…
AHEAD OF COP26, OFTEC IRELAND’S DAVID BLEVINGS TAKES A LOOK AT THE HOME HEATING SECTOR… ‘Home heating must be high up on the agenda’ F or almost three decades, the United Nations (UN) has brought countries together for global summits, known as COPS (Conference of the Parties), to discuss climate change. This year is the 26th UN climate change conference (COP 26) and will be hosted by the UK in Glasgow on October 31 - November 12, 2021. In the time between its first summit and now, concerns over climate change have progressed to a global priority. As a result, the focus of this conference is the delivery of goals set out in the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. In other words, COP26 will focus on meaningful action at a time when the stakes seem at an all-time high. Though the majority of UK talks will likely cover GB, Northern Ireland’s challenges are unique and need to be recognised as such. With high rates of fuel poverty, a just transition will be required to ensure that any decarbonisation process is fair and effective, particularly in the home heating sector. While heat pumps have featured heavily in Boris Johnson’s plans for a ‘green industrial revolution’ with proposed grants of £5,000, the evidence shows that for NI this would be a costly route to go down. According to the latest Home Condition Survey, less than 50% of homes in Northern Ireland have an Energy Efficiency Rating (EEC) of C or above*, meaning that they would require costly and potentially disruptive home improvement for heat pumps to work efficiently. That would mean that the 500,000 homes in
“...our hope is that COP26 highlights that achieving net zero doesn’t leave anyone behind because of their income.”
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