Sustainable office design boost for EU

Office design news from Morgan Lovell

Published on 21-06-2010

The European Union (EU) could switch to 100 per cent renewable energy sources by 2050 in what would be a major boost to sustainable office design in the UK, a new report has shown.

According to the Re-thinking 2050 study by the European Renewable Energy Council (EREC), the use of renewable energy in the heating and cooling sector could rise dramatically from predicted levels of 21 per cent in 2020.

Furthermore, New Builder reported that carbon emissions could be reduced by more than 90 per cent by switching to wholesale renewable energy by 2050 and in order to achieve this lofty aim, wind and photovoltaic energy production will need to be stepped up.

The report was published following consultations with McKinsey, Imperial College London and Oxford Economics.

Ongoing projects by the EREC include the Smart-e Buildings initiative, the New4Old scheme - that looks to boost penetration of renewable energy sources - and Energy Union that aims to make intelligent energy use an issue for young people in 12 EU countries.

Posted by Ian Johnson.