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Water Efficiency and a More Holistic Approach to the Green Deal
Water Efficiency Measures and the Green Deal
The Green Deal has been designed, primarily, to improve the energy efficiency of UK homes and reduce our nation’s carbon emissions. Recently, however, the DECC and Defra have expressed how important it is that the Green Deal includes funding for water efficiency measures such as water efficient taps and showers. They believe that the Green Deal should offer a more holistic approach to home improvement and retrofitting our properties.
Water saving devices may not generate such substantial financial savings as insulation or micro generation but there are clear benefits of improving our water usage. Around 20% of a household’s carbon emissions come from energy used to heat water. This includes the water we use to cook, wash and clean with. On a much larger scale, we know that 5% of UK greenhouse gas emissions can be attributed to heating water.
Devices such as shower restrictors can save water, energy and ultimately, money. In addition, fitting a high flow shower with a restrictor can produce an annual saving of 43m3 of water and 345 kg of CO2. These devices offer a relatively quick return on investment because of their low set up costs. Shower and other tap restrictors only cost around £10 and will pay for themselves within 2 or 3 years.
The only issues with many water efficiency measures is that it is very difficult to tie them in with the Green Deal’s Golden Rule. Water-efficient shower-heads, for example, are easy to remove from the property, which means people could take them with them when they leave the property. As Green Deal funding is attached to the property which benefits from the measure, this would cause major issues for the repayments and longevity of the Green Deal and it’s repayment structures. Effectively, new tenants could be left with the bill for an energy efficiency measure which somebody else is benefiting from.
Thinking of the Bigger Picture
An area of growing debate suggests that the government will struggle to stimulate participation in the Green Deal and many believe more needs to be offered in order to incentivise people to get involved. The DECC and Defra believe that by offering a more holistic and full service improvement package, more people will be keen to jump on board. After all, if you are going to invest your time into retrofitting your property, you may as well do it properly.
With this in mind, they suggest water efficiency measures should be available via Green Deal funding whether they fit with the golden rule or not. Suggestions have been made to allow additional funding to pay for water efficiency measures which could be provided by installers and suppliers and perhaps paid back at a different rate than the rest of Green Deal measures.
If the UK is to reduce its carbon emissions, the government need to look at the causes as a whole. High levels of water usage, although not the largest contributing factor, is still part of the problem and must be addressed at some point. Perhaps the Green Deal is the ideal vehicle to supply money and knowledge to UK property owners and prevent further issues before it’s too late. Funding for water efficiency measures may also work in generating greater interest in the Green Deal which, at this point, is imperative to the Green Deal’s future success.
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