The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and International Energy Agency (IEA) together hosted the Energy Efficiency in Buildings (EEB) China Forum in Beijing, bringing together Chinese and international business leaders, academics and government officials for a two-day conference to exchange information on energy-efficient building. The conference included keynote speakers Jiang Yi (biography in English or Chinese) of Tsinghua University and economist Fatih Birol (biography in English or Chinese ) of IEA. Noted speakers during the opening ceremony included Zhai Qi (biography in English or Chinese), chairman of China’s Business Council for Sustainable Development; Zhang Qingfeng (biography in English or Chinese), Deputy Director General of the Center of Science & Technology of Construction, Ministry of Construction; Dung Van Anh (biography in English or Chinese), Chief Representative of Lafarge China; and Jan van Dokkum (biography in English or Chinese), President of UTC Power. After the keynote speeches Bill Sisson, Director Sustainability of United Technologies Corp. presented the EEB project (presentation in English or Chinese). Almost 200 participants attended the Forum.

A public communiqué was issued about the results of this Forum, with comments from the speakers. This is the first in a series of EEB forums, worldwide.  The next Forum will be in Brussels on 28 June 2007, followed by India in autumn.

The China Forum focused on three aspects of sustainable building: integrated design, people and behavior, and achieving energy efficiency through regulation.  Participants shared information and best practices aimed at minimizing the environmental impact of buildings in China, where much of the discussion was focused on rapid urbanization and the building boom in China today.

Government, academics and business leaders in China are increasingly focusing on the environmental effects of the country’s exponential growth. China will soon be home to more than half of the world’s building construction projects and consume more energy than any other country except for the United States.  Forum participants agreed that considering these trends, energy-efficiency is a key factor in limiting environmental impacts.

The main findings from the Forum, developed in three workshops, were:

·        A major information and education campaign is necessary to raise energy efficiency in buildings awareness and the potential to make cost-effective improvements;

·        Regulations need to be unified and enforced effectively to make sure that new buildings meet energy efficiency standards;

·        The Chinese building market is a seller’s market. It is supply driven and limited attention is given to the demand for energy efficient buildings;

·        Cultural issues are important and it is necessary to build on traditional lifestyles rather than replace them with a high-energy model;

·        Available technologies are often not being used because building design and development is not integrated, and because available products are not adequately promoted by businesses;

·        Higher energy prices would help to increase attention on energy efficiency;

·        An excessive focus on urban buildings would miss an enormous opportunity in rural areas.

The integrated design workshop operated in small groups to discuss the disciplines and perspectives from conceptual design through construction, fit-out and commissioning.  The intention of the integrated design approach is to produce buildings with significant reductions in energy demand, leading to zero net energy buildings.

The workshop explored:

·        The various elements working towards an end goal of zero net energy buildings;

·        Interaction of these elements – design, behavior and regulation, etc;

·        Challenges for achieving zero net energy buildings;

·        Solutions to meet those challenges.

Key points coming from discussions included:

·        Integrated design must involve all decision-makers from the early stages, not only architects and engineers but owners, developers, financial entities, operators, etc.

·        The costs of energy efficient buildings are perceived to be more expensive initially, which creates a barrier to design. Cost for luxury items within a design are often incorrectly assigned to the costs of energy efficiency. Financing is an important issue, second only to knowledge.

·        Existing regulatory standards lack overall energy efficiency elements, and so there is no end goal towards which the designers might aim. Energy efficiency standards should be unified and holistic, not only based on individual technology applications alone.

·        Aesthetic parameters are often decided well before examination of energy consumption figures. Traditional Chinese lifestyles are more sustainable, but the influences of foreign architects are increasing the energy intensity of buildings.

·        Perception in China is that technology is available, but the will to use it lags for the reasons mentioned above.

·        Specific suggestions on integrated design, including their considerations, methodologies and challenges, were shared.

View workshop 1 abstract and Integrated Design Process guide.

Through presentations and group discussions, this workshop identified barriers and proposed remedies related to behavior within building operations and at various stages of a building’s life cycle. While there are major differences globally around the issues of quality of life, cultural behavior, geography and economical context towards energy supply and the energy use in buildings, human behavior is a key aspect in energy savings of buildings everywhere.

