Sustainability Trust, New Zealand

Transcription

1 Sustainability Trust, New Zealand Energy Efficiency Information Centres & One Stop Shops Context New Zealand has a population of around 4.5 million ( The most significant area of economic activity is agriculture. New Zealand has oil, gas and coal reserves, but is a net importer of oil. A large proportion of the electricity supply is from hydroelectricity. Government energy policy in New Zealand is led by the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority ( within the Ministry of Economic Development, and set out in the New Zealand Energy Strategy ( ), and the New Zealand Energy Efficiency and Conservation Strategy ( ). Energy efficiency is indicated as part of the answer, alongside exploitation of indigenous fossil fuel reserves and further development of both on and offshore renewable energy sources (wind, geothermal and biomass). In addition to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and the need for new energy supply, energy efficiency and conservation are considered in terms of economic benefits to households and businesses, and quality of life cobenefits such as comfort and reduced risk of damp. Headline national targets are: 90% of electricity generation to be from renewables by 2025 with the caveat that this is based on an average hydrological year, and providing it does not affect security of supply. In 2010 the figure had already reached 74%. 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 levels by 2050, and by 10-20% by To continue to achieve a rate of energy intensity improvement of 1.3% per annum. ( Developing Our Potential, New Zealand Energy Strategy, 2011) In terms of energy efficiency, there is a clear recognition of the need for a coherent package of complementary measures. For businesses, there are government programmes providing information, funding support and incentives. For homes, the Warm Up New Zealand Heat Smart programme subsidises insulation and clean heating devices for homes, where the owner or tenant meets eligibility criteria based on income, age or health vulnerability. The Sustainability Trust is one of the service providers for this programme in the Wellington region and is the focus of this case study. The Wellington region has a population of 487,700 (2011) and includes the city of Wellington, which is the capital of New Zealand but not the biggest urban area. ( Developing Our Potential, New Zealand Energy Strategy, 2011) Objective The Sustainability Trust s aim is to educate, provide practical examples of urban sustainability, and establish an environmental centre in the city of Wellington, New Zealand. Programme description Main characteristics Organisation: The Sustainability Trust, a not for profit organisation (

2 The Trust provides advice, resources, services and products that influence and improve the well-being and sustainability of households, communities and businesses in the Wellington region. The work is centred around the Trust s Eco Centre, which combines a showroom, shop and education centre. It is housed in a sustainable building, and can be hired as a venue for events, as well as having a library of resources about sustainable living. The Trust has around staff, and a similar number of volunteers. Length of establishment: Founded in Target audience (s): Households (with initiatives targeted to landlords as well as owner-occupiers), businesses and community organisations. Scope: The Sustainability Trust serves the Wellington region. It focusses on all aspects of sustainable living and workplaces, including energy and water efficiency, sustainable gardening, food and waste. Specific programmes vary over time depending on funding, but currently include advice, installations, training and seminars, hiring out of the centre facilities for relevant events, recycling facilities, and a shop for sustainable products. Community outreach and awareness-raising are strong features of the approach, and a series of fun and imaginative events are run during the year, such as a sustainable Christmas market, and kids activity and creative workshops around sustainability themes. There is also a strong ethos of helping vulnerable households, for example with subsidised insulation and with the innovative mobile curtain bank which provides free curtains, recycled from public donations, adjusted to fit and lined to make them warmer. Funding/financing model: The finance model is a mixture of funded services and some which are charged for. Income is generated from the sales of products and venue hire. The Trust also raises funds for funded services from charitable organisations and foundations and directs government funds and local authorities. As a non-profit organisation, this enables the Trust to provide services where there is a need, and assess in each case whether it is necessary to raise funding or the service can be charged out, or partially subsidised. For example, services to businesses are charged for, some of the services to households are also charged for but free services to households are funded by the government through the Warm up New Zealand programme, and local authorities. Delivery model: The Trust has an Eco-shop selling a range of products, materials, DIY equipment and books, and a well-developed programme of services for different audiences, consisting of: For Homes: Free home energy advice: home energy assessments, with a home survey to assess plumbing, heating and hot water, moisture levels, insulation and ventilation, followed by discussion with the client about ways to improve energy efficiency. Delivered by (certified) Home Performance Advisors, this typically takes about 2 hours. The client receives an action plan with recommendations about how to improve comfort and performance, and ongoing support from their Advisor. They also have access to discounted water and energy efficiency products, such as draught-stoppers, low-flow shower heads, hot water cylinder wraps and energy-efficient light bulbs Insulation: an insulation assessment and installation service is offered for homes that were built before It is available to both able to pay households and to those on lower incomes as part of a partially

