Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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209. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the carbon emissions from public hospitals; and the way in which this compares with EU averages. [27127/19]

Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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210. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the new initiatives that will be rolled out to improve the energy efficiency of public hospitals as referenced in the Climate Action Plan 2019. [27128/19]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 209 and 210 together.

The Public Sector Energy Efficiency Strategy mandates the public sector, including the Health Service Executive and voluntary hospitals, to improve energy efficiency by 33% by 2020. Progress is reported annually by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) and the most recent report, covering the period to 2017, is available at:

This records that, by the end of 2017, cumulative energy efficiency improvements of 24% were achieved, equivalent to a cumulative emissions saving of 3.6 million tonnes CO2 eq.

Specific results for the health sector are also published by SEAI online at:

This records that the HSE and acute hospitals in 2017 accounted for 1,542 GWh, or 15% of total energy demand (including electricity consumed), in the public sector in 2017. Based on energy savings achieved, relevant bodies have achieved cumulative emissions savings of 463,000 tonnes CO2 eq. Energy and emissions savings data in 2017 for individual organisations, including those in the health sector, is also available online at .

SEAI actively supports energy efficiency in hospitals, helping those bodies save energy through a structured management approach. Targeted capital supports are also provided for developing project pipelines. For the HSE specifically, SEAI funds an Energy Bureau, which includes the following supports:

- energy awareness teams

- targeting the top 50 energy-using facilities

- developing a project pipeline

- behavioural and low cost projects

- energy strategy development for 2020 and 2030

I am informed that the monitoring and reporting system employed by SEAI for the purposes of the Public Sector Energy Efficiency Strategy is unique to Ireland, and there is currently no basis for comparing energy-related emissions from public hospitals in different EU Member States.

I published the Government's Climate Action Plan on 17 June. The Plan sets out, for the first time, how Ireland can reach its 2030 targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and also puts Ireland on the right trajectory towards net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. The Plan commits to reducing public sector emissions by 30% and improving the public sector energy efficiency by 50% by 2030.

The Plan also includes a commitment to require each public body to adopt a Climate Action Mandate. The mandate will involve a ‘core’ group of requirements that every public body will have to meet, and a wider set that should be pursued by larger organisations. The core requirements will have specific timelines for their introduction, be clearly measureable against a set of key performance indicators, and may include the following:

- every public building with public access to display an up-to-date Display Energy Certificate

- pursuing and reporting on resource efficiency actions across all public facilities, including measures to reduce food waste, promote water conservation, waste segregation, reuse and recycling practices

- collaborating with suppliers and service providers in joint decarbonisation initiatives, including working with clients to adopt low carbon approaches such as the development of clusters

In addition, large public bodies may be required to commit to other measures such as:

- achieving formal environmental accreditation, such as EMAS or ISO 14001, and ISO 50001

- a proportion of energy to come from certified renewable sources and/or onsite renewables

- active management of equipment containing refrigerant gases, including maintenance and disposal planning

Noel Grealish (Galway West, Independent)
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211. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if his attention has been drawn to the complete pro-energy retrofit packages available from some credit unions in the market; if his intent in the Climate Action Plan 2019 is that persons should refrain from retrofitting in the interim and wait for grant schemes to be in place; if such schemes will have retrospective funding options; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27145/19]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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The Proenergy project is supported by Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) under the Better Energy Finance Pilot Programme. The project is a collaboration between Retrofit Energy Ireland Limited (REIL), the Credit Union Development Association (CUDA) and the Solution Centre, together with over 20 credit unions across the Dublin, South West and Galway regions (including a number of staff-based credit unions).

The project offers a one stop shop to Credit Union members to upgrade the energy efficiency of their homes.

Under the project, REIL will provide a free survey and advice on a home upgrade, and will arrange quotes and quality assure works, as well as discounting the SEAI grant from the cost of works. They are partnering with CUDA and 20 Credit Unions to provide low cost finance at a maximum of 6.9% interest rate, for the costs of works. In addition, REIL will cover the cost of the first year’s finance with the Credit Union on behalf of participating householders. It is hoped to upgrade over 200 homes under this pilot project.

The Proenergy project is the latest in a series of trials and pilots on financing conducted under the Better Energy Finance Pilot Programme. Other initiatives supported by the Programme include testing employer salary incentive schemes and deep retrofit projects with bank finance. In 2018, this has extended to a number of pilots with a consumer finance house, flexifi.

The Better Energy Finance Pilot is, in turn, part of the Better Energy Programme, which is funded by my Department and operated by the SEAI. The Programme consists of three main schemes which provide grants to homeowners to improve their energy efficiency: Homes, Warmer Homes and Communities. These schemes are supplemented by two pilot schemes exploring the multiple benefits of energy efficiency and the challenges of moving to deeper retrofit: Warmth and Wellbeing Scheme and the Deep Retrofit Pilot. I have allocated €85m to this Programme in 2019.

The recently published Climate Action Plan sets ambitious targets of 500,000 retrofits as well as the installation of 400,000 heat pumps in existing homes. The Plan commits government to developing a new retrofitting delivery model, which will group retrofits together to achieve economies of scale, leverage private finance, and ensure easy pay-back methods. The savings on electricity bills from using less energy can help fund this, while homes will be warmer and produce less emissions. An area based retrofit programme, not unlike aspects of the Proenergy project, would seek to capitalise on critical mass, leveraging economies of scale that would benefit both householders and the supply chain. This type of programme would focus on designated areas in both rural and urban environments and could be designed and delivered to include local authorities, approved housing bodies or other strategic delivery partners. It would also take account of the priorities to achieve greater depth of retrofit and the targeted replacement of oil boilers with renewable alternatives. The lessons learned from the Better Energy Finance Programme and wider Better Energy Programme will be of great assistance in designing the policies and approaches required to deliver on this target. The Climate Action Plan also highlights the need for urgent action given the critical nature of the climate challenges that face us. For that reason, I would encourage homeowners to avail of the supports and financing options currently available.