To achieve climate neutrality by 2050, the EU is revising the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) to be more ambitious in the renovation of the EU’s building stock, of which almost 75% is energy inefficient. One of the priorities of the proposal is to modernise buildings and their heating, cooling, and ventilation systems. The challenge is to design dedicated policies to ensure the needs of the 137 million people living in rural areas across Europe are taken into account, and that the focus is not just on urban dwellings. We need the green transition to be a just transition for all.
Rural Futures
ensuring rural communities
are part of the shift to green energy
suitable for everyone, everywhere.
BUILDINGS EVERYWHERE
NEED TO BE DECARBONISED
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% of EU’s building stock
is energy inefficient
0
Million people across Europe
live in rural areas
BUILDINGS EVERYWHERE
NEED TO BE DECARBONISED
In its bid to be climate-neutral by 2050, the EU is revising the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) to be more ambitious towards renovating the EU’s building stock, almost 75% of which is energy inefficient. One of the priorities of the proposal is to modernise buildings and their heating, cooling, and ventilation systems. The challenge is to design dedicated policies to ensure the 130 million people living in rural areas across Europe are included in the green transition.
0
EPBD
to be neutral by
0
Energy inefficient %
of EU’s building stock
0
Million people
in rural areas across Europe
LIQUID GASES ARE A KEY PART OF THE ENERGY PUZZLE
Electrifying heating and cooling is not the silver bullet for the decarbonisation of all buildings across all areas. The current EPBD proposal risks excluding off-gas-grid, vulnerable communities from viable heating solutions, since it will allow Member States to effectively ban boilers – a reliable and cost-effective technology that can also use renewable liquid gases which are increasingly available. Instead, the EPBD favours technologies that are unsuitable for some buildings, unaffordable for consumers, or both.
- The current EPBD proposal is limiting rural consumers to technologies that are unsuitable and unaffordable.
- The same boiler that currently uses liquid gases, such as LPG, can switch immediately to renewable liquid gases (rLG).
Liquid gases, including renewables, should therefore be a key part of the energy puzzle. Because they will allow a rapid transition.
RURAL FUTURES ASKS POLICY MAKERS TO
AVOID A DETRIMENTAL BAN ON BOILERS
Electrification is not suitable in 100% of buildings, therefore the EPBD should not limit energy solutions to electrification. A mixed technology approach, including boilers, is needed to serve the needs of specific housing types/locations. Legislation should focus on enabling the uptake of renewable fuels in households where electrification is not economically or technically feasible.
SUPPORT RENEWABLE LIQUID GASES
The current EPBD proposal’s definition of a “zero-emission building” is focusing only on on-site renewable energy generation and renewable energy from the grid. This excludes a viable range of innovative renewable energy solutions that citizens could benefit from. Renewable liquid gases (such as rLPG, bioLPG and rDME) are viable, future-proof energy sources for buildings that will be excluded unless the proposed legislation is changed.
SUPPORT IMPROVED AIR QUALITY
Liquid gases produce very low concentrations of harmful pollutants such as particulate matter and much lower than heating oil, coal or biomass. They can help contribute to air quality improvement, as well as decarbonisation. Liquid gases represent a healthier, sustainable, and cost-effective solution, especially in homes currently using coal or biomass.
ABOUTLIQUID GASES
What are liquid gases?
Liquid gases are low-pressure liquefied gases from either fossil, non-fossil, and/or renewable sources. They are composed of propane and/or butane or mixtures of the two, which can also include DME, as well as one or more other light hydrocarbons such as propane (propylene), isobutane, isobutylene, butene (butylene), ethane, with traces of other hydrocarbon gases. Their combustion emits 33% less CO2 than coal and 15% less heating oil.
Renewable liquid gases are a ‘drop-in solution’: as they become mainstream, they can immediately replace traditional liquid gases, keeping all the benefits of conventional liquid gases and bringing the low carbon benefits of renewables. They are a long-term answer to decarbonising buildings.
Cleaner
Alternative to coal and heating oil
Liquid gases are a lower carbon alternative to coal and heating oil, and offer significant environmental advantages in terms of indoors and outdoor air quality.
Available / Reliable / Flexible
Flexible and resilient heating choice
Liquid gases are available today in quantities that can meet the energy needs of millions of citizens virtually anywhere in Europe, and shall remain in abundance for the foreseeable future.
Cost-effective
Efficient heating solution
Liquid gases are the most cost-effective heating solution for rural homes, and provide an affordable route to decarbonisation in rural areas.
WHO WE ARE
Rural futures
Rural Futures is a campaign supported by Liquid Gas Europe