Ecological and Economic Benefits of the “Medium” Level of the Building Thermo-Modernization: A Case Study in Poland

Abstract

Energy saving is at the heart of sustainable development in the context of climate change. Saving energy is not only the amount of energy that we save, but also reducing emissions of pollutants to the atmosphere, as well as reducing the consumption of energy resources that are used to produce energy. Reducing pollutant emissions and the use of energy resources can be achieved by increasing the use of renewable energy sources, but at present, this method of obtaining energy in the world is not representative. It should be noted that renewable energy devices throughout the life cycle generate environmental impact. Similar to this situation, the building’s thermo-modernization, which is focused on reducing the pressure on the environment of the building’s user, also has an impact on the environment throughout the building’s life cycle. Determining this environmental impact and ecological or economic benefits or costs is the purpose of the following article. Thermo-modernization of the building, for the purposes of the article, is understood as thermal insulation of walls and replacement of the heat source for heating the building and preparation of hot utility water. The need to replace the heat source with a much more ecological one results in Poland from provincial legal regulations announced by virtue of a resolution. In the study, data from the Ecoinvent data library included in the SimaPro computer program was used for the LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) analysis. As a result of thermo-modernization of the representative buildings, large ecological benefits were obtained, while economic costs remain at a high level.

Energy efficiency in the polish residential building stock: A literature review

“…More recently, Adamczyk et al (2020) [22] investigated the economic benefits of the medium-level Thermo-Modernization of single-family buildings. The study conclusion confirms the lack of financial benefits for house owners regarding the medium-level thermo-modernization.…”

“…In parallel to the evolution of building energy performance regulations, Poland enacted in 1998 a thermo-modernization law [35,49]. The Thermo-modernization Act of 1998 allows subsidizing the refurbishment of buildings from the state budget to reduce heat energy use [22]. Staniaszek and Firlag [20] distinguish three levels of thermo-modernization in Poland: (1) Low-modernization or replacement of heat source, (2) Medium-modernization or replacement of heat source together with window and door joinery or thermal insulation of the façade and (3) Deep-modernization of total replacement energy sources, the use of renewables or the use of high-efficiency cogeneration and envelope renovation.…”

Evaluation of Energy Efficiency in Thermally Improved Residential Buildings, with a Weather Controlled Central Heating System. A Case Study in Poland

“…These activities also include modernization and replacement of heat sources, replacement of windows and modernization of internal heating systems. In Polish conditions, according to the research carried out on a group of 109 multi-family residential buildings, for which energy characteristics were determined, based on actual energy consumption before and after thermal improvement, it was indicated that thanks to comprehensive thermomodernization, savings of 38-40% can be achieved [11], such a level of savings can be described as "average" [12,13]. Therefore, it is advisable to use other instruments to improve energy efficiency, through modernization and improvement of heat management-operational regulation in heating systems of buildings.…”