04

ENERGY EFFICIENCY
IMPROVES OUR HEALTH

Even modest energy efficiency upgrades improve our health, happiness and wellbeing.

Australians spend 90 per cent of our time indoors.⁴⁵While this statistic might be surprising, what’s even more surprising is just how much better our buildings could perform when it comes to creating healthy living environments with comfortable air temperatures, humidity, noise levels and air quality.⁴⁶

In 2005, Australia’s first minimum energy efficiency standard for new homes was introduced, with the National Construction Code setting the standard for new builds at a five-star minimum. This standard has since been increased, and we are moving to a seven-star standard for houses and apartments across the country. But while the homes of the future will be comfortable and efficient, our existing homes and buildings are a long way off the pace. In fact, industry and consumer groups agree that more than eight million of Australia’s 10 million homes are inefficient, largely because they were built before we had mandatory minimum energy efficiency requirements.⁴⁷These homes tend to be poorly insulated and draughty, and many have ventilation and damp issues.

This is especially worrying given people living in homes that are damp, cold or mouldy are at greater risk of respiratory illness, infections, and asthma.⁴⁸

Improving the efficiency of these homes doesn’t just reduce costs and lower emissions: it improves the physical and mental health of the people living in them.

A growing number of studies show that through the reduction of thermal discomfort and anxiety related to fuel poverty or bill strain, energy efficient homes promote improved mental and social health outcomes. This is especially relevant to economically and socially vulnerable Australians, who experience energy poverty disproportionately.⁴⁹

One study of the Victorian government’s Healthy Homes Program found that among elderly participants, even modest energy efficiency upgrades – those costing less than $3,000 – were associated with benefits that included reduced breathlessness and improved quality of life, particularly in mental health and social care.⁵⁰

These benefits spread beyond individuals, with the study finding the upgrades led to healthcare savings of almost $900 per person over the winter period. In fact, in this program, for every $1 saved in energy, more than $10 was saved in healthcare.⁵¹

In New Zealand, a government program aimed at improving efficiency through better insulating homes found benefits including:

Hospitalisation and pharmaceutical cost savings;
Reduced medical visits;
Reduced days off school or work; and
Reductions in caregiver costs.⁵²

Echoing the findings of both the Australian and New Zealand programs, studies of insulation retrofits in social housing in the United Kingdom found that tenants reported improved social and emotional benefits, including feeling more comfortable at home, improved mental health, social interaction, and family relations.⁵³

Needless to say, the benefits don’t begin and end at home. A Singaporean study found that people working in energy efficient buildings are less likely to suffer from fatigue, headaches and skin irritations.⁵⁴Bright, cool fluorescent lighting also increases the risk of eye diseases,⁵⁵meaning that installing dimmable, warm LEDs can also improve comfort by reducing eye strain.

A number of Australian and international studies have found close association between energy efficiency improvements in offices and worker productivity from fewer sick days, reduced stress and improved employee morale.⁵⁶For example, a review of Australia’s Commercial Building Disclosure (CBD) program found retrofits resulting from the first years of the program delivered at least $168 million in improved occupant productivity, more than double the value of the energy savings!⁵⁷