Carbon Footprints

Most people by now have some understanding about ‘carbon foot prints’ and that we are being made to separate our garden rubbish and food waste, unwanted paper, bottles and plastics for recycling.

‘The Energy Performance in Buildings Directive’ laid down in Parliament in March 2007 requires all buildings to have in place an EPC before either a sale or letting. The EPC under the terms of directive will be valid for a period of ten years.

In essence you property is going to have its own carbon footprint taken. We will grade the energy efficient a property has by means of its carbon emissions. The grading will be from a scale ranging from A to G – A being the most efficient and G being the least.

Obviously if it is a good footprint it is going to be a selling point for your property and will be more attractive to applicants as the energy bills are likely to be less the higher the band. It is therefore worth taking the EPCs seriously.

EPC’s are a result of the European Union Directive 2002/91/EC, which came about as a result of the Kyoto Summit Protocol which tried to cut back the amount of global energy consumed. This was incorporated into the 2004 Housing Act which requires all housing in the UK to have EPC’s by 2009.

What has this to do with you?

Over 45% of the Britain’s energy resources come from domestic use – either heating, lighting or other household devices.
The EPC will tell you what can be done in your property to improve its carbon footprint.

The information collated from this report will enable you to contribute towards the Global footprint, in some cases you could obtain grants towards improving the energy efficiency of your home.

You can find out more about the EPC at www.homeinformationpack.gov.uk