Circulators are responsible for up to 15% of the electricity bills of private households. With energy efficient technologies these costs can be reduced significantly. In the EU-27, the electricity consumption by circulators for heating purposes in households amounts to more than 50 TWh per year and causes CO2 emissions of more than 30 million tons per year. The energy used by circulator pumps is equal to about 2 % of the overall electricity consumption in the EU. The use of energy efficient models can reduce the energy consumption and the costs for electricity of circulators in Europe significantly.
Objectives and target audience
To reduce the use of the non renewal energy resources and to innovate the production of these processes (technologies alternative).

Financial Resources and Partners involved

The total cost of this plant was of Euro 500.000,00. Partners involved: Municipality Of Milan.

Process

The objectives in the short term are: to widen the number of models on the market, to increase the original model one and to reduce their price through an increase of the production.  In order to reach the objective, the plan will adapt the methodology that was tested with what has planned in the plan energy+ for the transformation of the market of the refrigerators.  Therefore:

1. Combine great purchasers (as an example associations of popular houses) for support action from the manufacturers of pumps.
2. Connect the purchasers, the producers and the supporter through a periodic list of products available and with personal contacts.
3. Develop support material of the sale of efficient pumps; as an example an electronic sheet for their dimensioning. To diffuse the material through the associations of category and the producers.
4. Organize a contest for the more efficient products energy+ and to carry out independent tests of the performances of the contenders.
5. Disclose  widely the plan and the information through the situated dedicated web, the bulletin, the communication channels of mass and the fairs of the field.

Results

To reduce the use of the non renewal energy resources and to innovate the production processes (technologies alternative).

Critical Success Factors / Challenges

The type of action is favourably applicable because the plants are the subject of widespread intervention.

The zero emission power plant (ZEPP) is an innovative concept for oxyfuel combustion of 170 MWth (50MWe) power plant in Drachten/Akkrum. It is expected a capture rate of 250,000 ton CO2 annualy, with transport and storage into gas fields for EGR, resulting in a yield of natural gas of about 40 million cubic metres.

Objectives and target audience

A reduction of approximately 1 Megaton CO2-emission can be achieved over a period of four years. Furthermore, the ZEPP plant will not emit any NOx, SO2 or ‘fine dust’, due to the special combustion process using pure oxygen.

Financial Resources and Partners involved

The ZEPP in Drachten is initiated by the Dutch company SEQ Nederland B.V. Financial support is given by ONS energy, an electricity distribution company, local governments and by Energy Valley, a public private foundation with local, national and European members, which stimulates the economy of the North of the Netherlands through the financing of energy activities.
The zero emission power plant (ZEPP) project involves the collaboration of SEQ Nederland BV, ENECO Milieu BV, Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) and the Stichting Energy Valley initiative and will cost €60 million of which €10 million is subsidy from Ministry of Finance.

Process

Applying ESTEEM
The Energy research Centre of the Netherlands (ECN) has applied and tested the ESTEEM tool in the ZEPP project. ECN executed the six steps of the tool together with the project manager, Wouter van de Waal during 2007.

Step 1:  Project past & present
Based on two interviews with Mr Van de Waal, ECN wrote the narrative of the project. A story-like text on the past and current situation of the ZEPP starting with the first ideas of Van de Waal to store CO2  under ground in 1999 until the concrete plans of the ZEPP as they are in 2007. Based on the narrative, the table with defining moments of the project  was compiled: a chronological overview of moments in the past that have influenced the project in a major way, for example the introduction of project partners, the concession to use the gas field, financial support decisions, etc. ECN also analysed the context of the project in the barriers and opportunities tables in which potential opportunities and barriers of the project are shortly described. Together with Van de Waal ECN finally present situation: stakeholder map ZEPP compiled an overview of all the stakeholders and their past, current and possible future role in the actors table.

Step 2:  Vision building
In the second step of the ESTEEM process ECN investigated the future visions for the project in 2020 of project manager Van de Waal and seven stakeholders. These stakeholders were selected using the criteria in the ESTEEM manual and included stakeholders such as local and national government (municipality, province, ministry of Economic Affairs and Ministry of Environmental affairs), technology developers (Siemens), NGOs (Friesche Milieufederatie) and an interest group for local industries. Based on face-to-face interviews ECN wrote the visions in the format of a future newspaper article (20     September 2020) with a title summarising the vision. Also a network map was designed for each vision, visualising the relations between stakeholders in the future.

Step 3:  Vision confrontation
In the third step ECN analysed and compared the visions drafted in the previous step and derived potential comparison. In total thirteen identified (for example whether or not to have a cooling tower, role of local versus national government, etc) as well as seven opportunities (for example joined heat supply with a local biomass plant and making use of locally available services and industries) which had not been mentioned by the project manager before.

Step 4:  Identifying solutions
For each controversy and opportunity identified in the previous step Mr Van de Waal and ECN discussed one or more strategies to overcome the controversies and make use of the opportunities.
These strategies were divided into four categories: adjustments of the installation design or (change of) location, gaining extra knowledge through articulating new research questions, financial incentives and others. In total Mr Van de Waal and ECN identified 29 new strategies for the project.

Step 5:  Stakeholder workshop
ECN grouped the controversies and opportunities identified in step 3 of the ESTEEM process in five themes which were discussed at a stakeholder workshop. ECN organised this workshop in November 2007. The location was provided by one of the neighbouring companies at the industrial area where the ZEPP is planned. The goal of this workshop was twofold:
1.    Identifying and debating strategies, that are desirable from a societal point of view, in interaction with SEQ and relevant stakeholders.
2.    Testing the fifth step of ESTEEM to gain experience and refine it.

