According to information from SPIEGEL ONLINE, Deutsche Bank does not want to put any more money into mines and power plants. Existing loans in projects are to be gradually reduced.
Read the news from 1 February 2017 on: SPIEGEL ONLINE - Economy
In the current issue of the timber construction magazine "Mikado", the design of the first construction site of Germany's largest timber housing estate is presented: https://www.mikado-online.de/wp-content//uploads/2017/05/2017_06_Geschosswohnungsbau_Muenchen.pdf
In the Ecological model settlement in Prinz Eugen Park in Munich, a total of more than 600 residential units are to be built in timber or timber hybrid construction. According to the Mikado article, all plots of land for the model housing estate, which is up to seven storeys high, have already been allocated.
Keywords:
Wood construction, News Blog Bavaria, Quarters, Settlements
In Argentina today, the twenty largest industrialised and emerging countries are discussing ways and means to use natural resources such as raw materials, water and land more efficiently and sparingly. State Secretary Jochen Flasbarth is opening the conference in Puerto Iguazú today together with Argentina's Environment Minister Bergman. Argentina, which currently holds the presidency of the G20, is thus continuing a political initiative by Germany.
Flasbarth: "If we reduce our resource consumption in the industrialised countries, it will also be easier for us to make progress on climate protection. We need prosperity that makes do with fewer resources. The World Resources Council has shown that we can also benefit economically from this, because resource efficiency is an engine for innovation and new jobs."
According to calculations by the World Resources Council (International Resource Panel), annual raw material consumption of currently 85 billion tonnes by 2050 to 186 billion tonnes if no countermeasures are taken. Resource efficiency and climate protection, on the other hand, could reduce raw material consumption by 28% and greenhouse gas emissions by over 60%, while at the same time increasing global economic output by 1%.
At the G20 Summit in Hamburg in July 2017, the heads of state and government had decided, at Germany's suggestion, to hold an annual G20 Resources Dialogue. After a kick-off meeting in Berlin in November 2017, the conference in Puerto Iguazú is the second meeting of the new governance process. The Resource Dialogue will meet in Puerto Iguazú from 28-29 August, ahead of a G20 working group on climate change.
Back in 2012, Germany was one of the first countries in the world to adopt a national resource efficiency programme (ProgRess). The aim of the programme is to use fewer raw materials and promote the use of recycled materials throughout the entire economic cycle - from raw material extraction to product design and production processes, our consumption patterns and the circular economy.
You can find examples of resource-efficient settlements and urban quarters at
www.ressourceneffiziente.siedlungen.eu
Source: BMU-PM of 27.8.2018
Keywords:
Stakeholders, Renewable, News Blog Europe (without DE), Resource efficiency, Environmental policy
The German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB e.V.) has published a new report explaining how buildings can contribute to the United Nations' global sustainability goals. The publication compares the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with the potential influence of sustainable planning and construction. Architects and planners, as well as building owners and municipalities, are thus provided with orientation as to how they can meaningfully become active in terms of sustainable development. The report also offers a comparison of the SDGs with the criteria of various DGNB certification systems. This shows: Up to 15 of the 17 SDGs are addressed in the context of the DGNB certification of a building project.
The SDGs are part of the 2030 Agenda, which was adopted by all member states of the United Nations in September 2015. With the goals, the international community is committed to socially, economically and ecologically sustainable development. "In many countries, the SDGs are actively lived and used as a common basis for communication," says Dr. Christine Lemaitre, Executive Director of the DGNB. "In Germany, and in particular also in the construction and real estate industry, on the other hand, we still have a lot of catching up to do. And this is despite the fact that the sector plays a key role in achieving the goals."
Almost all SDGs are addressed in construction
With the new report, the DGNB wants to help increase awareness of the SDGs in the building sector and ensure that they are understood as orientation and added value in planning and communication. "We wanted to present the topic in such a way that the direct link between the SDGs and sustainable construction is conveyed in a way that is easy to understand," says Lemaitre.
The publication introduces the reader to the topics of the 2030 Agenda, identifies specific areas of impact and provides impetus for how each individual can make a contribution to the SDGs. It also shows why the construction industry is of particular importance for achieving the goals and which 15 SDGs are specifically addressed. In addition, the report takes a closer look at the six SDGs that are particularly relevant for the building sector:
DGNB certification as an instrument for implementing the SDGs
A special focus of the publication is on the interlinking of the SDGs with different variants of the DGNB system. For this purpose, the different criteria of the DGNB certification of new buildings, buildings in operation and quarters were reviewed for their linkage to the UN goals.
"The DGNB system translates the SDGs into building practice and closes the gap between the big, global goals and real implementation," explains Lemaitre. "With the new report, interested parties can now see at a glance which SDGs a certified project contributes to," says Lemaitre. "The certification is thus also suitable as a communication tool for all building owners and can be integrated into the sustainability reporting of companies and municipalities."
Publication available via the DGNB website
The new DGNB Report "Building for a Better World" is available in a digital version via www.dgnb.de/publikationen available free of charge. In the near future, it will also be possible to order the publication in printed form free of charge. An English version is also planned.
