Today we speak to Alison Scotland, Executive Director of the Australian Sustainable Built Environment Council (ASBEC) about why electrification is so important and the pathway to achieving a fully electric home.

 

ASBEC is a CEO leaders-level forum (peak body of peak bodies!) that operates with sustainability front of mind and is a champion for change in the built environment.

 

Alison shares ASBECs biggest recent win - some fantastic evidence-based research to get energy efficiency front and centre of the National Construction Code. She explains that their work covers all levels, across city, community and infrastructure levels.

 

Why is electrification important? Alison explains that the national energy grid is on a trajectory to be fully electric, however, this does not solve the fact that gas will still be connected at a household level. Gas is an unrenewable resource, and also has some serious health side effects. Alison explains that there needs to be a push from households to move to electrify their homes in the coming years.

 

Alison explains heat pump technology and a report that ASBEC will soon be releasing on this technology that reveals it as the most rapid and least expensive option to decarbonise buildings (even with the current high price tag).

 

Often when you’re asking for new technology, tradies will push back and advocate for the old way of doing things. We discuss the need for more interaction and discussion between trades and the need for upskilling and reskilling in new, electric technologies.

 

We also discuss what a just transition for fully electric homes look like, the challenges of retrofitting, and the importance of well-designed houses to reduce energy consumption overall. We also consider the point that the energy performance of a home will play a much larger role in purchasing decisions moving forward.

 

For this transition, we need informed consumers, informed tradies and a really powerful government-led program to drive the transformation. It’s super inspiring to know that people like Alison exist to help drive the change.

 

LINKS:

Your Home website and book

My Efficient Electric Home (Facebook group)

 

Connect with Alison Scotland:

Website:    http://www.asbec.asn.au/

LinkedIn:    https://au.linkedin.com/in/alison-scotland

 

Join our Renovating and Building for Profit event here 

 

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