Climate Change Committee Report: The Retrofit Angle

A Lesson From Our Lived Experience

Everyone who was alive during the credit crash of 2008 knows the results, because we are living with the effects of it now. Austerity.

Your money was used to bail out private corporations after the experts in charge failed to understand Credit Default Swaps and other financial mechanisms.

The general public were largely kept in the dark about the deals being done, but what happened was the beginning of a 'land grab' which slowly, over time has resulted in an ever smaller cohort of people maintaining control over a larger amount of wealth.

The physical impact of this process has been witnessed by individuals as the middle class get squeezed, and the vulnerable working poor slip into debt and fuel poverty.

The government is limited in what it can do to 'claw back' money given away in these circumstances, and the general public is forced to sigh, shrug shoulders and move on.

But the mistake made at this point is to presume that people aren't noticing. They are. Millions of people are right now noticing that they can't afford basics. So they are looking for reasons to take action.

Or, if they fall victim to disinformation, they're targeting scapegoats held up for them to focus on by expedient politicians.

Flip Flops and Mountains

The Climate Change Committee report for this February provides a huge wealth of data, crunched into almost manageable chunks, by eminent scientists and scholars.

One of the hardest challenges of presenting this data is making it relatable to individuals. And scientists could do with a little help in marketing this all, as could government.

There is a fear amongst leaders that apathy towards Net Zero will kick in and we'll have a 'Rimmer effect', because not being able to afford time to eat and have a warm house concentrates your mind more than ethereal targets on climate. Or does it?

People are not stupid.

When you physically experience a flood. You take notice.

As you witness hardly any snow, most of a winter, you notice.

‘I don’t know whether it’s sustainable’: climate crisis and TikTok change face of mountain rescue work in Lake District

There may be less snow but the number of callouts has surged, and often involve ill-prepared novice hikers

The GuardianHannah Al-Othman

And now the effects of climate change, unlike CDS mechanisms, are much easier to grasp. Because we can see them. With our eyes. And feel them.

Why Retrofit Is Important

In the opening summary of the Climate Change Committee "Seventh Carbon Budget" there are fives routes recommended towards achieving Net Zero.

1. Electricity
2. Low-Carbon Fuels and CCS
3. Nature
4. Engineered removals
5. Demand

As a retrofit professional, you'll know that 1, and 5 are within your realm of control. Further into the report, there is a stunning graphic which shows quite how much of an impact retrofit needs to have - because option 5, 'Demand', is already being decarbonised;

As you can see, electric supply has dived into 5th place as the second lowest carbon emitter, whilst residential buildings has remained in a fairly stubborn, stable position. As the report states;

Household low-carbon choices contribute to one-third of emissions reduction in 2040. From an emissions perspective, the most impactful decisions most households will make are purchasing an electric car and a heat pump. Choices such as meat and dairy consumption and flying make smaller, but important contributions.

So it is disappointing, that today our news reports feature this story;

UK urged to act now on net zero – and skip two kebabs’ worth of meat a week

Climate Change Committee issues advice to government on meeting carbon emissions target by 2050

The GuardianFiona Harvey

With kebabs used as a message rather than EV's or heat pumps. This misguided, classist, click bait story telling, is just not helpful.

If you are in retrofit, you are one of the most important tools in decarbonising the second largest emitter.

If you are thinking of getting into retrofit. You'll be doing a job with value.

In a sector that needs a little bit more image management and some sexy story telling, but you're on the right side of the fence.

Working On The Retrofit Story

There is no Central Office of Information now, but if there was, it should be selling the virtue and joy of a decarbonised home.

There is no other quicker way of getting the publics attention, than a messaging body responsible for delivering Net Zero action plans.

We interviewed one of they researchers who told us how to market retrofit, and we know as a direct result of our experience with fizzy pop ads, that you can market useless, sugar filled drinks to millions of people. So when will it take the great minds of the ad industry to burst through with a retrofit sexy message onto our screens?

Watch this space. They are coming.

Building Homes Is Not The Answer - Here's Why

Building 1.5 million homes is, quite simply a waste of time and will blow the carbon budget.

Also, the only people who will benefit from new homes are the existing wealth holders that dominate our residential building sector.

It is a fallacy to expect, as the report hopes;

"The Balanced Pathway assumes that all new homes are highly efficient and have low-carbon heating systems."

or again as wished for later in the report;

"Planning frameworks and standards must ensure new homes that are built today do not need to be retrofitted in future to meet emissions and adaptions goals."

With a variety of claims on 'unoccupied properties' there is other option for building. Vacant properties should be mandated for re-use, because putting pounds in the pockets of property magnates is a vote winner for some, but we, the people will lose out.

What Does The Report Recommend?

We read the report to find the recommendations you need to know about. Here's the core recommendations for residential housing;

• Electrification of heating is central to eliminating emissions from homes. Heat pumps will be the dominant low-carbon heating technology, with a limited role for other electric heating options. There is no role for hydrogen heating in residential buildings.
• Energy efficiency measures are an important part of our pathway, providing near-term reductions in emissions and energy demand, and lower fuel bills. Energy efficiency measures also reduce fuel poverty and deliver health benefits.
• A rapid increase in deployment of low-carbon heating and energy efficiency measures is essential. The UK is behind many other similar countries in rolling out heat pumps. Energy efficiency measures have also been delivered at a much slower rate than required. But experience in similar countries shows rapid uptake is possible with the right incentives in place.
• Households will need better incentives to adopt low-carbon heating, including cheaper electricity. Uptake will need to be incentivised through a combination of regulations and financial support. Loans and grant funding will be necessary for some households to meet the upfront costs, and incentives or regulations will be required for landlords to ensure tenants in private rented housing can access low-carbon heating.
• Supply chains for low-carbon heating and energy efficiency need to be scaled up rapidly. The domestic heating industry urgently needs to develop a workforce with the skills to design, install, and service heat pumps at scale.

What Can I Do?

Just keep doing what you can, do be the best retrofitter out there. You're doing a great job. Keep doing it. We're gonna win.