Step 6:  Planning for action
In the last step of ESTEEM, ECN has categorized all strategies formulated in the stakeholder workshop into activities and actions to be taken on the short time and do not require extensive cooperation activities, activities that do require extensive collaboration with third parties and actions focusing on the long time and/or monitoring.
These actions are further elaborated into sub-actions and concrete recommendations for the project manager by ECN in three different plans for action:

• A short term action plan, including for example adaptations to plant design proposed by stakeholders or specific information supply to local residents.
• Collaboration plan, including for example collaboration with the city council for improving the green image of Drachten by advertising the ZEPP and also advertising residual heat to potential users.
• Long term action plan, including for example strategies for taking part in national and international debate on the relation between Carbon Capture & Storage technologies and renewable energy.

In these plans the project manager was provided with details about what steps the project
manager needs to take from a societal perspective with the aim of increasing societal acceptance of the ZEPP in Drachten.

Results

At full capacity the plant can generate sufficient climate neutral power for approximately 150,000 households, which corresponds to about 50% of all Frisian households. A local (climate neutral) heat grid with a capacity of around 15 MW will also form part of the project.

Critical Success Factors / Challenges?

The reduction of emission of greenhouse gases, the promotion of sustainable resources and energy efficiency were recognised as strategic challenges for the European Union and centred in its political program.
Among the first initiatives included in the “Parco dell’energia” has to be citated the realization biomass power plant (“cippato”, wood chips) which will start to function in autumn 2008 and which enable to serve all features of the Institute and some buildings owned by the municipality of San Michele all’Adige. Other works which are in planning, with technical support of Technological District of Trentino (DTT), are the planning and implementation according to the standards of the bio building and the energy saving of the “Palazzina Ambiente”, intended for hosting lab and office of the “Dip. Valorizzazione Risorse Naturali”.

Among the activities of research included in the project of anaerobic digestion of biomass with the purpose of energy production (electricity and heaving) hold a very important role, also in order to the possible applications to different realities and typologies of the biomass produced on the provincial territory.

Objectives and target audience

The task is that of reducing fossil fuels (gas oil and natural gas), contributing on that way to the reduction of greenhouse gases (estimated 800 ton of CO2 per year) and of constituting an example for others realities characterised by the concentration of buildings in a restricted kilometric radius (< 2 km).
In regard to the more strictly research aspects two are the objectives pursued: increasing the percentage presence of methane in the bio gas compared to that normally obtained (55% of CH4 in the bio gas) and orientating the microbial reactions to the production of more quantities of hydrogen.
The objectives for 2020 predict:
1)    The cutback of 20% of greenhouse gases emission;
2)    The reduction of the 20% of the energetic consumptions respect the projection for the 2020;
3)    A binding objective of the 20% of energy produced with sustainable resources on the total energetic consumptions of the European Union;
4)    A binding objective of 10% of biofuels on the total of consumptions of fuel and diesel fuel.

Financial Resources and Partners involved

Agricultural institute of San Michele all’Adige

Process

The farm Schelfi has been picked out as an example of zootechnical enterprise located in the alpine territory (altitude >900 meters above the sea level) which could become a model of “green island” because of the realisation, the implementation and the interactive coexistence in the existing structure of technical solutions and technological innovations hinge on the environmental and energetic sustainability.
The characteristic of originality of the business are the aggregation of more different productive and cheap sectors:
-    raising milk cattle (100 head UBA);
-    internal dairy for the production of typical cheeses (fresh and mature) directly commercialised;
-    fatting pigs (30 heads which will be augmented to 70 in the next months) for the production of sausages directly commercialised in the local and seasonal market ( in the province of Trento and in Veneto);
-    photovoltaic system on the surface, which extension is 372 squared meters and which is used to produce more than 250 different types of horseshoes exported all over the world;
Moreover , in the short term, other structures will be realised:
-    house and linked farm holidays, projected and built according to the standards of the bio building (energetic saving);
-    a system of anaerobic digestion fort eh production of energy form the zootechnical refluents (production of sustainable energy), which practicability study is co financed by the MIPAAF ;
-    a system of phytodepuration and of composting for a sustainable administration of digested material.
The original character of the proposal is the coexistence and integration in a unique business reality of more innovative technical solutions which consider as main characteristic the reduction of energetic consumptions, the valorisation of available residual biomass, the exploitation of the sustainable energetic resources (micro Aeolian) and in realisation of a house and a farm holidays, built and functioning according to the standard of bio building and energetic efficiency.
Other characteristics concern the chance to resolve some environmental problems with the valorisation of sub products and residual biomasses (sewages and manures, residues of the dairy and wastes of slaughter for the production of sausages).
Near to the traditional process for the production of heating, the attention move to technologies as gasification and pyrogasification which enable to transform the biomasses in synthesis gas with following production of energy using cycles of high energetic efficiency.

Results

The use of sustainable resources is one of the cornerstones of the energetic policy in Trentino Alto Adige.
In that region are actually in function biomass power plant able to provide to the citizens clean and extremely accessible energy.
These plants enable to save each year almost 43 million of litres of fuel, with guessable advantages on the environment level, without forgetting in addition the economic aspect (if during the last ten years the prize of fuel increased of 70%, that of wood stopped at a plus 25%).
The supplying of raw materials is mainly at a local level, from the residues of the industries of first production (sawmills) and from woods of Alto Adige , while an minor part is imported from Northern Europe (the first among all countries is Austria).

Critical Success Factors / Challenges

Among the sustainable resources of energy the biomasses represent an opportunity not yet fully harness and which gives wide margins of valorisation.
Among the finalities of the project ReXergy there is the creation of models of use of sustainable resources in agricultural field, which could constitute virtuous example and stimulate the spread of initiatives.
The biomass wooden cellulosic hold from always an high energetic interest. While for the wooden it registers an use very limited (only 10% of the real available quantity) because of the problems linked to the difficulty and cots of gathering, the residues pf wooden industry (wood chips) found an use in the biomass power plant for district heating, of which exist in Trentino Alto Adige several example.
The necessity of reducing the growing costs to cover the energetic requirements justifies the high interest at the national and European level in the sustainable energies. The biomass represents an alternative source until now underused and that promise wide possibilities of valorisation. The necessity to put together with the energetic and economic statement also the environmental statement, preliminary to the introduction of some operative solutions, don’t have to be undervaluated in the evaluation of innovative solutions proposed.

