Energy renovations, what if we undertaken them on a neighborhood scale?

The essentials in 3 points:

1. The current pace of energy renovations remains too slow in Switzerland, only 0.9% of buildings are renovated each year in the country, and this rate stagnates at 0.8% in the canton of Vaud.

2. This slowness can be explained in particular by the current approach, which consists of acting by building or by property, without deploying a more global approach which would allow renovations to be extended over larger geographical areas.

3. Adopting a neighborhood approach would make it possible to exceed an annual renovation rate of 3% while benefiting from hitherto unprecedented financial, administrative and social incentive advantages.

In Switzerland, the built stock represents some 40% of total energy consumption and almost a third of the greenhouse gases emitted there, according to the Federal Office of Energy. In this proportion, the Swiss Society of Engineers and Architects also emphasizes that the majority of this consumption comes from existing buildings, which logically consume much more energy than new constructions.

To counter the strong carbon impact of our aging building stock, the Confederation and the Cantons have launched various measures and initiatives, including subsidy programs, already in 2010, notably with the Buildings Program for example. Objective: to encourage players in the real estate sector to quickly undertake energy renovations through these aid and support measures. Very large-scale work on a national scale, which first targets the building envelope in order to improve its insulation (façade, window, roof) and the replacement of its heat production installations to promote renewable energies . The objective is twofold: to reduce energy consumption and improve its nature and origin to reduce CO2 emissions by promoting renewable production sectors.

Ineffective measures?

If the aid and subsidy programs planned by the Confederation – available at the cantonal and municipal level – are present, it is clear that the pace of energy renovations remains slow. In fact, only 0.9% of buildings are renovated each year in Switzerland, and this rate stagnates at 0.8% in the canton of Vaud, according to the Cantonal Energy Design (CoCEn). Whereas to achieve the objectives set by the Confederation as part of the Energy Strategy 2050, we would need to be able to increase to 2.5% by 2030.

In addition to the limitations linked to labor shortage problems, these renovations are also hampered in terms of scale due to their geographical dispersion. A lack of synergies and large-scale coordination highlighted by a recent EPFL study, commissioned by the General Directorate of the Environment and the Directorate of Energy (DGE-DIREN) of the State of Vaud, led by the architect specializing in sustainability and former researcher at EPFL Goto Takayoshi, and Professor Philippe Thalmann, director of the Laboratory of Urban Economy and the Environment (LEURE) at EPFL. If we were to continue to advance at the current slow pace, it would take another century for Swiss buildings to reach the standards targeted by the 2050 Energy Strategy.

Faced with this climate emergency, notably declared by the Grand Council of the State of Vaud in March 2019, it is imperative to adopt large-scale energy renovation actions. As part of the Vaud Climate Plan, the EPFL study proposes an innovative approach aimed at concentrating efforts on the renovation of residential neighborhoods, and no longer by moving forward by building or by property. Objective: to accelerate the canton of Vaud and identify the drivers and obstacles to the implementation of such a strategy.

The neighborhood, this key scale

Concretely, the current rate of renovation in Vaud lands means that only one building in a hundred is renovated at a time. To double or even triple this pace, it is necessary to change our perspective by adopting a mass vision. A pooling of actions undertaken between several buildings in the same district – belonging to different owners – would make it possible to boost the energy transformation of the built stock.

Although the notion of neighborhood seems obvious, let us nevertheless specify that, in the context of this study, this zone is defined as being a group of at least two neighboring buildings, including surrounding developments, infrastructure and users. In the canton of Vaud, there are more than 40 residential neighborhoods with significant renovation potential.

Undertaking work on this scale implies at the same time a new complication, that of having to deal with different owners. In this sense, the study notably consisted of scanning the land through a homogeneity filter, both in terms of the types of owners concerned as well as the types of buildings and their condition. A necessary condition in terms of pooling the steps to be taken, from energy diagnosis to financing, including planning and renovation work.

Gains et obstacles

The conclusion of the study is clear: adopting a neighborhood approach would make it possible to exceed an annual renovation rate of 3% while benefiting from hitherto unprecedented financial, administrative and social incentive advantages. In terms of costs, thanks to the achievable economy of scale, renovating by district could also result in a reduction in the bill per housing unit of around 10%.

In practice, however, this relevant strategic vision is confronted with the current fragmentation which characterizes the structure of the real estate market. Because even within a so-called “homogeneous” neighborhood in terms of type of owners and properties, each owner has their own interests and each structure has intrinsic specificities. This could potentially increase the amount of work required. To counter this phenomenon, the idea is to define a mediator, i.e. a neutral external person or organization whose key role would be to support and coordinate the actors of a project. The committed support of the Canton and the Municipalities is also essential to carry out renovations of this type. To find out more, study author Goto Takayoshi answers our questions.

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Three questions for Goto Takayoshi, architect expert in sustainability and former researcher at EPFL

Energy issues: The real estate market appears to be very fragmented, between different public and private players, whose points of view and priorities diverge. How can we establish the collaborative framework necessary for adopting a neighborhood renovation approach?

Goto Takayoshi : The first essential element to put in place is to involve the authorities and public authorities from the very first phases of a project. In this sense, the State has a key role to play, in particular by bringing together and encouraging the various private actors who own the properties to be renovated to act jointly, but also and above all in terms of communication and promotion to the general public and local residents. One of the examples that I am interested in as part of our study – Onex-Rénove – demonstrates the importance of benefiting from such involvement at the state level. This pilot project was notably able to succeed thanks to the role of the State of Geneva, both with private actors and owners and tenants concerned. For owners, the positioning of the Canton and the City of Onex has enabled them to benefit from privileged access via a one-stop shop to resolve all regulatory, administrative and even financial problems. We can cite a counter-example in the heights of Lausanne, where the Bergières renovation project, carried out solely by the private actors who own the real estate in question, was unable to succeed largely due to a problem of communication with residents who objected. Without the presence of public authorities, local residents may tend to perceive a real estate project as being carried out solely for the purpose of increasing yield, even though its real objectives prove to be laudable and necessary from an environmental point of view. and energy.

In this sense, what can we expect from public authorities and cantonal and municipal authorities?

It is likely that public authorities will increasingly take on this role of facilitator and coordinator between the different stakeholders in energy renovation projects carried out at neighborhood level. It is a complex but essential role to succeed in adopting and deploying this type of approach more widely. In addition to the key functions mentioned above with owners and residents, the authorities can also act on two other areas. At the financial level, it would, for example, be beneficial to be able to offer additional aid measures and subsidies intended for priority groups who decide to join the collective effort undertaken in a neighborhood renovation. Finally, at the regulatory level, for example on aspects linked to heritage preservation or even fire safety, it could prove relevant to offer tailor-made solutions, adapted to the scale of the district. A legal relaxation which, in the context of these renovations undertaken more broadly, could make it possible to get around the relatively fixed regulatory and administrative constraints which remain specific to each building.

Are there other models, for example abroad, from which to draw inspiration to implement this innovative and relevant renovation approach by district?

Yes, there are many. In other countries, many inspiring projects are indeed seeing the light of day. One of the most interesting pioneering models is found in the Netherlands, where the EnergieSprong approach aims to industrialize the approach to energy renovations. To do this, the idea consists of carrying out a neighborhood energy audit then planning and modeling the necessary renovation work using digital tools. Once prefabricated, the modules which will be used to reinforce the thermal envelope of the properties concerned are installed from the outside of the accommodation in just one to two days. This makes it possible to minimize nuisance for residents. A point that is still problematic in Switzerland and which first requires equipping oneself with the right political and social tools with a view to involving everyone in the same approach.