OVO HRSC0034
How can we learn to live with rising UK temperatures, and what steps should we take to adapt to their effects?
About OVO
OVO is a collection of companies at the forefront of innovation to zero carbon living. We are one of the UK's largest energy suppliers, serving 4.5 million members and employing 7,000 people. Our work goes far beyond that of a traditional energy retailer; we are a decarbonisation company for the home. Our sustainability strategy, Plan Zero, commits us to tackling the most critical issue of our time - the climate crisis. This includes our commitments to achieve net zero emissions across our operations by 2025 and support our members in eliminating their household emissions by 2035. Our vision is not just to help consumers cut carbon but to do so in a way that puts the value generated from decarbonisation directly back into consumers' pockets.
1. What evidence exists on the relationship between heat and human health (mortality and morbidity), and which communities are worst affected?
Nil response.
2. How can sustainable cooling solutions and adaptation strategies be implemented in such a way as to minimise overheating, reduce energy consumption and prevent overloading of the electricity grid during peak demand?
There are two categories that sustainable cooling solutions and adaptation strategies can be split into: technological or mechanical.
Technological solutions like heat pumps or air conditioning units can generate a negative feedback loop if used ‘normally’. These technologies require energy to power them, which in turn drives up energy demand, which in turn generates further greenhouse gas emissions contributing to our changing climate.
However, there are ways in which we could modify our use of these technologies to reduce their energy consumption and prevent overloading the electricity grid during times of peak demand.
Reversible heat pumps could be engineered to peak their cooling capacity in the middle of the day. However, this would require an education exercise to ensure that users modify their existing cooling behaviours of expecting ‘on demand’ temperature change to align with the more gradual cooling effect of reversible heat pumps.
The installation of cooling technologies like reversible heat pumps or air conditioning units would also need to be paired with appropriate insulation measures and levels to ensure that the space can retain cooler temperatures, and energy to power the technology is used efficiently. These measures also help to prevent the temperature from increasing in the first place, so can reduce the need for as much technological cooling (and energy consumption) to bring the temperature down to a comfortable level. Insulation measures are also necessary to improve the effectiveness of electrification of heat solutions, so are a ‘win win’ from a heating and cooling perspective.
Pairing technological solutions with on-site renewable generation assets (such as solar PV and battery storage) will help to reduce any additional demand or strain on the grid.
There are a number of mechanical solutions (like increased shading, ventilation and other passive cooling measures) that should be considered. Especially if used alongside technological solutions, these mechanical measures can help to reduce the total energy demand of the technological solutions. This is because they can protect the home from warming too much as a result of extreme heat, therefore reducing the level of cooling required to bring the home back to a comfortable temperature. These solutions could even reduce the need for costly technological solutions entirely if utilised effectively.
There are a number of low cost cooling solutions that could be retrofitted into households and surrounding areas. For example, increasing the number of trees planted nearby properties will reduce the warming impact of the urban heat island effect and provide shading, as well as other biodiversity and carbon capture benefits. Improving ventilation and air circulation (e.g. by installing ceiling fans) can also help to reduce the impacts of higher temperatures felt by customers in their households.
Whether technological or mechanical, local authorities and relevant private businesses (e.g. utility companies) should work together to improve cooling solutions by retrofitting homes.
Outside of the home, local authorities should be responsible for creating designated community cool spaces for local residents.
3. What actions can be taken to protect those most vulnerable to the impacts of extreme heat?
In order to protect the most vulnerable from the impacts of extreme heat, we need to begin by identifying those customers, and understanding how they’ll be impacted. For example, using climate data modelling, we can identify which areas/regions of the UK will be most affected by extreme heat under different climate scenarios.
Once there is an understanding of how communities are likely to be impacted, and which ones are most vulnerable, sustainable cooling solutions and adaptation strategies should be identified to reduce the impact felt. Please see answer to question 2 for further details of what these solutions may look like.
Using demographic data on the customers impacted, we can build an understanding of the ability of those communities to respond. For example, would the customer be able to fund the upfront capital required to install and maintain some of the technological cooling solutions or insulation measures? If not, is local authority action or government funding support required to support the roll out of adaptation measures?
