Based on CSIRO science, the Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS) holds the key for managing the energy and carbon abatement pathways for residential buildings into the future

The 2015 United Nations Paris Climate Conference (COP21) meeting agreement, to seek to limit the increase in global temperature to 1.5-2.0 deg C, places considerable onus on the Victorian and other state and federal governments to shift the focus from energy efficiency to carbon abatement in homes over the next few years.  Australia’s carbon abatement obligations are likely to rise over the next five years in line with proposed legally binding international targets.

Residential buildings represent around 15% of Australia’s carbon emissions and are amongst the lowest cost carbon abatement opportunities available.

Together with CSIRO, Energy Inspection(EI) is investing significant resources to:

- support existing NatHERS software products such as AccuRate and BERS Pro, and

- extend NatHERS-based assessment technology to Australia’s existing housing stock to identify opportunities to help reduce energy bills and deliver significant carbon abatement at least cost to the Australian community. To this end EI and the CSIRO recently executed an agreement to jointly develop and deploy a new “Carbon Emissions Measurement Platform” (CEMP) for the existing residential building sector.