Throughout the Caribbean islands, demographic pressure and the corresponding energy requirements place the building sector, along with transportation, at the core of the major challenges of energy transition.
Fully aware of the importance of developing a local framework to meet these challenges efficiently, the Regional Council of Guadeloupe, on the strength of its credentials, has developed and implemented public policies in favour of energy-efficient buildings. In 2011, for instance, it implemented Energy Building Standards specifically for Guadeloupe which, as part and parcel of the design and implementation process, have resulted in the improved thermal comfort and reduced energy impact of buildings, while also generating significant savings.
Since the thermal component of the RTAADOM (Regulations on heat, acoustics and ventilation in French overseas departments) was adapted for Guadeloupe, the Guadeloupe’s Energy standards for Buildings (RTG) has been updated twice and is now being reviewed for the third time:
- 19 April 2011: adoption of the Guadeloupe Thermal Regulation during a plenary session of the Regional Council of Guadeloupe – RTG version 1
- 14 June 2013: first update of the Guadeloupe Thermal Regulation – RTG version 2
- 8 April 2020: second update of the Guadeloupe Thermal Regulation – RTG 2020
With the RTGv2, Guadeloupe already had high ambitions in terms of the energy efficiency of buildings. Today, the RTG 2020 is taking those ambitions a step further, by:
- Dropping previous minimum best-endeavour requirements in favour of a 100% performance-based approach,
- setting more ambitious regulatory performance indicators,
- Creating a digital platform for regulatory calculations that is efficient, easy to use, and accessible to all,
- Consolidating a region-specific database of buildings in Guadeloupe, as and when calculations are carried out on the platform.
These are just a few examples that highlight some of the expertise the region has acquired in this field. In order to facilitate the elaboration and implementation of public policies favourable to the building sector’s energy transition, the Regional Council of Guadeloupe intends to share the benefits of its experience relating to the Guadeloupe Thermal Regulation with OECS member countries, by way of a feedback guide.
The handbook will deal with the underlying mechanisms in play in Guadeloupe during the Energy standards for building drafting process, to help policymakers anticipate the specific context of their own region. In this way, Guadeloupe’s experience will be capitalised upon in two interdependent fields of interest:
- Public policy making (on the topic of low-energy buildings) - given that the handbook is intended for policymakers, this field of interest will emerge in a first level of interpretation;
- Technical and organisational innovations developed and tested throughout the duration of the energy standards drafting work.
The handbook will be designed as a real instrument to motivate public authorities to engage in a pro-active policy approach in favour of energy efficiency in buildings (first and foremost in the case of islands and/or tropical habitats).
The expected educational value of this deliverable will be put to good use by provoking discussions, followed by commitment and, where necessary, the adaptation of public policies. Public policies of various forms could indeed emerge, but with a degree of consistency with the RTG and with Guadeloupe’s overall energy policy, if only by the chosen angle of analysis.
The handbook is intended mainly for the policymakers of member states of the OECS. It will include technical appendices for its wider distribution among the building sector, in the aim of providing the profession with concrete facts and practical information.
The work will be carried out in 2 phases:
Phase 1. Preliminary state of play
- Enrichment of the guide through the gathering of additional information and data, including an analysis of the Caricom Regional Energy Efficiency Building Code, to complete the expertise already acquired by the Regional Council of Guadeloupe;
Phase 2. Writing of the technical content
- Structuring of the handbook: drafting of a template with the full plan (headings, chapter titles, appended fact sheets) and a first draft of the content to provide a picture of the ideas covered. The interpretation logic will be elaborated at this stage.
- Modelling of the visual identity: design of a page template, front cover, back cover, and a format for the appended fact sheets.
- Creation of illustrations: given the topic, the guide will include mainly 2D conceptual graphs.
- Drafting of texts with the help of the various contributors and in line with the choices agreed upon for the structure and visual identity.