News

Group of Irish house builders turn to passive house

A number of Ireland’s largest house builders are turning to the passive house standard, to meet the need for proven approaches to delivering high performance sustainable buildings.

Design Approaches

New scheme offers up to €75,000 retrofit loans at low cost

Irish homeowners can now borrow €5,000 to €75,000 at significantly lower interest rates to retrofit their homes, thanks to a new €500m government-backed scheme.

Government

Embodied carbon & zero emission targets adopted in new EPBD

All new homes in Europe must meet binding embodied carbon reduction targets and produce zero on site emissions by 2030, due to changes led by Irish Green Party MEP Ciarán Cuffe.

Energy Performance of Buildings Directive

Most polluting cements ruled out in Irish public procurement

Highly polluting cements are to be ruled out of public sector projects in Ireland from September, due to new government public procurement rules.

Government

Unilin appoints new general manager for the UK and Ireland

Aidan Doyle has joined insulation manufacturer, Unilin Insulation, as General Manager for both the Ireland and UK businesses.

Employment

Key industry events at Energy Show 2024

Businesses involved in the supply chain for low energy building or retrofit in Ireland take note: there are a number of must see events at the Energy Show in Dublin.

Events

St Albans passive house scheme launches, promising luxury and energy income

Home buyers seeking sustainable luxury and energy income in a sought-after part of England have a rare opportunity with a newly launched passive house scheme in St Albans.

General

Timber in construction group holds first meeting

Increasing the use of timber in construction is central to the work of a new steering group appointed by the Minister of State for Land Use and Biodiversity at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Senator Pippa Hackett.

General

An Post takes top prize at Energy Awards

The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) has announced the winners of the 2023 SEAI Energy Awards while celebrating 20 years of the event.

General

Four passive house projects pick up Net Zero Energy awards

A quartet of passive house projects picked up awards at the Towards Net Zero Energy Awards 2023.

General

EPA launches air quality forecast

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has launched a national air quality forecast to provide greater information to the public regarding expected air quality in Ireland for up to three days.

General

Planning guidance to cut carbon emissions previewed at IGBC conference

The implications of planning on Ireland’s carbon emissions and the importance of building climate-safe homes were discussed at the Irish Green Building Council’s (IGBC) annual residential conference, Better Homes.

General

EU agrees “Blueprint for the world to decarbonise building stock”

The next version of the EU Directive on the Energy Performance of Buildings (EPBD) has been provisionally agreed – including proposals for zero emission buildings, building renovation passports, a phase out of fossil fuel boilers and the introduction of whole life carbon calculation for buildings.

Energy Performance of Buildings Directive

#BuildingLife series: Addressing the environmental impacts of buildings across their lifecycle

In this #BuildingLife Ambassador Spotlight Series, Passive House Plus is profiling leaders who have endorsed the Irish Green Building Council’s (IGBC) call to address the environmental impacts of buildings across their lifecycle.

General

EIB Group support new low-cost home energy upgrade scheme in Ireland

Ireland and the European Investment Bank (EIB) today reached an agreement that paves the way for government-backed, low-interest home energy upgrade loans. The agreement marks a major milestone in the development of the loan scheme which will be underpinned by resources from the EIB Group.

Government

Chartered Institute of Building urges VAT overhaul to encourage reuse and renovation

The Irish government has been called on to overhaul VAT structure in order to incentivise reuse and refurbishment, by construction industry body The Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB), who say urgent action is needed to reduce the number of Ireland’s buildings being demolished if the country is to meet net zero targets.

Climate Change

Ireland's climate targets threatened by critical skills shortage in sector

Research, led by Technological University of the Shannon, has identified significant skills and labour shortages in the built environment sector. The study highlights how this challenges Ireland in reaching its climate targets and points out possible solutions.

Climate Change

Property industry faces ‘triple threat’ from climate crisis

The real estate industry faces a ‘triple threat’ of climate related issues unless it takes action now, a senior sustainability expert has warned.

Climate Change

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Marketplace news

Partel launches paper-based membranes

Partel launches paper-based membranes

Galway-based sustainable building product supplier Partel has launched two new paper-based membrane products, Izoperm Plus Eco and Vara Plus Eco.

05-01-2024 Marketplace

Hevac launches Airmaster decentralised MVHR for schools

Hevac launches Airmaster decentralised MVHR for schools

Heating and ventilation specialists Hevac have launched a range of decentralised mechanical ventilation systems with recovery (MVHR) for schools onto the Irish market – including a certified passive house unit.

05-01-2024 Marketplace

Tackling carbon emissions with Passive EcoWall

Tackling carbon emissions with Passive EcoWall

Carbon emissions originating from the construction and operation of buildings in Ireland constitute a significant portion of the country’s overall emissions, amounting to 37 per cent.

05-01-2024 Marketplace

Kildare scheme chooses Grant sustainable heating package

Kildare scheme chooses Grant sustainable heating package

A private housing development in Co. Kildare has recently called upon leading heating technology manufacturer Grant to install its 6kW Grant Aerona³ R32 air source heat pump as part of a bespoke integrated heating package, within twenty-two homes – with a further fifteen more to be built in the next year.

