The 2023 Parliament Environment Audit Committee inquiry that closed on 17th August 2023 focussed on the issues of the relationship between heat and health, Government policies in relation to current and future need for cooling and what measures could be taken to increase adaptation and resilience to rising temperatures – sustainable cooling solutions and adaptation strategies that minimise overheating, reduce energy consumption and prevent overloading the electricity grid. MPs are aiming to understand how communities can better adapt to increased temperatures without relying on energy-intensive solutions, such as air conditioning units.
The IOR submitted a response drafted by members of our Beyond Refrigeration Environment Committee and Technical Committees.
Question – How can sustainable cooling solutions and adaptation strategies be implemented in such a way as to minimise overheating, reduce energy consumption and prevent overloading of the electricity grid during peak demand?
IOR response:
To achieve these aims policymakers need to gain a better understanding of what solutions are available and how they can be implemented and what policy mechanisms could support them.
The following inter-related factors are essential to achieving effective cooling solutions as part of an adaptation strategy.
- Clear understanding of the types of cooling and where they are used, particularly for essential services such as medical and food related, as well as occupied buildings.
- The co-ordination of policies for the adaptation of existing buildings that make up the majority of UK built environment, the improved design standards for new buildings and the proactive maintenance of mechanical cooling in all buildings.
- Specific strategies that target action at either an individual business/location, local network, regional or national level.
- The need to recover, reuse and store waste heat and/or energy from cooling processes so that refrigeration is treated as flexible national asset, which supports demand side management policies.
- Guidance, awareness and training for those responsible for specifying, setting design standards and most importantly using and maintaining mechanical cooling systems in buildings. This is essential to ensure that correct use of such systems and innovations to achieve maximum designed and operational efficiencies possible.
- Better understanding of the impact of policy measures in these areas, how they interact and support sustainable cooling options.
In summary, effective sustainable cooling policies are going to be a critical solution to addressing overheating, energy management and emissions reduction issues. It must be recognised that cooling current provides essential services and is only going to be more critically important in the future in addressing climate change.
The IOR will be holding a Business Technical Briefing on Extreme Heat on 14th November in Birmingham where these issues and examples from other countries who are managing cooling in a wider temperature envelope will be discussed further. Registrations for this event are now open