Objectives and target audience
Energy.
- Dwellings are constructed for high-energy efficiency having a winter garden and high insulation.
- Heating natural gas.
- Solar energy covers 50 to 70% of the needs for water heating.
- Maximizing energy efficiency.
- Heat consumption for the different units is between 50 and 64 kWh/m2a (measured).
Indoor Air Quality.
- Choice of materials and healthy without toxic emissions.
- For lighting the dwelling make use of natural sunlight.
- In the buildings electromagnetic fields were avoided.
Materials.
- Brick walls for privacy surround individual L-shaped houses with yards of approximately 150–200 m2. The drawing rooms and bedrooms face Southeast to Southwest. The other rooms function as insulating buffer zones to the north.
- The external structural components are highly insulated (taking into account the planning period early 1980s).
- Recovery of wood from cutting trees for furniture and interior architecture.
- Wood from local forests.
Waste management.
- Waste is separated better then demanded by regulation; glass, metal, textile, paper, plastic, and compost are separate fractions.
Water.
The use of rainwater and on-site wastewater treatment was an innovative breakthrough for
settlements in Austria. It was based on the principles of optimal conservation of drinking water and reducing water pollution. The result is an average drinking water consumption of
52 litres per person per day (compared to an average of about 150 l/pd).
- Rainwater is collected in 2.5 – 3 m3 underground cisterns for the single-family houses and an 86 m3 cistern for the apartment house.
- 10 dwellings are fitted with composting toilet (3 m3) situated in the cellars, saving 40 – 70
m3 of drinking water per unit per year.
- The community operates an organic sewage treatment system, which is laid out for a population equivalent of 90. Construction and function is based on the method of K. Seidel (1960). It consists of 3 single treatment pools and a cleaning pond with flow –form cascades. The purified water is used by a local market garden. The surplus water is sprayed over nearby fields
- The local precipitation on the 155m² – roof surface per home is enough for 6,6m³ water per month, enough for the laundry and the toilets. In spite of the Austrian rules that forbid the use of rainwater as shower water on hygienic grounds, there are two households that shower with the rainwater at their own risk.

Financial Resources and Partners involved
In the total construction costs of 4,170,000 Euro an amount of 470,000 Euro was invested in research.
Financing of the project:-
- Operating costs are funded by residents,
- The costs of construction were financed by both residents and through a loan payable over 25 years by the region of Lower Austria,
- The Austrian government has also assisted the project for environmental (tax credit for construction).

Process
It is an important example of attempts in the 1980s to integrate innovative ecological and social issues. Basis for these kinds of settlements were occupant health, productivity, social well being, and care for the environment. From the start 11 courtyard houses and 15 apartments, a nursery school, an office, vegetable gardens and an organic sewage treatment system were part of the settlement. In the beginning, it was planned to expand the village with additional 50 dwelling units, a reference and information centre for ecological farming and a Montessori school.

Results
Some green building concepts that did not exist before, such as the use of rainwater, the biological treatment of wastewater or pit toilets (or compost toilets), were allowed.
- As measured, the consumption of heat for different units ranges from 50 to 64 kWh/m2 per year.
- The consumption of drinking water average is 52 litres per person / day (vs. an average typically 150 litres / person / day): a reduction related to the use of compost toilets in most homes and the use of rainwater for toilet flushing, washing machines and watering gardens.
- A significant reduction of waste and sorting (organic waste, paper, plastic, metal, glass).
- 50% reduction in energy consumption.
- Using a system of biological treatment of wastewater.

Critical Success Factors / Challenges

Many problems, ranging from establishing democratic decision making to managing finances … had to be mastered by the prospective inhabitants. Two years after having moved into their homes, almost all residents declared that they could not imagine any other form of residency. It became clear through lengthy interviews that the social project Eco-Homes Gärtnerhof began only after building construction had been completed. The more than 40 children of this community are growing up in a world strikingly different from a typical urban environment. For them, perhaps, the Eco-Homes project really is utopia. Two years after installation, a survey of residents showed that most of them more imagined living in ecological construction.

Herne – Sordingen lies in the centre of the Ruhr. The training centre was built on the site of a former coalmine, Mont Cenis, and is one of the prominent architectural features of the IBA-Emscherpark project. The French architect Jourda settled for a box within a box principle: all accommodations are under a glass cover.
Management of the interior environment takes more or less the same form as in the buildings with double-skinned facades. In summer, warm stale air rises and escapes through openings in the roof. This out flowing airstreams produces under pressure in the glazed hall, so that fresh, cool air is drawn in through louvers in the side walls. Shade-giving ‘perspiring’ plants and evaporating pools combine to lower the internal temperature.
Besides, solar cells were integrated into the facade and roof glazing in a special pattern that provides sufficient shading from solar radiation but still admits sufficient daylight.

Objectives and target audience

Environmental concept in this building a main and prominent issue. And so this category will be a little bit heavy in proportion.
We can divide the strategy into several streams as follows:
1. Rain water system;
2. Climate Concern;
3. Solar Power Station;
5. Cogeneration.

