Regulations and Government Policies

Building regulations that incorporate obligations for solar hot water are the single most powerful tool for promoting increased use of renewable energy in our homes.

Among other benefits, solar regulations create critical mass, economies of scale and send strong signals to construction professionals all of which are needed to bring about the transformation of traditional building practices and energy use.

The City of Vancouver is currently leading the way in British Columbia with the implementation of their Green Homes Program. This package of building by-law and new requirements for one and two family dwellings that will make the Vancouver building code for low rise residential construction the most comprehensive green building code in North America.

The Green Homes Program incorporates ‘Solar Ready’ requirements that every new house must be equipped with two 50 mm (2 inch) pipes that run from the home’s service room (where the water tank is) to the attic. This will allow for the future installation of roof-mounted solar energy generating equipment.

A decade ago, the idea of making the use of solar or renewable energy compulsory sounded radical to most parts of the world but now solar obligations have been adopted or are being discussed in a number of countries, regions and municipalities in Europe. The European Solar Thermal Industry is also leading the way in countries overseas with regards to promoting the use of renewables, specifically solar, in new buildings.

The following countries and municipalities are leading the way with Solar Hot Water Regulations in Europe.

You can find more information on the specific regulations in each jurasdiction on the European Solar Thermal Industry (ESTI) website. In addition ESTI has also developed a comprehensive analysis of the structure of solar obligations and best-practice guidelines.

Spain

At the national level, the new Spanish Technical Buildings Code (CTE) was adopted in March 2006, and its solar thermal section came into force on 29 September 2006.

The City of Barcelona has been the pioneer for Solar Regulations in Europe. The first Solar Ordinance came into force in 2000 and required that a certain share of the domestic hot water demand be supplied by solar thermal, in new buildings and those undergoing major refurbishment

Inspired by the positive experience of Barcelona, dozens of municipalities under administration of different political colours approved solar obligations in Madrid and all over Spain.

Israel

Israel is the country with the oldest solar obligation, in force since 1980. The law's success has made it largely superfluous: today, more than 90% of Israel's solar thermal market are in the voluntary segment, like installation on existing buildings, or systems bigger than required by law.

Germany

All new homes built in Germany from January 1st 2009 will be required to install renewable energy heating systems under a new law called the Renewable Energies Heating Law.

The German federal government's new renewable energy heating law, which is set to be passed by parliament next year, is part of a comprehensive package of measures that aims to reduce the country's carbon emissions by 40% by 2020 when compared to 1990. The government is allocating 350 million euros [US $517 million] each year in grants for homeowners to install renewable energy systems such as solar panels, wood pellet stoves and boilers and heat pumps. Homeowners will have to use renewable energy sources to meet 14% of a household's total energy consumption for heating and domestic hot water.

The state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany has already passed a law requiring all building plans for new houses submitted after April 1st 2008 to include renewable energy heating systems. People building new homes there will have to install a renewable heating technology that can provide 20% of the household's heating and domestic hot water needs.

The City of Vellmar set the installation of solar thermal system as a preliminary condition for the authorisation to construct in a new development area. The German Federal government, as well as the government of the State of Baden-Württemberg are currently discussing the introduction of renewable heat obligations.

Italy

Following the example of the town of Carugate, local solar obligations are in force in a number of small municipalities around Milan. A municipal obligation is in advanced state of discussion in the City of Rome.

Ireland

Starting at the end of 2005, a number of Irish local authorities introduced building energy standards as part of planning requirements in their jurisdiction. These building energy standards require a substantial increase in the energy performance of new buildings (between 40% and 60% reduction in energy usage) as well as a mandatory contribution of renewable energy to their thermal energy requirement.

Portugal

And neighbouring Portugal quickly followed the Spanish example with their own regulation. The new Portuguese buildings code includes an obligation to install solar thermal systems or some other form of renewable energy providing a similar energy saving. The obligation only covers certain buildings. Amongst other restrictions, it applies to buildings with a South-East to South-West oriented roof surfaces. The solar system should have a minimum dimension of 1m2 per person assumed occupancy in the building.