Both technological solutions in particular can be costly to install and run. Therefore, additional financial support (via grants or other schemes) to install and run these technologies and solutions would be required.
The solution is one part, but we need engagement from the customers themselves that are going to need the technologies. Running an education or communications programme to engage consumers on the solutions and funding options available to them will help support the roll out.
Some of these measures will be unfamiliar to customers. Therefore, ongoing advice and support from the government and private parties (like utility companies) will be required to ensure the success of the new measures - particularly on the points in question 2 on using them alongside other products to ensure that they don’t just drive an increase in energy consumption.
4. To what extent do the Government’s Climate Change Risk Assessment and National Adaptation Programme (as well as other related strategies such as the Net Zero Strategy and Heat and Buildings Strategy) identify and address the risks from extreme heat?
The Government’s climate-related strategies do reference the need to consider adaptation measures alongside mitigation. However, they do not define clear objectives, actions or desired results in relation to how the UK can adapt to climate-related physical or transition risks, or even opportunities.
NAP3 sets out the risks that climate change poses to the UK across a number of sectors: infrastructure, transport, the natural environment and, to a lesser extent, buildings. It does not, however, give extensive detail about how heating in homes can or should be addressed.
It also does not clearly define the responsibilities of how the roll out of any adaptation measures should be managed, including how the public should be engaged with regards to cooling in the first place.
The Heat and Buildings Strategy (HABS) mentions the need for home cooling a number of times but does not put forward specific policy solutions to address the roll out of measures needed in homes.
The Net Zero Strategy (NZS) has identified a couple of instances where technologies could deliver both low carbon heating and cooling (like heat networks). The paper also identifies that nature-based solutions (like afforestation) can deliver co-benefits of natural flood management and urban cooling. However, the paper does not provide descriptive details on what adaptation measures and strategies need to be rolled out to prepare the UK housing stock for extreme heat.
We need to see more mapping of the high-risk areas, groups, communities, or types of housing that are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of extreme heat. Once this is understood, the steps outlined in the response to Question 3 can be followed (e.g. identify which low carbon cooling solutions are appropriate for those communities and housing types, then understand how able they are to adopt these measures, and ultimately filling the gap in terms of support for those who cannot).
This data could be used by local governments to draft bespoke adaptation plans to address these needs - which should feed into a national climate adaptation strategy.
5. Does the current planning framework do enough to encourage heat resilience measures such as cooling shelters, water bodies, green infrastructure and shading to be integrated into urban planning? Where such measures are incorporated, how accessible and successful are they?
Nil response.
6. What can be done to protect the UK’s existing public and private sector housing stock from the impacts of extreme heat while ensuring that homes are sufficiently warm in the winter months?
There are a number of low carbon cooling solutions and adaptation strategies that provide both heating benefits for the winter months, as well as cooling benefits for the warmer summer months.
For example, reversible heat pumps allow households to both heat and cool their homes using electricity. These technologies should be paired with a suitable level of insulation of the physical fabric of the home to ensure their heating and cooling is as efficient as possible. Increasing insulation levels in a home not only helps to retain warmth in the winter, but retain cool air in the summer.
Solutions considered to be ‘win win' from a heating and cooling perspective should be identified and pursued as a no regret option.
7. What role might reversible heat pumps (which can act as both heating and cooling systems) and other emerging technological solutions, such as the development of smart materials, play in meeting future cooling demands?
Reversible heat pumps will be an effective solution in some spaces but may not suitable for all. A primary advantage of reversible heat pumps is that they reduce the need for further technological heating and cooling interventions. Heat pumps are also highly efficient, so can reach thermal comfort with relatively little energy use.
However, there are some households that are physically incompatible with this technology. For these households, other low carbon cooling solutions need to be considered.
Not every customer’s circumstance allows for them either. For example, if a customer is in a privately rented terraced home, their physical house may be compatible with reversible heat pump installation. However, the customer is unlikely to have the permissions or capital to initiate the work. Therefore, a roll out of these technologies would need to be supported by a central mandate of landlords to increase their climate adaptation measures.