Financial Resources and Partners involved

The overall cost of the PV-system was DEM 15,7 Million (€ 8,0 million).
A cost for a system that is roofing, facade, shading and solar generator in one.
Solar-Modules: DEM 11,1 Million (€ 5,67 Million)
Inverters: DEM 1,2 Million (€ 0,60 Million)
Switches, cabling, etc: DEM 0,6 Million (€ 0.31 Million)
Planning and engineering: DEM 1,1 Million (€ 0,56 Million)
Mounting: DEM 1,7 Million (€ 0,86 Million)
Maintenance (total estimated): DEM 30 000 € 15 300
Costs per kWp: DEM 15 700 (€ 8 000)

Process

The former mine site is to be converted into a park connected to the town centre to the south and extended to the north by the open green space.
To the north of this park leads to an urban square. This is bordered by the new extension to the existing shopping centre which will include a shopping mall. The car parking will be reorganised.
The park will be reached by a gently climbing stairway, enclosed on the east and west side by linear buildings. At the top of these stairs a large building is sited which contains the “academy”(education centre) and public buildings. This building will be a dominant landmark in the landscape. This, the heart of the project, is placed in the oval cleaning of the new park.
Besides, a specially chosen dry vegetation will give this area a particular character, corresponding to its situation. New pathways crossing the site will create a new public space on land which had previously been inaccessible. In the zone which is landscaped with trenches and embankments these pathways will be raised wooden walkways.
Building materials and building elements were selected on the same criteria of environmental protection as the overall objective of the building itself. This resulted in a limited range of materials, mainly timber, glass and concrete.
The timber elements of the structure make use of local wood sources. The main columns of the glass envelope structure consist of the trunks of 130 year old pine trees which were felled more than one year ahead of construction from a first less than 100km from the site.
The photovoltaic panels were also manufactured locally at Germany’s largest photovoltaic assembly plant 15 km from Herne.

Results

Rain water system.
Rainwater falling on the large expanse of roof is collected via a symphonic rainwater which minimizes pipe diameters.
The transparent and photovoltaic roof glazing elements are cleaned by an automatic cleaning system employing recycled rainwater.
Rainwater is collected in an underground storage cistern, filtered and also reused for watering and maintenance of plants within the glass house.
Rainwater slide down from surrounding down into the site and collected in the pool marked blue and then drain away from the site.
Climate Concern.
A detailed study of the climatic effects of the glass envelope has been carried out by the architects and engineers of this project in 1994. The education centre will be the first project to apply the results of this research.
The glass envelope creates a climatic shift. It creates a climate close to that of the Mediterranean.
In winter the interior temperatures are less severe, its users will be sheltered from rain and wind. The climatic conditions of the interior buildings is reduced. It is not necessary for the interior buildings is reduced. It is not necessary for the interior buildings to be completely watertight.
In summer, to avoid overheating, certain elements of the facade will be opened and the glasshouse will be ventilated. The vegetation and refreshing effects of the basin will cool the space. In order to cool the interior buildings, fresh air will be drawn in by tunnels from external zones.
Solar Power Station.
The glazed roof of the building incorporates 10.000m2 of photovoltaic modules providing 1MW Solar Power Generation Sattion.
Forming clouds patterns, the photovoltaic modules provide shading and protect from glare and direct solar radiation. The density of photovoltaic cells per panel vary from 58 to 86% and thus their energy production varies accordingly from 192-416Wp per panel. Solar panels are also incorporated into the west facade of the envelope.
600 inventers transform the DC current to AC current which can be fed back to the general grid. The energy generated is far in excess of what is required by the building itself (750.000Kwh).
Technical details:
Total roof area: ca12.600 m2
Photovoltaic area: ca. 8.400 m2
Standard photovoltaic roof panel: 116m x 278 m
Standard photovoltaic facade panel: 116m x 240 m
Number of roof panels: 2.802
Number of facade panels: 280
Electricial power of each panel: 192-416 Wp
Incline angle of roof panel: 5 degree
Incline angle of facade panel: 90 degree
Number of converters: ca.600
Total electrical power: 1 Mwp
Energy production: ca.750.000 kwh
Congeneration.
Beside the solar power generation station, a complex system using a number of environmentally friendly energy sources is erected.
The former mine pitheads on the site release more than one million cubic metres of gas per year containing 60% methane. This gas fuels two co-generation units, producing both electricity and heat.
The electricity is fed into the public power supply system. The heat is used for the academy, new surrounding housing and a near-by hospital.
Exploiting the mine gas will avoid the release of methan into the atmosphere, this will reduce the emission of CO2 by the amount of 12.000 tons per year.
A 1,2 MW battery plant stores the electricial power, balances fluctuations in AC energy production and reduces peak loads. All 3 projects together set up the energy park Mont-Cenis, pointing the way to an ecological generation of energy.
Technical details:
Compact thermic station – Mine gas
Mine gas capacity: ca. 1,000.000 m/a
Methane content: ca. 60%
Power (electricity): 506 kw
Power (heating): 756 kw
Energy (electricity): 2.000.000kwh/a
Energy (heating): 3.000.000 kwh/a
Reduction of CO2 emission: ca. 12.000 t/a
Battery Storage energy: 1.200 kwh
Battery Storage power: 1.200 kw

Critical Success Factors / Challenges

23% less energy than buildings with the same insulation standard – 18% less CO2 emissions – Electricity production: approx. 600.000 kWh /year.

Why do without the sun and use electricity even when we could avoid it?
Why waste huge amounts of non renewable energy – expensive and not natural-during the day either to light or to heat areas which are just in the shadow at that moment?
Again, in similar cases, electricity is not a proper answer to the problem- lets just think about how motorway tunnel entrances lighting works during daytime when outside the sun is shining.

Objectives and target audience

The system is designed to eliminate the “black hole” effect at the entrance of road and motorway tunnels. This process allows the driver to have all the time the visibility he needs to get into the tunnel safely.

