Compared to a year ago, the general trend in the implementation of the EU's 2004 Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) "is looking much more promising," according to the RICS report.
But overall progress remains slow. "To date, there are still a number of EU countries that have failed to even present the European Commission with a plan outlining the methodology they are planning to adopt" to implement the EPBD, says the report.
The EPBD, which came into effect in January 2006, provides a common methodology for calculating the energy performance of buildings and for creating minimum standards of energy performance in individual member states. The directive applies to new buildings and to existing buildings subject to major renovations (see EurActiv LinksDossier).
While some member states like Denmark, Germany and Austria have fully complied with the EPBD, other states are lagging behind, with the delays causing frustration in Brussels. For example, France and Latvia were threatened with legal action in October 2007 for failure to provide the Commission with "all the necessary evidence to conclude that the two countries have implemented the required measures" of the EPBD (EurActiv 18/10/07).
Most behind are some of the EU's new member states, which "are still facing substantial problems largely due to their past, which has left them with a legacy of a highly inefficient prefabricated building stock," according to the 55-page report, which provides data and information related to the status of EPBD implementation in each of the EU's 27 member states.
Experts agree that improving the energy efficiency of buildings, which account for up to 40% of total EU CO2 emissions, would provide a major boost to the EU's efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change. But real and perceived high costs, a lack of technical skills and expertise, conflicting national measures and low public acceptance or awareness are delaying progress, says Ursula Hartenberger, who heads RICS' EU affairs team in Brussels.
While it may take several years to overcome a lack of qualified 'green' building experts and to increase public awareness about the need for building efficiency improvements, concerns about high costs may be misplaced, according to several recent studies.
The Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC), for example, has found that a wide range of energy efficiency upgrades in residential buildings can be achieved at no cost or even at long term profit with the use of existing technologies.
The McKinsey Global Institute last week (10 September) released similar findings based on projected improvements in the energy productivity and efficiency of the EU's economy, and in August 2007 the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) published a survey which found that most property professionals overestimate the cost of constructing energy-efficient buildings by up to 300% (EurActiv 23/08/07).
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