Renovation rate as a tool towards achieving SDGs 11 and 13

Abstract

The building stock being a huge energy consumer, is an important sector for SDG 11 on sustainable cities and SDG 13 on climate action. Therefore, retrofitting the existing buildings is a priority for most EU countries. Long term goals for the energy performance of buildings are premised. However, to be able to monitor the progress and feasibility to achieve the goals in 2050, knowledge of the actual renovation rate is indispensable. Since years an overall renovation rate of 1% for the EU is communicated. This number is withheld in several countries to stimulate retrofitting (Belgium, Italy, The Netherlands). However, it is not clear how this renovation rate reflects the actual renovation rate and the actual energy savings because accurate knowledge on this is lacking in most countries. This paper focusses on elaborating our knowledge of the renovation rate by analysing its definition and providing a possible, more accurate calculation method. A literature study shows that there is no commonly used definition of 'renovation rate' in the EU. Instead different approaches are being used, often depending on available data. A case study for Flanders, Belgium reconstructs the communicated renovation rate of 0.7% to 1% by means of a database of the renovation activity of approximately 6000 homeowners (2012-2018). The used survey concept shows that the actual renovation rate exceeds 1% and is able to provide extra insights on the energy renovation depth in Flanders. In a next step this could be extended to calculate the actual energy savings due to renovations. As this survey concept can easily be adopted in other EU countries, it could form the base of an aligned monitoring of the progress towards a sustainable built environment.