Financial Resources and Partners involved

Autostrada Torino-Savona Inc. – Italy

Process

The inventory and geo-referencing work on the unauthorized dumps consisted of four stages: 1 – A survey data form was designed: the first section containing geographic information on the site affected by abandoned waste, while the second section is for the collection of data on the characteristics of the waste and the surrounding areas. 2 – By means of field surveys, the inventory and mapping of unauthorized dumping areas in each larger section of the city: a separate data form was completed for each site, including location map references. 3 – Analyses and re-processing of data, which consisted in the evaluation and interpretation of all the data collected for the purpose of compiling explanatory maps indicating the locations of the sites distinguished according to environmental hazard classes. For this purpose, tables were designed for the analysis of environmental geological hazards, social and natural landscape factors, the extension of the unauthorized dumps and the feasibility of intervention measures. So, it was possible to compute a total score for each site for each factor considered, as well as a comprehensive score serving to establish the priority level for implementation measures, and thus optimizing the economic resources available. 4 – Georeferencing and the creation of an on-line data bank, with the aid of a Geographical Information System. Georeferencing was carried out in association with a database containing the information collected on the separate areas.

Results

The inventory, mapping and characterization based on the environmental geological hazard represented by each unauthorized dump site lead to a definition of intervention priorities to safeguard the landscape and the social and environmental heritage of the land. Based on the available economic resources, the plan is going on with the reclamation of the sites and the adoption of preventive measures serving to discourage people from dumping waste which can create problems of an environmental and geological nature owing to possible contamination of the soil.

Critical Success Factors / Challenges

Circulators are responsible for up to 15% of the electricity bills of private households. With energy efficient technologies these costs can be reduced significantly. In the EU-27, the electricity consumption by circulators for heating purposes in households amounts to more than 50 TWh per year and causes CO2 emissions of more than 30 million tons per year. The energy used by circulator pumps is equal to about 2 % of the overall electricity consumption in the EU. The use of energy efficient models can reduce the energy consumption and the costs for electricity of circulators in Europe significantly.
Objectives and target audience
To reduce the use of the non renewal energy resources and to innovate the production of these processes (technologies alternative).

Financial Resources and Partners involved

The total cost of this plant was of Euro 500.000,00. Partners involved: Municipality Of Milan.

Process

The objectives in the short term are: to widen the number of models on the market, to increase the original model one and to reduce their price through an increase of the production.  In order to reach the objective, the plan will adapt the methodology that was tested with what has planned in the plan energy+ for the transformation of the market of the refrigerators.  Therefore:

1. Combine great purchasers (as an example associations of popular houses) for support action from the manufacturers of pumps.
2. Connect the purchasers, the producers and the supporter through a periodic list of products available and with personal contacts.
3. Develop support material of the sale of efficient pumps; as an example an electronic sheet for their dimensioning. To diffuse the material through the associations of category and the producers.
4. Organize a contest for the more efficient products energy+ and to carry out independent tests of the performances of the contenders.
5. Disclose  widely the plan and the information through the situated dedicated web, the bulletin, the communication channels of mass and the fairs of the field.

Results

To reduce the use of the non renewal energy resources and to innovate the production processes (technologies alternative).

Critical Success Factors / Challenges

The type of action is favourably applicable because the plants are the subject of widespread intervention.

At an early stage client, developer, utility and housing association co-operated closely in order to realise a new residential area with high standards on architecture, sustainability, health and comfort.  All dwellings have an energy reduction of at least 25%.  The project demonstrates a great variety of collective and individual energy saving systems.  The water and green design brings good opportunities for natural flora and fauna.

Objectives and target audience

The target is to reduce energy consumption by 25 – 40% through a combination of eight small gas-fired combined heat-and-power plants, heat pumps connected to the ground water, solar collectors and high levels of insulation.

Financial Resources and Partners involved

City of Rotterdam

Process

In 1997 the City of Rotterdam used to give a premium of €240 for each dwelling that was built according to certain conditions.  In 1998 this list was replaced by a convenant.
Rotterdam and surrounding municipalities work together with building partners in a Sustainable Building convenant on spatial planning, new building and renovation.  Parties also speak on experiments, dissemination of knowledge and communication. In the region of Rotterdam already more than 125 parties signed this convenant.
In Nieuw Terbregge extra attention has been paid to the realisation of the convenant by instruction and education of building parties by the sustainable building consultant.
Being a demonstration project on sustainable building, several sustainable features can be
recognised in the plan.  First of all attention has been paid to energy saving and use of sustainable energy.  All dwellings in Nieuw Terbregge have very high insulation in order to reduce energy demand.
The south-orientation of most window openings provides passive solar energy.  Other expressions of sustainable urban planning are the special water system in Nieuw Terbregge and measures to enlarge accessibility for bicycles.
Concerning other aspects of sustainable building environmentally sound building materials and water saving devices have been chosen.  Examples are use of tropical hardwood with FSC quality mark, elimination of copper, zinc and led for gutters, elimination of polyurethane products and avoiding unnecessary use of material.

Results

Energy-saving demonstration in Nieuw Terbregge every part has a different combination of
collective and individual heat and power production:-

1. 41 dwellings have individual solar collector for DHW and heating;
2. 32 optimised with passive solar energy use through sun houses and solar collectors;
3. 38 have CHP, heat pump and solar collectors;
4. 150 with CHP, partly with solar collectors;
5. 170 have solar collectors for DHW;

Carbon emissions are up to 55 per cent lower than new housing produced in 1996.

Critical Success Factors / Challenges

When offering a building plan to the local authorities for a building permit, one is obliged to present a calculation of the Energy Performance Standard (EP) of the building.
The Energy Performance Standard measures the energy efficiency of a building.  By governmental regulation this Energy Performance Standard may not exceed a certain fixed value.  In New Terbregge the EP Standard was below the national regulations at that moment.

