Integrating energy efficiency with the social agenda in sustainability

Energy efficiency upgrading of housing can promote wider sustainable development aims and objectives because it produces environmental, social and wider macro-economic benefits in addition to lower fuel bills to the householder. This paper uses a cost-benefit analysis framework to assess the potential scale of some of these benefits from the comprehensive upgrading of heating and hot water energy efficiency in the English housing stock. The analysis is not restricted to simply analysing fuel expenditure, energy and CO2 emissions savings but also includes an evaluation of the potential employment gains a comprehensive upgrading programme would produce, together with health gains arising from fewer cases of cold and damp related illnesses. This paper outlines the steps involved in this appraisal and sets out the underlying assumptions at its root. Results of the analysis suggest that, depending on the time-horizon of the analysis, the net social benefit of an upgrading programme will exceed costs for discount rates up 14%.