Free tools to help communities become zero carbon
By Laura Whitehead 15th May 2012
BioRegional has developed a new free tool and research to help local authorities, housing associations and community groups work out the best options for retrofitting buildings to produce low or zero carbon emissions. The resources are part of the major Zero Carbon Hackbridge project where this 2,400 home London suburb is working to retrofit all buildings to zero carbon by 2025.
The Energy retrofit tool for buildings allows users to model the outcomes of different energy retrofit strategies on building stock in an area. It can be used for projects of any size, from one building to a whole town or city. The tool shows costs, carbon savings, payback periods, value for money and remaining carbon emissions. The project was funded by the Sainsbury Family Charitable Trusts Climate Change Collaboration.