From the Action Plan for Renewable Energy Sources to the Development Strategies of the Industrial Areas in Europe.
RESET Project is intended to verify the feasibility of the penetration of renewable energies in four European metropolitan areas:

• A.M.Barcelona (E)
• Glasgow (UK)
• Le Grand Lyon (F)
• Torino (I)
• St.Petersburg (RUS)

Objectives and target audience

The RESET Project was intended to verify the feasibility of the penetration of renewable energies in four European metropolitan areas with peculiar conditions, such as:

• large industrial infrastructure to be strongly reconverted in the future;
• need for a major change in labour perspectives;
• high pollution levels and environmental vulnerability.

The proposal came from the Action Plan for Renewable Energy Sources worked out by the Commission of the European Communities for the European Parliament, that stimulated the cities involved in the RESET Project to develop an investigation on the feasibility of substituting 15% of the real primary energy consumption with renewable energy sources, within the year 2010.
The project was organised in four phases:

1. Background
2. Community Planning
3. General Planning
4. Conclusions and Recommendations

Financial Resources and Partners involved

Project Partners: Area Metropolitana de Barcelona, City of Glasgow, Grand Lyon, City of Torino, St. Petersburg City Government, Associated Contractors.
Project Co-ordinator: RESET e.e.i.g. SOFTECH Energia Tecnologia Ambiente
Associated Contractors: RESET e.e.i.g.

Process

Background. The first phase was devoted to assess the resources on which the future of the four cities’ economies lie, in order to transform the Renewable Energy strategy into local development, through the collection of existing main data and information on the energy and environmental system of the four industrial areas.
General Background of the Reset Cities. Common features were pointed out from the synthesis of the cities’ backgrounds:

• Non capital industrial cities but regional poles for local development
• Large industrial areas with problems of re-conversion
• Strong involvement in environmental policies
• Political commitment for co-operation and European integration
• Energy and Environmental Balances

Reset cities have prepared a synthesis of their own energy and environment balances as well as a description of the adopted methodology. A common format for the energy balance was set-up in order to facilitate the understanding of local energy utilisation and the general planning.
Review of Renewable Energy Projects. Reset Cities have prepared a detailed compilation of the renewable energy projects under development or already implemented. Some considerations were drawn after this analysis:

• Renewable projects are still micro-projects, with no specific policies
• Renewable energy projects were mainly promoted and supported by the private sector

Community. Amongst the objectives of this task of the RESET project was to ensure the relevance of the project to the local communities and to form community partnerships which will play important roles in successfully establishing renewable energy projects. It was essential that the views of the local community were fully understood during the process of developing renewable energy strategies. The skills, expertise, knowledge and experience of the members of the local community should be used to ensure that the full benefits of renewable energies are realised by using an appropriate consultation technique.
Glasgow . The first of the four events, co-ordinated by ECD and the City of Glasgow, was held in Glasgow on 28th and 29th September 1995. The first day was attended by about 25 members of Glasgow’s professional community, specially invited to represent the range of local interests and experience. The objectives of the first day were to represent a wide spectrum of interests in the development of renewable energy strategies. The activities during the first day included an informative talk on the key concepts of renewable energy technologies and a varied mixture of individual and group work including identifying the problems of Glasgow and the benefits of renewable energies, a planning game and the pledging of personal action plans. The objectives of the second day were to develop more specific ideas relating to a Renewable Energy Advice Centre (REAC) that could act as a focus for the Glasgow’s future renewable energy activities.
Torino. RAVE, the Turin Community Planning event took place on 17th November 1995. The event was co-ordinated by SOFTECH, who attracted participants with an imaginative publicity leaflet which demanded ‘Give me one good reason to attend RAVE!’ followed by a list of ’10 good reasons to come’. The program of events was based on the Local Scenario Workshop methodology. The most lively group was ‘The Next Generation’ (under 14 years old) who brought a fresh perspective to many of the issues. Each group was assisted by a facilitator, a provocateur and a note-taker.
At the end of each exercise, the groups came together to share their ideas and discuss their findings. Behind the scenes, the teams were processing the results on their portable computers, whilst the ideas were still fresh in their minds.
Grand Lyon. The Community Planning Forum for Lyon was held on 11th and 12th of December 1995, in the Council offices. It was planned and facilitated by the Department of Urban Development and by AGORA’. The majority of the participants, who attended by invitation only, had some previous interest in experience of renewable energies. The event format was unusual in French culture, since the participants were involved more actively than they would have been in a conventional meeting. The forum worked well and there was a good level of participant involvement. The impressive amount of presentations and displays ensured that all of those who attended had plenty of opportunity to improve their knowledge and understanding of the subject area.
Barcelona. The last Community Planning forum was held in Barcelona and hosted by the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona on the 8th and 9th of February 1996. The programme followed the principles used in the previous three events.
It was planned and facilitated by the Environmental Services of the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona, and by ICAEN, who were responsible for the Workshop reporting. The participation to the Barcelona event was very comprehensive, including professionals, managers, and political responsibles, who were asked to compile and debate a list of innovative energy policies.
General Action Plan. The General Action Plan defined operational schemes for the four cities, by assessing the feasibility and the effectiveness of energy substitution programmes in conjunction with the necessary investments, by documenting the technical feasibility, the reference technologies, and the fields of application. Job creation and new employment opportunities were also matters of investigation.
In each city the strategy concerning renewable energies was formalised, by bringing together politicians, decision makers, experts and citizens representatives. After having created various scenarios for the year 2010, with the selection of the mix of technologies to couple future quality of life and energy needs, the preferred scenario is detailed, taking into account the following:

• Renewable Energies Potential assessment
• Environmental impact assessment
• Employment effects and social opportunities
• Economic impact
• Responsibilities for managing the plan

The appropriate actions, as outcomes of the Community Planning events, were extracted from the ideas and proposals of such a consultation and included in the General Planning, with the following procedure:
After having developed the Local Scenario Workshops in all four cities, a task involving each city consisted of extracting the most promising “energy policies”, among those discussed in the forum, and to translate them into “possible actions”.
This activity required a screening, made by each city with their consultants, selecting those ideas which were realistically convertible into actions for the administration, in the short, medium and long term.
The translation of policies into actions was helped by an “action form”, which included a pre-estimate of the potentiality, in terms of energy conservation or substitution.

