Dai Le (Fowler, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

If we are really seeking to achieve our goals in regard to climate targets then I urge the Australian government to speed up the electrification of residential homes and businesses. We will be seeing the smart home of the future looking very different to the homes we have today. One of the big differences will be that gas could slowly disappear from the energy footprint. The general prediction for leading architects in renewable energy experts is that in the next decade smart homes and fully electrified homes will come into their own. They can offer us lower running costs and more comfort if we build homes that overall respect the climate we have in Australia. Why do we have a sea of black roofs in Western Sydney which heat up the homes and drive up the air-conditioning bills? It makes me shake my head. Why do we have shading pergolas and verandahs in older-style homes, and many modern homes with big windows facing west and acting like heat absorbers in summer?

The plan to electrify homes will rely on government programs to enable this direction. It must come with a review of the many wasteful energy practices we currently have in our planning and designing our homes. We have to have architects, builders, consumer groups and the government set a framework of fully electrified homes of the future and how they can look, with an overall lower energy footprint allowing for the maximum use of solar and batteries in people's homes. Gas hot-water tanks will become electric heat pumps. Heating and cooling will utilise electricity, but this electricity only helps in our climate goals if we use renewable energy in the generation of this electricity.

One of the ways to achieve a better energy outcome could be something along the lines of the European energy pass for homes, which I have seen in practice in Germany. As we all know, energy efficiency is a crucial aspect in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and mitigating the effects of climate change. The German energy pass is a document that provides information on the energy efficiency of buildings and can help homeowners and buyers make informed decisions about energy usage. The energy pass was introduced in Germany in 2008 and is now mandatory for all buildings that are put on the market for sale or rent. The energy pass provides information on the building's insulation, heating systems and other energy-related features, and gives the building a rating from A to G, where A represents the most energy-efficient buildings and G the least efficient. One of the main benefits of the energy pass is that it helps people make informed decisions about the energy efficiency of a building. For example, a buyer or renter can use the energy pass to compare the energy efficiency of different properties and make a decision based on the energy consumption and cost they are willing to incur. In addition, an energy pass can also be used to identify areas where a building can be made more energy efficient, helping to reduce energy consumption and costs and to make the building more environmentally friendly.

In conclusion, a future energy pass could be an important tool that provides information on the energy efficiency of buildings. By promoting energy-efficient buildings the energy pass helps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, lower energy consumption and costs, and make our buildings more environmentally friendly. Let's find a way to cut fossil fuels out of our consumption chain, but let's transition it smartly and cost effectively.

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