Good practice from the EnercitEE regions

Passive houses in Saxony

Saxony has identified a large potential for CO2 reduction in the heat supply of buildings: passive houses consume around 15kWh/sqm/year which is at least 3-5 times less than low energy houses and 7-20 times less than existing buildings. Saxony started its first pilot project "Innovation and practice - network of passive houses" as early as 2002. Since then, the number of passive houses has increased significantly. Saxony provides financial support to the builders of passive houses and provides a lot of information on passive houses, including on-site visits.

  Kindergarten Döbeln, Saxony

 
Geothermal energy in Lower Silesia

There are many sources of geothermal water in Poland. The energy stored in them is equivalent to approximately 33 billion tonnes of crude oil. The use of this energy is feasible and can be cost-effective in 80-90% of the areas where such resources occur. The spa resort of Cieplice/Jelenia Gora in Lower Silesia is one of the few places in Poland where people have started to explore the potential of geothermal water – going beyond its use in medicine and recreation. Currently, the hot water is used to heat the spa facilities and the 'normal, non geothermal' water in the pools. The potential for district heating is currently being explored.

Geothermal installation Cieplice in Lower Silesia

Biomass and solar thermal applications in Crete

Crete is an island that attracts each year millions of tourists. Some hotels have adapted an innovative approach for providing the hot water, in particular, in a more sustainable manner than just heating it electrically. The Atrion hotel in the middle of Heraklion, for example, uses two biomass boilers for producing hot water. They burn olive husks as a local biomass product. Another good example is the bigger luxury hotel Candia Maris. The hotel combines the use of a solar thermal system and a sea geothermal system. These systems are used for space heating, air conditioning/cooling, hot water for use and hot water for swimming pools, spa, etc.

Biomass heating with olive husks in Ation Hotel, Heraklion, Crete