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RICS APC revision > Sustainability > Flashcards

Sustainability Flashcards

1
Q

How is the RICS helping introduce sustainability into practice?

A
  • Evidence-based research
  • Best practice statements e.g. Guidance Note on Sustainability and Commercial Property Valuation, 2013
  • Best practice training
  • Energy use in clients’ buildings and associated regulation (e.g. energy performance certification and minimum performance standards)
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2
Q

What legally binding commitment has the UK government made on carbon dioxide emissions?

A
  • UK Government made a legally binding commitment to cut the UK’s carbon dioxide emissions by 80% on 1990 levels by 2050 (Climate Change Act 2008)
  • This has seen been amended in 2019 for the UK to achieve “net zero carbon” by 2050
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3
Q

What legislation requires all buildings in Europe to be subject to energy labeling and energy use reduction?

A

Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD)

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4
Q

What did the UK government do in response to the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD)?

A
  • Amended the energy requirements contained in Part L of the Building Regulations
  • Introduced Energy Performance of Building Regulations
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5
Q

What are the FIVE key provisions of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD)?

A
  1. Higher standards of energy conservation for new and refurbished buildings
  2. Establishing a calculation methodology for the energy performance of all buildings
  3. Minimum requirements for the energy performance of all buildings
  4. Energy certification for all buildings when leased or sold
  5. Mandatory inspection of boilers and air conditioning systems in buildings
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6
Q

When is an EPC required?

A

EPC required for all commercial buildings over 50 sqm:

  • When it is newly built, sold or let for a term of more than 6 months (& less than 99 years). Also applies for sub-letting and assignments of leases
  • When it is newly refurbished and heating, air conditioning or ventilation services are altered, and/or the building is subject to Building Regulations for construction
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7
Q

What properties are exempt from an EPC?

A
  • Listed buildings
  • Buildings which have no heating
  • Religious buildings
  • Temporary buildings
  • Buildings due to be demolished/redeveloped
  • Residential units not occupied more than 4 months a year
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8
Q

What are the EPC requirements for marketing?

A
  • Must be commissioned within 7 days of the commencements of marketing (28-day limit for procurement)
  • Agents are responsible for procuring EPCs
  • Only the actual energy rating is required to be displayed on property and advertisements. Where space allows, the graph should be shown
  • All online marketing material must have a link to the EPC to show the front page of the EPC
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9
Q

What is included on the front page of an EPC?

A
  1. Address of property and floor area
  2. EPC certificate and reference number
  3. Technical information on the property’s energy provision
  4. Estimation of energy running costs
  5. An energy performance rating from A+ to G
  6. Benchmarking information
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10
Q

How long is an EPC valid for?

A

10 years unless the building is altered, after which a new EPC would be required

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11
Q

Where would you find an EPC?

A

EPC online register holds EPCs available for inspection

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12
Q

What are the penalties for non-compliance on displaying of EPCs? Who enforces the regulations?

A
  • Local authorities’ Trading Standards teams enforce the regulations
  • Commercial: max penalty is equal to 12.5% of the RV of the building (a minimum of £500 and maximum of £5,000 fine)
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13
Q

What do the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) as set out in the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations, 2015 require?

A

Minimum EPC rating of Level E. Implementation was in stages:
• New leases from 1 April 2018 (for both commercial and residential properties) to include lease renewals/extensions
• All existing leases from 1 April 2023 for commercial properties

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14
Q

What are the exemptions for MEES regulation compliance?

A
  • If a building does not need an EPC
  • Places of worship
  • Industrial units or workshops with a low energy demand (e.g. no heating or cooling)
  • Where the tenancy is less than 6 months with no security of tenure
  • Where the tenancy is for more than 99 years
  • When it is not feasible to improve the EPC rating to E or above even when all possible improvements with a payback of 7 years or sooner have been made. 3 quotes for relevant works must be obtained from energy assessors
  • Landlords of residential properties are required, from April 2019, to spend up to £3,500 to improve the energy efficiency of properties. A landlord who spends the full £3,500 on a property but is unable to bring the rating up to E would be entitled to register an exemption
  • When the devaluation case can be proven i.e. improvements would reduce market value of a property by more than 5%
  • When third-party consent from a tenant, landlord or planning authority for improvements is refused or conditionality cannot be reasonably met by the landlord
  • Certain types of residential lease (e.g. company lets, second homes, very high or very low rents) and landlords (i.e. public sector and social landlords)
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15
Q

Which MEES exemptions only last for 5 years and cannot be transferred on sale?

A
  • When it is not feasible to improve the EPC rating to E or above even when all possible improvements with a payback of 7 years or sooner have been made. 3 quotes for relevant works must be obtained from energy assessors
  • Landlords of residential properties are required, from April 2019, to spend up to £3,500 to improve the energy efficiency of properties. A landlord who spends the full £3,500 on a property but is unable to bring the rating up to E would be entitled to register an exemption
  • When the devaluation case can be proven i.e. improvements would reduce market value of a property by more than 5%
  • When third-party consent from a tenant, landlord or planning authority for improvements is refused or conditionality cannot be reasonably met by the landlord
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16
Q

Where must MEES exemptions be registered?

