A final attempt to simplify the much-criticised Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC), was announced in the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement towards the end of 2012. Amongst a variety of reforms is the withdrawal of all state-funded schools in England from the Scheme. Jurjen de Greeve, Direct Sales Manager at IMServ Europe, the UK’s largest independent energy management provider, believes this is a step backward and risks undoing the progress that has been made so far as a result of the Carbon Reduction Commitment.
A final attempt to simplify the much-criticised Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC), was announced in the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement towards the end of 2012. Amongst a variety of reforms is the withdrawal of all state-funded schools in England from the Scheme. Jurjen de Greeve, Direct Sales Manager at IMServ Europe, the UK’s largest independent energy management provider, believes this is a step backward and risks undoing the progress that has been made so far as a result of the Carbon Reduction Commitment.
Applicable to all organisations using more than 6,000MWh per year of electricity, the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme (formerly known as the Carbon Reduction Commitment) is a mandatory carbon emissions scheme. Introduced in April 2010, the Scheme targets emissions from large public and private sector organisations, with the aim of driving emissions reductions and incentivising the uptake of energy efficiencies.
Along with the withdrawal of state-funded schools in England, other changes to the Scheme include:
Reducing the number of fuels that participants have to report against from 29 to 2, these are electricity and gas for heating.
Reducing the Scheme complexity by removing the 90% rule and Climate Change Agreements (CCA) exemption rule.
Abolishing the Performance League Table but continuing to publish participants aggregated energy use and emission data.
Jurjen believes the removal of state-funded schools from the Scheme risks sending the wrong message, reversing the progress that has been made so far following the Carbon Reduction Commitment. According to IMServ, whilst individual schools’ energy consumption may be relatively low, it can constitute up to a third of a local authority’s total consumption.
Energy prices have risen byapproximately 58% since 2010 and this trend isset to continue. Energy usage is a significant cost for all educational facilities. Any effort made to reduce these bills through effective energy management could free up a significant proportion ofeducational spending, while helping to combat climate change.
Jurjen argues that many schools can make substantial energy savings but lack the funding to develop skills and knowledge to fully understand how, when, and where energy is being used. IMServ is running a free educational webinar on 5th March in which tips to help with the challenges of reducing energy consumption and managing cost will be shared.
Jurjen explains, “Schools rarely, if ever, have staff with the experience or expertise to fully understand energy management. As a result, decisions (no matter how well-intentioned) can fail to address the real sources of energy wastage, and can in some cases even cause consumption to increase. The Government has made a kneejerk decision that it would be easier to remove schools from the Scheme rather than investing in materials and training to ensure they have a fighting chance of meeting the objectives.”
Many local authorities already have designated energy managers who support schools and who should be encouraged to share skills and information more – not less. There is a vast array of energy management and saving information available to any school, along with an array of energy focused initiatives which the Government should be readily promoting.
Savings can be made via a variety of means including simple measures to ensure that all electrical devices are used efficiently and investments are made to upgrade buildings, which could include new heating systems or renewables. Web based software and training from a meter and data specialist is also a great way to get effective energy management started in schools.
Jurjen continued, “Schools should not just be looking at introducing appropriate strategies to engage with the whole school community, but also the implementation of suitable energy controlling technologies.” Ultimately if a school looks at its own energy profiles in data form, the peaks and troughs by day and night time will answer the questions “when and what” and will highlight the two key questions of “where and why?”
The benefits of including schools within the Scheme far outway the negatives according to Jurjen. “It’s about making a commitment for the future and having a long term strategic view. To my mind there is no sense in schools not taking responsibility for their energy and emissions impacts. The ability to use the process to engage with future generations on energy emissions and global impacts should not be lost in schools.”
IMServ work closely with many educational facilities to help meet the challenges of reducing energy consumption and managing cost, IMServ provide:
Detailed metering
Clear analysis and presentation of energy usage
Appropriate technological controls
Whole school community engagement
Integrating energy / sustainability with the curriculum
To learn more about how IMServ have helped others in this area, sign up to their Education Webinar on the 5th March here.
Editor’s Notes
About Jurjen de Greeve
As the Direct Sales Manager for IMServ Europe, Jurjen is able to identify the needs and challenges and risks that customers face every day when it comes to saving costs, reducing carbon and forecasting energy and utility spend.
Jurjen has a successful background in the carbon, metering, monitoring, renewables and energy management sectors, with experience of assisting both private and public sector companies in visualising and controlling their energy consumption.
About IMServ (www.imserv.com)
IMServ Europe Ltd is the UK’s largest independent energy management provider. The company offers carbon and energy management solutions, helping organisations across all sectors to save energy, reduce costs and control carbon emissions.
IMServ offers an all-inclusive portfolio that covers data collection, analysis, reporting and carbon management. To date over 180,000 sites in England, Scotland and Wales are benefiting from its solutions.
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