05-01-2024 Marketplace

Blogs

Buy, hold or sell

Buy, hold or sell

Recent analysis has suggested a slowdown in the property sector for 2024, but what impact might a drop in inflation have? Mel Reynolds runs the numbers.

Blogs

An early green building in a changing Ireland

An early green building in a changing Ireland

It’s fair to say that green building wasn’t a thing in early 90s Ireland, which makes one extraordinary Dublin project from 1994 all the more remarkable, as Dr. Marc O Riain writes.

Blogs

Bedding sustainability into British buildings: Bioregional’s BedZed

Bedding sustainability into British buildings: Bioregional’s BedZed

Shortlisted for the Stirling Prize in 2003, BedZed was a prominent example of architecture starting to pay attention to sustainability. But how well did it work? In the latest part of his series on the history of low energy architecture, Dr. Marc O Riain looks back at a landmark project.

Blogs

Is shared equity a bridge too far?

In the face of an affordability crisis, first time buyers of new homes are being offered a cocktail of incentives to help them get on the property ladder, including the government’s Help to Buy and First Home schemes. Mel Reynolds asks: are these the solution to the affordability crisis?

Blogs

Awaab Ishak’s death shows that building physics are a life and death matter

Advances in building physics in recent years are leading to an ever-increasing understanding among experts of the risks that a litany of pollutants can pose to building occupants. But this has not stopped vulnerable people from living – and dying - in substandard buildings that exacerbate these risks. Urgent action is needed, Toby Cambray explains, to better communicate and decisively tackle the risks buildings can pose to their occupants.

Blogs

Healthy Homes Ireland launches indoor environmental quality report

Healthy Homes Ireland launches indoor environmental quality report

Healthy Homes Ireland (HHI) has published a series of recommendations for the improvement of indoor environmental quality (IEQ), including the creation of a cross-disciplinary national leadership body that will advocate for change and set goals.

Blogs

Mainstreaming retrofit – a massive missed opportunity

The scale of the retrofit challenge facing the UK and Ireland will require an army of tradespeople to upgrade homes – leading many to the conclusion that a new retrofit industry needs to be built from scratch. But is a more realistic answer staring us in the face – a thriving existing industry of trusted local tradespeople, asks Dr Catrin Maby OBE.

Blogs

Does nuclear have a role to play in decarbonising energy?

One zero carbon energy source has historically been vehemently opposed by environmentalists. But can nuclear power overcome the high-profile failures of its past, asks Dr. Marc O Riain, or has the technology missed the boat?

Blogs

Whole life carbon of buildings: a pathway emerges

While significant progress continues to be made on reducing the carbon emissions associated with heating and powering buildings, the other part of whole life carbon calculation, embodied carbon, has proved more elusive. But that may be about to change, and quickly, as Stephen Barrett of the Irish Green Building Council (IGBC) explains.

Blogs

Is it okay to retrofit heat pumps before building fabric?

How flexible can heat pumps be to handle what may be inexactly defined heating demands, asks Toby Cambray?

Blogs

Mass timber consultation: have your say by 21 April to change the rules

Mass timber consultation: have your say by 21 April to change the rules

Mass timber comes into its own in terms of decarbonising tall buildings, which tend to rely on high embodied carbon materials such as steel and reinforced concrete. But regulatory change is needed to enable mass timber to fulfil its potential, as IGBC head of policy and advocacy Marion Jammet explains.

Blogs

Enniskillen passive house camp attracts international audience

Enniskillen passive house camp attracts international audience

The passive house camp recently took place from 26-29 September at South West College's passive house premium-certified Erne Campus and the Centre for Renewable Energy and Sustainable Technologies (CREST).

Blogs

The PH+ guides

The PH+ guide to insulating foundations

The PH+ guide to insulating foundations

While understanding wall and roof insulation is relatively straightforward, insulation under the ground floor can be a bit of a mystery by comparison. Not only is it buried in the ground, but there are notoriously tricky spots like the wall-floor junction that need to be detailed and insulated properly. And the design of your foundation often depends on site conditions and the type of structure you’re going to build, too. In this guide, we explain some different ways of insulating one of the most challenging parts of the building envelope.

10-06-2019 Guides

The PH+ guide to external insulation

The PH+ guide to external insulation

In the first in a new series of technical articles on some of the key technologies in sustainable building, John Hearne makes the case for wrapping buildings in an external insulation layer, and describes some of the main issues to watch out for.

07-02-2018 Guides

The PH+ guide to greener concrete - reducing the climate impact of cement and concrete in buildings

The PH+ guide to greener concrete - reducing the climate impact of cement and concrete in buildings

Cement is responsible for up to 8% of global carbon emissions, and in this guide, sustainable design expert Jay Stuart looks at ways to minimise its environmental impact through good design, and at some of the alternative, lower carbon cement and concrete products on the market.

30-07-2020 Guides

Timber frame & mass timber: the Passive House Plus guide to structural timber construction

Timber frame & mass timber: the Passive House Plus guide to structural timber construction

Fuelled by the need to build quickly and to increasingly tight sustainability standards, the market for timber frame and mass timber construction is growing rapidly. This detailed guide covers many of the main established and emerging techniques, and looks at key issues to address if you’re considering a timber-based build.

05-07-2019 Guides