The heating season has arrived, and with it the higher heating bills. No matter how hard you are trying to save on heating, your bills remain the same. And it is not surprising, given that, if we look closer at the houses in Bosnia and Herzegovina, most of them are not been completed. Houses with two or three floors are being built, of which only ground floor is habitable, while the other floors in most cases remain unfinished, without joinery and facades. During the construction the importance of energy efficiency and the quality of construction of the facility is not given.
Though investment in quality facade, good heat insulation and adequate joinery require a certain financial cost, long term will pay off. Namely, for several years, the money invested will return, and energy consumption will be reduced between 40 and 60 percent. You do not believe?
Le Hive Building in Paris, where Schneider Electric is located, the first building in the world that BREEM, the world’s most prestigious world ranking system of green construction, has awarded with six stars. Le Hive is an excellent example of a complete return on investment in just five years, using a range of energy efficiency measures and the full recycling of waste and wastewater.
With an investment of 200 million euros, average electricity consumption per square meter of the building was reduced from 150 kWh to 74 kWh, which amounts for almost 50 percent of total consumption.
This building is just one of the examples of today’s construction trends in the world, which show great interest in green construction. Eco homes, low energy, passive and solar homes are just some examples of green construction and the common is long-term savings.
However, how much BiH is following world trends when it comes to this issue, we asked experts from the Bosnia Energy Efficiency Project – BEEP project.
“As in all sectors, our country is lagging behind and in construction sector. Poor or non-existent insulation, worn windows, inadequate heating modes, as well as an inadequate method of construction led to the extremely unfavorable position of the construction sector which is reflected in the quality of life in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Green construction is not a trend, but should be a way of life that will contribute to more comfortable and safer living conditions. As a society we must take seriously this issue. It is evident that very positive things happen in the last period when it comes to this area and that really makes us happy” – said the representatives of the BEEP project.
What is the benefit of renewable energy sources shows the fact that “Houses of the Future” which cooling and electricity are derived from renewable energy sources are being built all around the world. And this is not new, the first such house was designed 1990 in Germany, and the number of green buildings globally doubles every three years.
Within the project, 18 public buildings were implemented over the past year, while 19 public buildings will be implemented this year. Results of energy consumption monitoring are already showing real benefits of energy efficiency which is one of the key objectives of the project.