Barriers to energy efficient buildings in China were identified at each stage of a building’s life cycle (design, promotion, construction, operation/use, renovation and demolition):

·        The Chinese market at this time is a sellers’ market, and the demand is too high to implement green products and operations. Building occupants have little influence on the type of buildings they occupy due to this market situation.

·        There is a lack of awareness along the value chain and of the occupants of buildings as to the impact of energy efficiency on carbon levels and operating costs of a building.

·        Skills and knowledge are required from the stakeholders (architects, building contractors, project developers, customers / users, public authorities) to promote and to reach energy efficiency (use of efficient technologies and materials).

·        The power of positive public perception should be encouraged. People in respected positions should be tapped as “green champions”, as examples demonstrating good, energy efficient behavior.

·        Other barriers include a lack of specific building code standards and operational costs that are perceived as being high.

Key actions to remedy barriers include:

·        Awareness campaigns to the general public and to stakeholders in the building industry;

·        Implementation and enforcement of existing and new systematic building codes;

·        The establishment of positive examples of energy efficient buildings, by government and businesses alike, through their own operations;

·        Loans that are favorable to the energy efficiency performance of buildings;

·        The implementation of an independent inspection body for commissioning of buildings.

View workshop 2: abstract.

This workshop, led by the IEA and the Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency Partnership (REEEP), brought together Chinese and international experts on codes and standards to share experiences and new ideas to encourage energy efficiency improvements in buildings. Standards, regulatory initiatives and educational efforts all play a role in driving efficiency levels in buildings towards zero and low energy buildings.

The workshop explored Chinese and international experiences through presentations and group discussions. Overwhelmingly, discussions arose around the need for improved enforcement of codes and regulation, but also included:

·        Lack of public awareness of the impact and importance of energy efficient buildings;

·        The emphasis of the building industry on initial costs rather than life cycle costs of buildings;

·        Conflicting interest of decision-makers who often are not incentivized to become more efficient.

Workshop participants laid out actions for each of the stakeholders in the building industry to implement, and further discussed how to move beyond codes to encourage green, efficient buildings:

·        Improved education and enforcement of codes is a key first step;

·        Incentives are needed to support first cost hurdles;

·        Certification, verification and labeling of buildings will help to increase public awareness;

·        Government buildings would be a good place to start improving energy efficiency in buildings;

·        Industry should supply and better promote their energy efficient products to the marketplace, improving knowledge around this subject

View workshop 3 abstract.

After the workshop EEB members, the Chinese Ministry of Construction, the local BCSD (Chinese Business Council for Sustainable Development) and representatives from the IEA and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) met to discuss the outcomes of the Forum discussions. It was agreed to establish a taskforce between the participating companies and the Ministry of Construction under the umbrella of CBCSD to define future areas of cooperation. The aim would be to create a local EEB (CEEB: China Energy Efficiency in Buildings).

In the next phase of the project, the EEB will identify how to overcome the barriers to improved energy efficiency. This will include wide-ranging consultation, especially at further forums in target countries (China, Brazil, India, the European Union, Japan and the United States) through which the project aims to raise awareness, stimulate debate and learn from experts in the field. Finally, in 2009, the EEB will issue a call to action for everyone involved in building energy use, and present a roadmap showing how to move towards zero net energy use.

About the EEB

The Energy Efficiency in Buildings project is a three-year project co-chaired by United Technologies Corp. (NYSE:UTX) and Lafarge Group (NYSE:LR, Euronext:LG). Participating companies are developing a roadmap to focus the global building industry on designing, financing, building and operating commercial and residential structures that are completely energy self-sufficient in Brazil, China, Europe, Japan, India, and the US. The EEB project includes leading companies in the building, equipment and energy industries, including Cemex, DuPont, EDF Group, Gaz de France, Kansai Electric Power Company, Philips, Sonae Sierra and Tokyo Electric Power Company.

Additional information about the EEB project is available at www.wbcsd.org/web/eeb and the EEB blog at www.eeb-blog.org.

About the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD)

The WBCSD brings together some 190 international companies in a shared commitment to sustainable development through economic growth, ecological balance and social progress. Its mission is to provide business leadership as a catalyst for change toward sustainable development, and to support the business license to operate, innovate and grow in a world increasingly shaped by sustainable development issues. The members are drawn from more than 30 countries and 20 major industrial sectors. It also benefits from a global network of about 60 national and regional business councils and partner organizations.