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Quantifying the health and performance gains of enhanced indoor environmental quality in offices, schools and hospitals

Panel: 2. What's next in energy policy?

Authors:
Jonathan Volt, BPIE, Belgium
Judit Kockat, Buildings Performance Institute Europe, Germany
Vivian Dorizas, Buildings Performance Institute Europe, Belgium
Dan Staniaszek, Buildings Performance Institute Europe, Belgium

Abstract

Buildings we live and work in are a key determinant for our physical and mental health, our wellbeing and even our professional performance. People spend on average 90% of time indoors and one in six Europeans live in unhealthy buildings. Buildings also have a key role to play in combatting the impacts of climate change. In Europe, buildings are responsible for 40% of energy consumption and nearly 36% of CO2 emissions. Despite this, the European renovation rate remains low.

Most investors (public and private) look solely on the potential energy savings and tend to overlook the multiple non-energy benefits. In most renovations, the value of these benefits, such as fewer sick days, shorter length of stay at hospitals or higher performance at work, heavily outweigh the energy savings realised. The paper contributes to the understanding of multiple benefits in schools, hospitals and offices and how they can be valorised.

The methodological approach covers a (i) systematic review of existing literature (>250 studies) based on the key indoor environmental indicators, (ii) monetisation of the quantified benefits and an (iii) extrapolation to a European level. In a final stage, the findings are scrutinised by leading experts. The initial finding shows the performance increase due to a holistic renovation, is expected to amount to 11-16% in offices and 13-20% in schools. The number of sick-days in schools and offices are expected to drop 15-20%, while the length of stay in hospitals is predicted to decrease with 15-30%. The monetised value of shorter length of stay in hospitals alone, amounts to €58-117bn on a European level.

Renovations must improve the energy performance of the building but also be designed to optimise the acoustic environment, thermal comfort, air quality and light, while empowering the residents with control. The results suggest that indoor environmental quality can become a driving force for energy renovation and proper implementation across Europe.

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