HOUSES with low carbon emissions are to benefit from a grant scheme aimed at making new homes 70% more energy-efficient.The Low Carbon Homes Programme was launched yesterday by energy minister Eamon Ryan. It will be run by Sustainable Energy Ireland and is aimed primarily at developers. Grants of up to 40% of expenditure on efficiency measures in new houses will be available to encourage development of buildings that exceed the recently adopted energy regulations. Homes built under the programme will be at least 70% more energy-efficient and produce 70% less carbon dioxide than homes built to 2005 standards, and will have a Building Energy Rating (BER) of at least A2. Homes built to the standard of the recently adopted Building Regulations, which are already among the best in Europe, would typically have a BER of B1, two points below the minimum standard of the new programme.
A capital budget of €9 million has been earmarked for the grant scheme until the end of 2011, with the target of achieving zero or very low carbon emissions.

Solar , micro-wind and combined heat and power technologies are expected to be used in such houses.

(source:www.irishexaminer.ie)