Keywords:
DE-News, DGNB, New books and studies, SDG 2030, Certification & Labels
On 22.12.2020, the Senate passed the first legal ordinance on the Hamburg Climate Protection Act. This regulates the concrete implementation of the solar roof obligation and the integration of renewable energies when replacing heating systems. With these regulations, Hamburg is one of the pioneers in climate protection in the building sector nationwide.
Together with the Climate Protection Act, the Climate Plan was adopted. This comprises more than 400 individual measures and is one of the city's most important climate and economic stimulus projects. The Climate Protection Act provides, among other things, for an obligation to install photovoltaic systems on the roofs of new buildings in Hamburg from 2023. For existing buildings, where the roof cladding is completely renewed, the obligation will take effect from 2025. From mid-2021, a minimum proportion of the heating energy requirement must be covered by renewable energies when the heating system is replaced. The details and exemptions to the new requirements are set out in the legal ordinance that has just been issued. . BUKEA estimates the potential savings from the photovoltaic obligation at 60,000 tons of CO2 by 2030.
The principle of economic efficiency also applies to the roofs: solar energy should pay for itself, for which the environmental authority bases an amortisation period of 20 years for photovoltaic systems. If, in individual cases, the payback period should be longer, the obligation does not apply. However, the environmental authority assumes that many systems will pay for themselves in a much shorter period and will also run for longer than 20 years. Exceptions are provided for in individual cases where the installation of a photovoltaic system is technically impossible or competes with other unavoidable uses.
A minimum size for the photovoltaic system was not specified, so that the obligated parties can choose a system that corresponds to their economic interests and allows a coexistence with other roof uses, such as the combination with a green roof.
Jens KerstanSenator for the Environment, Climate, Energy and Agriculture: "The EU, the federal government and also Hamburg must make great efforts to achieve the climate targets from the Paris Agreement. The public sector is just as much in demand here as industry, commerce and private individuals. We can and must all make a significant contribution to buildings through renewable electricity and climate-friendly heating. Especially in densely built-up urban areas, it is important to use suitable areas, preferably several times.
Hamburg's roofs offer enormous potential for the expansion of solar energy. The technology is mature, proven and has become increasingly economical and efficient over the past 20 years. It is now standard practice in more ambitious building projects. With the Climate Protection Act we have introduced the obligation that the solar energy potential on the roofs of our city is used. In the future, at least 15 percent of the heat for buildings must be produced from renewable energies when heating is replaced - with the legal ordinance passed by the Senate today, we are defining the content of the legal criteria.
With the support of renowned experts, we now have a legal regulation with a sense of proportion and comprehensible criteria for the evaluation of exceptions. It is now a matter of implementing these with all those involved. The city's skilled trades will play an important role in this. With regard to the minimum share of 15 percent renewable energies in new heating systems, we are relying on reliable and proven technologies such as the use of biomass, solar thermal energy and environmental heat, but also on technical innovations such as fuel cell technology in the future.
Wherever there is the possibility of connecting to a heating network that can supply heat with a corresponding share of renewable energies, this simple option can and should also be used. The expansion of heating networks and heat production with more renewable energies is another important component of the heat transition in Hamburg. With a view to the financial implications for owners and tenants in this city, we link the obligation to the economic viability of the measures. The use of more renewable energies should also prevent the costs of electricity and heating in Hamburg from rising in the long term. The housing industry can make so-called tenant electricity offers to its tenants and thus allow tenants to participate in the energy transition. This is already expressly permitted by the Climate Protection Act, and the conditions for tenant electricity models have just been considerably improved in the Renewable Energies Act (EEG) of the Federal Government. With these regulations, Hamburg is one of the pioneers in climate protection nationwide."
Dr. Veit Bürger, Deputy Head of the Energy & Climate Protection Division (Freiburg) at the Öko-Institut advised the environmental authority on the drafting of the ordinance and explains: "The obligation to use renewable energies is an important step for Hamburg's climate protection. The heat turnaround will only succeed if more renewable heat energies are used in existing buildings. Our calculations show that for each of the building types examined, there are different variants with which a homeowner can meet the new obligation in an economical way."
Gerhard Stryi-Hipp, Head of the Smart Cities Group at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems in Freiburg and also an expert for the legal ordinance, says of Hamburg's photovoltaic obligation: "With the PV obligation designed in this way, Hamburg has created a well-founded set of regulations that stimulates the necessary expansion of solar energy without overburdening the obligated parties."
In view of the economic and cyclical consequences of the Corona pandemic, an increased expansion of solar systems and renewable heat systems offers a great opportunity to strengthen the local and regional economy and value creation, while at the same time advancing the energy transition even faster. This applies to the entire value chain, from planning to installation by craftsmen and women. Every new building and every building renovation offers an opportunity for the economy and for climate protection. The environmental authority will support the implementation of the new obligations with accompanying information materials and advisory services.
Info on the net:
Background information on the climate protection law: www.hamburg.de/klimaschutzgesetz
Legal ordinance on the Climate Protection Act: t.hh.en/14762816
Hamburg Climate Protection Act (HmbKliSchG)
Source: PM of the City of Hamburg from 22 December 2020
Keywords:
DE-News, Renewable, Climate protection, Communities, News Blog Hamburg, PV, Transition Town, Environmental policy, Housing
