New energy efficiency standards released for buildings in CARICOM

New energy efficiency standards have been released for buildings in  CARICOM.

According to a release from the CARICOM Secretariat yesterday, this was announced by The International Code Council, ASHRAE, the CARICOM Secretariat Energy Unit and the CARICOM Regional Organisation for Standards and Quality (CROSQ).

The 2018 CARICOM Regional Energy Efficiency Building Code (CREEBC), which will cover both commercial and residential construction, is a joint endeavour by the CROSQ, the Code Council and ASHRAE, the release said.

“These standards for energy efficient buildings reflect the unique energy requirements of tropical environments and will ultimately increase adoption rates of more effectual technologies for renewable energy and energy conservation,” said the CEO of CROSQ, Deryck Omar.

“The adoption of these codes will go a long way toward allowing our members to mitigate the impacts of a changing climate. It also demonstrates the importance of bringing quality measures into the region’s energy sector and the potential benefits that can accrue when that happens,” he added.

The CREEBC, which was a result of collaboration between the CROSQ and the Energy Unit of the CARICOM Secretariat, is meant to meet the specific needs of nations in the Caribbean and other countries with tropical climates. It sets minimum energy efficiency requirements for buildings, including the building envelope, cooling system, ventilation, pumping, lighting and the service water-heating systems.

Head of the Energy Unit at the CARICOM Secretariat, Dr. Devon Gardner, said: “The CREEBC is envisioned to lead to an era of better quality building designs within the Caribbean Community, noting that the ability of buildings to minimise the energy requirements for the services for which they were intended would reduce the exposure to climate and disaster risks.”

He said, as an example, that “energy efficient measures and systems, such as daytime lighting and improvements in ventilation, can facilitate the comfort of occupants in buildings even during periods of natural disaster related stress on the electricity grids.”