A

Exemptions must be pre-registered on the Local Authority Private Rented Sector Exemptions Register and renewed five-yearly

17
Q

What did the government’s consultation on the expansion of MEES find in October last year?

A
  • Preferred trajectory: minimum EPC rating of B by 1 April 2030
  • Alternative trajectory: minimum EPC rating of C by 1 April 2030
18
Q

What are the penalties for non-compliance with MEES?

A
  • Breach has lasted less than 3 months – up to £5,000 or (if greater) 10% of the Rateable Value with a maximum penalty of £50,000
  • Where a breach has lasted more than 3 months – up to £10,000 or (if greater) 20% of the Rateable Value with a maximum penalty of £150,000
19
Q

Who polices non-compliance with MEES?

A

Local authority

20
Q

What is the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS)?

A

Energy assessment scheme that is mandatory for large organisation in the UK (more than 250 employees, turnover more than €50m and an annual balance sheet total of €43m)

21
Q

What does the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS) require of participating organisations?

A
  • Measure total energy consumption across buildings, transport and industrial activities
  • Conduct energy audits to identify cost-effective energy efficiency recommendations
  • Report compliance to the Environment Agency
22
Q

What are the Heat Network (Billing and Metering) Regulations, 2014?

A
  • Provision of communal heating systems in multi-occupied commercial and residential schemes and to district heating systems
  • Final consumers must be provided with accurate meter reading / bill information and competitively priced individual meters
23
Q

What is the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) Energy Efficiency Scheme?

A
  • CRC is to be scrapped following the Government’s Business Energy Taxation Review (2015)
  • Was replaced by the Climate Change Levy (CCL) in 2019
24
Q

What is the Climate Change Levy (CCL)?

A
  • Tax on energy delivered to non-domestic users in the United Kingdom. It was introduced as an incentive to increase energy efficiency within businesses and so to reduce carbon emissions
  • Consumers are charged by their energy providers who forward the c.£1.9 bn per annum to the UK Treasury
  • Energy generated from renewable sources is exempt from CCL
25
Q

What are Display Energy Certificates (DECs)?

A
  • Display the actual energy used and carbon dioxide emissions
  • Required for public buildings over 250 sqm
26
Q

What does BREEAM stand for?

A

Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method

27
Q

What is a BREEAM rating?

A

A voluntary environmental assessment tool to rate new and refurbished commercial and residential buildings.
They are commonly being required to support planning applications

28
Q

What are some of the environmental standards that BREEAM assessors have reference to?

A
  • Energy consumption
  • Water use
  • Transport links
  • Waste management
  • Health & wellbeing
29
Q

What are the FIVE BREEAM ratings?

A
  • Pass
  • Good
  • Very good
  • Excellent
  • Outstanding
30
Q

Other than BREEAM, what are some of the other building environmental assessment tools?

A
  • LEED (Leadership in Energy and Design – USA)
  • DGBN (Germany)
  • HQE (France)
  • NABERS (Australia)
31
Q

How did the government amend the Climate Change Act 2008 in 2019?

A

Required the UK to achieve “net zero carbon” by 2050

32
Q

What have a number of leading UK property funds and REITs done to commit to achieving net zero carbon by 2050?

A
  • Formed the Better Buildings Partnership (BBP) pledge.
  • Have published various toolkits to provide guidance to owners and occupiers on how to achieve reductions in their energy, water and waste in buildings
33
Q

What is included in the UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) framework to achieve a net zero carbon building?

A
  • Establish Net Zero Carbon Scope – needs to be across the whole life of buildings i.e. carbon emissions associated with construction, use, refurbishment and demolition
  • Reduce Construction Impacts – developers need to focus on changing the material they use as well as building (and their systems’) designs
  • Reduce Operation Energy Use – landlords need to consider how to best retrofit efficiency measures into their buildings and how to work with occupiers to make these work
  • Increase Renewable Energy Supply on-site and offsite
  • Offset any Remaining Carbon – e.g. planting trees. This is the last resort
34
Q

How can the health and wellbeing of building occupants be measured?

A
  • Some developers are using the WELL Building Standard
  • This is a standard for buildings to be rated in respect of spaces that can optimise the health and mental wellbeing of occupiers
35
Q

What is “place making”?

A

Ensuring buildings and their environs contribute positively to occupiers and the community

36
Q

What is a green lease?

A
  • Will typically seek to ensure that landlords and tenants share information about the use of energy, water and waste arising in a building
  • The Better Buildings Partnership (BBP) has a Green Lease Toolkit with best practice recommendations for model forms of clauses
37
Q

What is the RICS Ska Rating scheme?

A

Measures a building’s fit out sustainability, with a gold, silver or bronze rating awarded

38
Q

What efficient construction solutions are developers using?

A
  • Renewable materials and technologies such as solar, wind, biomass and heat pumps to achieve a low carbon emission solution and a reasonable payback period
  • The building aspect and use of natural daylight to take advantage of solar gain
  • Effective energy management & monitoring systems and increased awareness of other areas of sustainable management relating to waste, water and procurement of good and services

RICS APC revision (9 decks)

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