As indicated above, the different steps in the Renewable Energy Action Plans were tested by the first group of cities. These steps, re-organised and defined after the conclusion of the RESET Project, can be summarised as follows:

Step 1:- City commitment

In general terms, accelerated renewable energy implementation fits very well in the objectives of cities that commit to improving the urban environment and developing Local Agenda 21 Action Plans. RE could also have important spin-offs for employment in construction and manufacturing industries on an urban and regional scale.

Step 2:- Collection of Background Information
The second step focuses on the assessment of resources on which the city’s future economy depends. This means collection of existing data and information on the energy and environmental systems in order to include the RE strategy into local development plans.

Step 3:- Energy and Environmental Balance
For the preparation of a synthesis of the city’s energy and environmental balance, a common framework was developed by RESET g.e.i.e., in order to facilitate cross-comparisons and action planning.  Software, with an operational manual and diskette (MS/Excel) is given to the city, when committed, and used either for the city’s own purposes or for homogeneous presentations among RESET cities.

Step 4:- Scenario Workshop
One of the objectives of RESET is to ensure the relevance of RE Action Planning to the local communities and to form community partnerships which will play important roles in successfully establishing renewable energy projects. It is essential that the views of the local community are fully understood during the process of developing RE strategies.

Step 5:- General Action Plan
After the Local Scenario Workshop, the local carriers extract the most promising energy “policies”, among those discussed in the forum, and translate them into possible “actions”. This activity requires a screening by the city and the RESET local carriers, selecting those ideas which are convertible into actions for the Administration, in the short, medium and long term.
The translation of policies into actions is supported by an “action form”, which is filled in with the collaboration of the participants in the Local Scenario Workshop. The result of the General Action Plan focuses on the following key aspects:

• RE potential assessment at the City level, having as a target the substitution of at least 12% of fossil fuels by the year 2010;
• Environmental impact assessment;
• Employment effects and micro-economic impact;
• Responsibilities for managing the plan.

Step 7:- Detailed Action Plan
A detailed description of “policies” and “actions” needs to be developed at this stage of the Action Planning. The policy helps to guide the change of specific rules, the development of regulations, budgets or program area plans. They should refer to all sectors of the city activity, typically:

• Residential building stock;
• Public and tertiary building stock;
• Mobility and transportation;
• Waste and resources;
• Economic and financial tools;
• Information and training.

The detailed description of the actions follows the format:

action goals;

• description;
• timing;
• financing;
• expected results.

Step 8:- Adoption of Key Actions
Stakeholders are invited to focus their activities on Key Actions, on which they might work and invest, becoming “Action-holders”. If these Action-holders are addressed effectively, they will “bend the trend” towards the plan of implementation.
The RESET Team organises local meetings with representatives of the Councils and with the participation of the “Action holders”, to illustrate and amend the description of policies and actions emerging from the Action Plan. The RESET Action Plan is approved by the Council.

Step 9:- Design of Actions
The actions forecast by the detailed Plan are transformed into individual projects to be carried out.
The design of the actions shows the phases and sub-phases to be carried out, the time scale, the responsibilities for each phase, the disaggregated cost and the financial cover.
Every action shows arrangements with the various discussion partners involved in the project.

Step 10:- Actions Implementation.
The transition from planning to action is crucial. The design of actions has created specific projects and the lead implementers must build on these commitments and start their work.
A minimum number of actions (at least 10% of the actions forecast) are selected.
The selected actions should cover different sectors of the plan: residential and public buildings, mobility, urban wastes, economy and financing, information and training.
The implementation phase starts, requiring the formal approval and the “financial cover”, from municipal resolutions, of the selected projects.
The municipal resolutions will certify the implementation of the selected actions.

Results

Step 10 – Action Implementation (Turin, A.M.Barcelona)
The City of Turin and the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona have developed the fundamental steps of the RESET Action Planning (1995-1997) and have proceeded with a Council´s Resolution approving the Action Plan, followed by the implementation of the pilot actions (1998-2000)..

Step 8 – Adoption of Key Actions (Grand Lyon, Glasgow)
The Cities of Greater Lyon and Glasgow, after the development of the preliminary steps of the RESET Action Planning (1995-1997), have created the Local Teams and compiled the Detailed Action Plan, ending with the adoption of Key Actions for further implementation (1998-2000)

Step 5 – General Action Plan (Rotterdam, South Dublin)
With the participation in the RESTART Project, the City of Rotterdam and the South Dublin County Council have entered RESETnet. The two cities have developed the General Action Plan (1998-2000), a fundamental step for the action planning methodology, aiming at the assessment of a renewable energy strategy for the year 2010.

Step 2 – Collection of Background Information (Porto)
After the commitment, Porto has performed an homogeneous presentation of the actual energy balance in order to allow a cross comparison and a proper development of the general planning.

Critical Success Factors / Challenges

In the last phase four forums for the public dialogue were created. Decision makers in a wide range of activities were brought into the dialogue regarding the results of both General and Community Planning and an initial package of measures was proposed to the citizens.
The following steps were included:

• Validation of the Renewable Energy Policy, having as a reference the participants to the Community Planning forums in the different RESET cities: a concise questionnaire, adapted to the different contexts, was proposed to the reviewers (local “carriers”) to be filled in with their written amendments
• Local meetings with representatives of the municipalities (for the Area Metropolitana of Barcelona and for the Greater Lyon) and the representatives of the Municipal Districts (for Turin and Glasgow), in order to illustrate and receive comments on the list of actions which emerged from the study
• Revision of the proposed actions by local municipal responsibles and gathering of the proposed amendments from the Municipal (or sub-district) Councils.

