A conference entitled ‘Retrofitting and New Build in the New Environment’ will be held on the 23 rd of April in Thurles as part of the Sustainable Energy in Rural Village Environments (SERVE) project. The project demonstrates sustainable energy use in rural communities.
The SERVE Project, which started in November 2007, is focused on the creation of a region which demonstrates best practice in the field of sustainable energy. The SERVE region covers an area of 600km2 in North Tipperary with a population of 12,000 people. It aims to upgrade 400 existing buildings in terms of energy efficiency and renewable energy use, support the development of the eco-village in Cloughjordan and install biomass district heating systems.
Seamus Hoyne, the SERVE Project Coordinator stated:
“The SERVE project has completed two years of work so far. Its aim is to complete energy upgrades to over 400 buildings and assist the development of the eco-village in Cloughjordan. The environment in which this project was first envisaged has changed dramatically. This includes not only the financial crisis which has so dramatically affected the construction sector but also the new National priority on the retrofitting of houses, new building regulations for new buildings and the Building Energy Rating process which is now firmly established in the market. This event seeks to combine the practical aspects of site visits to relevant SERVE supported activities with presentations by a panel of expert speakers on energy in buildings”
The panel includes representatives from the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government on new buildings standards and the Department of Communications Energy and Natural Resources on the National Retrofitting Programme. Industry experts such as Joseph Little from Joseph Little Architects, Jay Stewarts from DWME and Patrick Daly will make presentations on Insulation Upgrades, Ventilation Options for Retrofitting and Achieving a Zero Carbon Home respectively.
The full programme and registration form is available at www.servecommunity.ie
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