European Union to Mandate Very-Low Energy Buildings by 2020
Article: Energy efficiency: only very low-energy buildings to be built after 2020
This is extremely progressive, multinational legislation regarding the energy use of the built environment on the European Continent. This bill shows that the EU member states are serious about the making policies to achieve the major economic, resource management, consumer, and environmental gains possible through mandatory building energy efficiency standards.
>>> Do you think such policies are possible here in America? What are the barriers and opportunities for achieving similar goals?
Are there other areas of discussion on this topic? Please comment below.
Comments
Anything is possible in America
Anything is possible in America- eventually. And, I would hope Europe's leadership in this area would inspire us to get crackin'. more specifically, as this comes from the EU- it illustrates that such policy goals can be implemented in a federal system. The EU has even less authority over member states than our federal government has compared to states- if they can set goals like this, America should be able to follow suit.
Monica Schneider - May 18, 2010 1:12pm
Possible in a very, very distant future
Just look at their current cars, their food portions, not to mention their homes - most things European are more compact than those corresponding items in the United States. Smaller size is an advantage in the case for energy efficient upgrades. Even without the new legislation, European nations are a few steps ahead of the U.S., whose citizens are ingrained with the "bigger is better" mantra from birth. Changing the U.S. mindset will take more than a federal mandate...what exactly is required for this change is difficult to determine, let alone implement.
Perhaps the U.S. needs to initiate a new mantra: "Compact is cost-effective/cute"? Let's make it a contest...
Judise - January 12, 2011 12:08pm