E.D.E.R.A. stands for Ecology of Energy and Environmental Renovation. This is the extended title of the project carried out by a Public Authority, the Municipality of Rossiglione in cooperation with Liguria Region, Province of Genoa and the University of Architecture of Genoa – Polis Department, and partially financed by the European Community through the Life Environment program (project ENV/IT/000121) established by the Regulation 92/1973/CEE, the financial means for the Environment of EU. The Municipality of Rossiglione the beneficiary subject, is located in the Province of Genoa, in the mountain area right behind the coast, and the Mountain Community of Stura and Orba Valleys. It is, indeed, an environment of great value, that must be highlighted by qualified interventions on the landscape and integrated in a network system to correctly manage ali the processes that can influence on the environment, and strengthen the existing financial, social and cultural tissues.

Objectives and target audience

EDERA is a pilot project and has as its main target to promote and spread a sustainable approach to the living problem. With the intervention for the renewal and completing of the school building, the bio-architecture has been experimented, by using environ-compatible techniques and materials both of traditional and innovative type to meet the requirements of sustainability, and to deal with problems and relating costs. The project is based on the acknowledgement that the construction sector is one of those that uses more intensively non-renewable resources, and therefore produces a very high level of pollution, more than a quarter of the total waste produced on the planet. In the nation, the spreading of construction works with biocompatible characteristics is extremely important for the introduction of a new building philosophy that is strictly linked to situations of environmental sustainability.
To reduce the environmental impact and the overall power energy cost of the construction sector it is essential to promote a correct refurbishing of the existing construction properties and to build new biocompatible buildings, where the use of ecological, durable, and non-toxic components and materials is implemented.

Financial Resources and Partners involved

The technical scientific partners of the project are: Liguria Region (Environment, Construction and Energy Department), Province of Genoa (Department for Environment, Construction and Sustained Development), Faculty of Architecture of Genoa, Polis Department.
The participating subjects interested in the experimentation are: Mountain Community of Stura and Orba Valleys, CREA Liguria (Regional centre for environmental education), ENEA CCEI Liguria (Agency for the New Technologies in the Energy and Environment Sectors The project has had an indirect impact on the institutions, and the business class, represented by: firms, professionals, manufacturers, research institutes and vocational schools, but a direct impact on the residents of the Comunità Montana Valli Stura and Orba, the operators and the users of the school itself.

Process

The project has been carried out in four implementation phases:
1)    Bio-construction project, which includes the sub-phase of environmental analyses. It had defined, in according to local characteristics, the modality of intervention, keeping in great consideration: indoor pollution; energy savings; biocompatible materials and systems; renewal and/or recycle of demolition debris; the recycling collection of the waste; indoor temperature comfort; natural illumination and ventilation;
2)    Pilot construction site, realizing a biocompatible construction, the direction of the works and accounting the costs within the experimentation framework;
3)    Final monitoring on the biocompatible qualities of the building and the- comparison of the collected values before and after the works, registration of the energy costs for at least one year of operation to verify the obtained savings at the end of the management, maintenance and indoor comforts against the extra costs of the building site, with the total environmental balance sheet of the intervention , and the costs/benefits ratio;
4)    Integrate dissemination actions to ensure the spreading of the developed know-how and of the obtained results by means of informative events and information also on the web:

• The creation of a dedicated website: http://www.lifeedera.it

• The opening of a structure for information and consulting, an “eco-desk” in the website of the project, a data bank on biocompatible construction and on power energy savings, updated on the result of the project

• Specific promoting events as: special exhibitions of the sector, training and educational stages, conclusive conference at the Expo centre Valle Stura, with the Managing Consortium  (made  up of many authorities among which:  Province of Genoa, Municipalities of Stura Valley, Mountain Community, Chamber of Commerce, CNA and private companies)

• The videotape of the building site.

The experimentation of the intervention has been oriented to:

• the evaluation of sustainable materials and components, long lasting, easy maintenance and the possibility to dismantle and reassemble in the disposal phase.

• engineering solutions that exploit at best the natural illumination and ventilation, installation of thermal, power and sanitary systems with a low level of environmental impact and compatible from the ecological point of view, to improve the indoor comfort and obtain relevant energy savings.

The heating systems of the school connected to the district heating plant that supplies the heating to many public users, is fuelled with freshly-cut biomasses, which is a peculiarity of the area. In fact, there is a large production of oaks for fireplace and chipping that can provide heating at a very low cost. The biomasses are, in fact, a renewable energy source in a region with a high density of woods as Liguria. This plant, partially financed by Liguria Region, not only provides the protection of the environment, but also foster the care and improvement of the woods, which are often abandoned and consequently can cause instabilities of the hill slopes and hydro- geological upheaval phenomena. The Municipality of Rossiglione, moreover, has received a financial support for the programme “Photovoltaic roofs” promoted by the Ministry for the Environment, for the installation of the photovoltaic System connected to the electrical network, to be located on the roofs of the new gym.

Results

We can highlight the following results of the project:
•    The biocompatible re-qualification of the school building with a intervention methodology that can be reproduced, and can interact with the manufacturing, professional and research world.
•    The promotion and spreading of bio-architecture as sustainable approach to the living problems,
•    The monitoring of environmental benefits and the evaluation of the costs/benefits of the interventions
•    The creation of this operating manual, that has a main task to transfer the experience with the guidelines and a reproducible methodology.
•    The check of requirements necessary to evaluate the environmental sustainability, for the energy and environmental certification of the public buildings.

Critical Success Factors / Challenges