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Energy Efficiency Panel
18/09/2007
Climate Change Minister Stewart Stevenson today joined international experts who will help Scotland improve energy efficiency for a meeting in Edinburgh.
An expert panel which includes experts from Norway, Denmark and Austria along with Scottish designers, developers and contractors, recommend measures to make houses and buildings in Scotland more energy efficient.
The Scottish Government wants to see new-build houses meeting the same standards that exist in Scandinavia, allowing householders to significantly reduce their energy use and energy bills.
Mr Stevenson said:
"Scotland already leads the UK in the energy standards set by our building regulations. The expert panel helps us ensure we are doing everything possible to raise standards even further, to save energy and tackle climate change.
"The international expertise here today is looking at that challenge. I thank them for their work and I look forward to receiving the panel's report by the end of the year."
Paul Stollard, Chief Executive of the Scottish Building Standards Agency, said:
"We want to ensure that new and existing buildings in Scotland require as little energy as possible and produce as few carbon emissions as possible. I am hopeful that the expert panel can develop a route map that will enable us to guide the whole construction industry forward to that goal over the next decade."
The membership of the Expert panel is:
- Chair - Lynne Sullivan, Sustainability Director, Broadway Malyan Architects - Invited Members
- Sebastian Tombs, Chief Executive, Architecture & Design, Scotland
- Jonathan Fair, Scottish Director, Building Research Establishment (BRE)
- Michael Levack, Chief Executive, Scottish Building
- Kenneth Ross, Vice-Chairman, Scottish Property Federation
- David Little, Head of Technical Services, Homes for Scotland
- Olav Berge, Director General, National Office of Technology & Administration, Norway
- Rainer Mikulits, Managing Director, Austrian Institute of Construction & Engineering, Austria
- Jan Kurt Rendboe, Chairman, Institute of Danish Building Control
- Dr David Vincent, Director of Technology, Carbon Trust
- Paul Tuohy, Research Fellow, Institute of Energy & Environment, Energy Systems Research Unit, University of Strathclyde
- Mike Thornton, Director, Scotland, Energy Saving Trust
Building Standards Advisory Committee Members
- David Wedderburn, Chair
- Stephen Garvin, Building Research Director, BRE Scotland
- Malcolm Macleod Director, NHBC for Scotland
- Other BSAC Members to be decided
Details of the European members are as follows:
AUSTRIA
Austrian Institute of Construction Engineering (OIB) Österreichisches Institut für Bautechnik (OIB The Austrian Institute of Construction Engineering is a private association founded by the nine Austrian Laender. It is responsible for any co-ordination in the construction field, especially with regard to legislation, standardisation and approvals. The OIB represents the Laender in the Standing Committee on Construction and in the Preparatory Group within the European Commission. In addition, the OIB is the Austrian European Technical Approval Body and a member of the European Organisation for Technical Approvals (EOTA).
DENMARK
Dansk Bygningsinspektørforening An association of leading civil servants which operates within the public sector and engages in planning all constructional matters including building control. The object of the Association is to provide a forum where matters of co-ordination and harmonization may be discussed and guidance disseminated. Its aim is to achieve safe and healthy buildings with high quality construction.
NORWAY
National Office of Building Technology and Administration The Office is the government agency responsible for:
- administering and revising national building regulations
- the surveillance of local authority building control
- the market control of building products
- the approval of undertakings performing design, execution and control work and the provision of guidance and information related to these tasks