All technological cooling solutions (like reversible heat pumps or traditional air conditioning units) require electricity to run, so will increase demand strain on the grid. Conditions when these technologies are likely to be used (e.g. warming over 25C) are also the same conditions under which solar panel generation efficiency typically declines. This means that the increase in electricity demand is likely to lead to an increase in carbon emissions, as fossil-fuelled generation is likely to have to fire up to meet the increased level of demand.
However, reversible heat pumps will likely peak usage in the middle of the day. During this time, less energy is typically being used in the home for lighting, cooking, entertainment etc.
However, for houses in which they are suitable, technological solutions like reversible heat pumps or air conditioning units should be paired with other solutions to ensure their energy consumption is as low and efficient as possible. Every effort should be made to reduce the cooling level required by these technological solutions through mechanical methods. For example, mechanical solutions (like increased shading, ventilation and other passive cooling measures) could help reduce energy demand (that would have otherwise been used from the technological solutions). In particular, having sufficient levels of insulation installed will help drive a reduction in the level of cooling required from technological solutions, which will reduce overall energy demand for cooling.
Again, technological solutions could be paired with on-site renewable generation and storage solutions, to reduce additional load demand on the grid.
Both reversible heat pumps and traditional air conditioning units are costly to install. Therefore, additional financial support to install and run these technologies would be required. In some cases, where reversible heat pumps or other larger scale technological solutions may be less suitable or the costs prohibitive, smaller scale air conditioning (AC) units may be needed.
8. How can cleaner refrigerants with low or zero global warming potentials support the UK’s cooling needs while contributing to the national emission reduction targets?
Nil response.
9. Does the Government’s Future Homes Standard adequately consider overheating in homes? If not, what additional elements should it include?
The 2010 Building Regulations have been updated to include guidance on ‘staying cool in hot weather’ for new homes. However, the regulation does not address new cooling measures which could be introduced in the home.
Nor does the Future Homes Standard adequately lay out what measures might be installed in homes, how they are maintained, or how communications with the homeowners or tenants might function. The FHS should consider additional elements that focus on extreme heat adaptation. These should be both technological (in particular, those that also support low carbon heating like reversible heat pumps) and mechanical (again, prioritising those that also support low carbon heating like insulation measures).
10. How effectively is the Government working across departments and with local authorities to ensure a coordinated approach is taken to heat resilience?
Although there have been efforts to map and identify climate risks in the UK, there have been few corresponding policies to address these risks in a strategic manner.
The unorganised nature with which heat resilience and cooling measures are addressed in the UK has led to a piecemeal approach, distributing responsibility across a number of governmental departments and other bodies, such as local authorities and the Environment Agency, which has been ineffective.
This piecemeal approach should be developed to join up current government schemes. For example, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme is already incentivising heat pump take up. If adaptation were considered under this incentive, a stipulation of the scheme could be that customers have to install a reversible heat pump, so that the homes installing them are resilient to extreme heat.
11. Does the UK need a dedicated Heat Resilience Strategy? What lessons can be learned from other nations when it comes to national strategies for heat resilience?
Yes, the UK does need a dedicated Heat Resilience Strategy that explicitly details what needs to be achieved by when. This should be published within the next year.
In particular, the Strategy should address:
● The measures that are appropriate for different high-risk areas, groups, communities, or types of housing that are particularly vulnerable to extreme heat
● A focus on the rolling out of technological cooling measures that also support low carbon heating, like reversible heat pumps.
● A focus on the rolling out of supportive mechanical cooling measures, like insulation. Insulation ensures that the space can retain cooler temperatures, and energy to power the technology is used efficiently. These measures also help to prevent the temperature from increasing in the first place, so can reduce the need for as much technological cooling (and energy consumption) to bring the temperature down to a comfortable level.
● Routes for successful roll out, via local authorities and relevant private businesses (e.g. utility companies who have direct access to consumers)
● Adequate funding with clarity over who receives support and which consumer groups are prioritised
● Updates to building regulations and Future Homes Standards to consider adaptation measures for new builds.
August 2023