3 subsidised scheme (under the national Warm Up New Zealand programme). Landlords can also claim this if their tenants and homes meet the eligibility criteria. LED lighting both sale of the products and actual installations Free advice on heating, and installations of some kinds of heating (wood burners, heat pumps and radiant heaters), supported by a loans programme that can be repaid through an addition to rates (local taxes). Free advice on hot water options, and actual installation of hot water heat pumps or solar thermal hot water. Free advice on ventilation, including a home assessment and quote for improvements, which the Trust can install, such as heat recovery and positive pressure systems. Free advice on solar PV, with a home assessment and management of the project if the household decides to install. Training and seminars: for example on home composting, and growing vegetables. For Businesses: Energy assessments: a low cost 2 hour audit, followed by an action plan with prioritised recommendations, and follow on support and advice. The business also gets a certificate to display publicly, together with social networking recognition for taking steps to reduce their environmental impact. Waste audits: a survey and analysis of the organisation s waste output, with: - a team sent in to sort a sample of business waste - a formal waste profile analysis - a report with recommendations for waste management improvements - a staff workshop to explore the impact work habits can have on the environment and the budget - a set of recycling signs for waste stations. Electronics recycling: the centre takes in electronics waste for recycling. The charges are set for each type of item. Sustainability seminars and workshops: tailored to the specific needs of the business, and run in house or at the Eco Centre. Key expertise required (delivery organisation): Energy efficiency; microgeneration and renewable heat; waste management, recycling and composting; ventilation; building physics and moisture movement; sustainable food and gardening; training; running events; consumer advice and communications; retail. Demand creation model: The Trust targets households at all income levels as well as businesses, schools, and other organisations with energy costs. In general they use standard marketing channels to reach their target groups including print media, website (adwords), social media, enews, events and tradeshows, networking and prospecting, telemarketing, direct mail, mail drops, postering etc. Low-income and vulnerable clients are also referred into the Trust s home assessment and insulation programmes through social workers and health services. Partner agencies including EECA (the government Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority), Councils, and health agencies will also conduct shared promotions that aim to demonstrate partnership between government and an energy efficiency not-for-profit. Quality Assurance & Control: Home assessors are trained and certified as Home Performance Advisors (HPA). HPA is a certification programme developed by Community Energy Network with training courses, professional development and complaints procedure.

4 Impact/evaluation Networking, workshops, and regular meetings between the Community Energy Network members ensure industry knowledge and best practice is shared. Work done under the Warmup NZ programme is quality controlled by the EECA. Products provided (insulation, solar, heating, ventilation, lighting) are covered by warranties. Educational courses for schools provided by the Trust are aligned with the New Zealand national curriculum. Educators receive training from relevant industry experts in waste, energy, gardening etc. Monitoring/evaluation schedule The Trust programmes are measured annually against a number of metrics dependent on stakeholder requirements and/or financial targets. These are internal or for funder, and are not available as published reports. For example, home energy and performance audits evaluation includes customer feedback, interventions undertaken (behavioural and product), self-reported reductions in energy use and health improvement, and overall financial and client volume targets. Product installation services are monitored for quality (in-house and EECA checks), client feedback surveys, complaints, and overall financial and volume targets. The national WarmUP NZ programme was evaluated in detail in (Ministry of Economic Development 2012). Market transformation The Trust has been involved in national efforts (HPA and Home Energy Advice Centres) to improve the quality of independent energy advice in New Zealand. To date, there has been little national policy support for NGO s to act as hubs for an integrated advice project. However the outcome of the work by Community Energy Network and EcoDesign Advisors has been the creation of local/regional hubs, such as the Trust, with expertise in independent quality advice, which constitute a ground up approach to personalised advice from non-commercial organisations. The Community Energy Network (CEN) is a national network for social enterprises/charitable trusts working in community energy efficiency. The Trust is a founder member of CEN. CEN members are generally public-good organisations so have a unique voice and approach to creating healthy homes as compared with government and the commercial sector. CEN provides members with a collective voice, national project opportunities, and opportunities for sharing best practice, training, and industry knowledge. EECA through its public service messaging campaign and other consumer programmes has done much to shift the ground for uptake of energy efficiency in homes and businesses. However, it remains to public good organisations to deliver the front end of advice and product recommendation and installation that are not product-led. Energy savings Energy savings from the work conducted by the Trust has not been documented, with the focus on providing uptake of best practice interventions. For many of the Trust s lower-income clients, energy use is already very low and the focus is more on keeping energy costs at current levels or finding financial support to allow an increase in heating. The national study of the WarmUP NZ programme concluded that most of the benefits from insulation and heating were in health gains in lower income households (Ministry of Economic Development 2012).

5 Lessons Learned The study of WarmUp NZ indicated that the gross benefits from the programme were almost five times the resource costs, taking into account health and employment benefits, as well as energy savings. The study recommended that benefits could be further enhanced by prioritising insulation compared to heating, especially for low and middle income households and other at-risk groups in terms of illness, targeting homes in cooler areas, and where clean heating is provided targeting homes using reticulated gas rather than electricity. Plans to establish a central advice programme (comparable to EST centres in the UK) did not receive any significant financial support. Organisations such as the Trust, and other Community Energy Network members now focus on delivery of best practice advice on a local and regional level. This for now appears to be the most sustainable route for the delivery of personalised advice. Local organisations work to position themselves as expert, independent brands with community benefit at heart. The majority also offer product installs and other paid services which rather than providing a conflict-ofinterest are included within the overall ethos of providing best advice and services to benefit citizens in the local area. Subsidies have helped to get good take up for home energy assessments, and the a not for profit status helps with the Trust s marketing especially if The Trust can match or beat pricing as they can show that surpluses go back into the community. The link to the Council is important as an indicator of reputability and impartiality. A viable business model is important: attracting and retaining talent in home assessments relies on having a business that has a reasonable scale and opportunity for advancement. Accompanying measures The Sustainability Trust is focussed on the Wellington area, but is active within networks across the country. Other key organisations include EcoDesign Advisors who are employed by some local councils. EDA s provide home energy advice services within their city/region and collaborate with Community Energy Network members in workshops and training. Beacon Pathway, a research consortium has also conducted significant work in housing research and advocacy for improved standards of advice in NZ. Beacon currently administers the HPA programme (in partnership with Community Energy Network and Enviroschools). References Developing our potential, New Zealand Energy Strategy ( ), and Energy Efficiency and Conservation Strategy, Ministry of Economic Development, August Available online at New Zealand s 6th National Communication, under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Ministry of the Environment, December 2013, (newzealand.govt.nz) Ministry of Economic Development (2012) Cost benefit analysis of the Warm Up New Zealand: Heart Smart Programme. ( Community Energy Network