Technical plan of a biomass-plant to be set partly below ground (with green-roof); rendering views of the power-plant and of the new-planted green area

Strengthening partnerships

University of Ferrara

The A>E research centre of the Faculty of Architecture of the University of Ferrara was founded in late 2006. Since then, the Centre has proved its strong interdisciplinary connections, working on energy efficiency and environmental sustainability at architectural and urban scale.

A>E is more than a research laboratory: it is one of the most recent proofs of excellence of Italian public and private cooperation. Basing its scientific knowledge on the union of three different research structures, it has attracted the attention of several private foundations and small- and medium-sized companies within energy research.

Not surprisingly, such partnerships have succeeded in building a whole advanced portfolio of provided market-oriented services, such as: advising on energy efficiency and environmental quality for buildings; energy performance evaluations; and, advising for planning guidelines on building in town and country planning, with a most expanding interest in aged industrial sites.

Throughout its partnerships with some of the most renowned Italian energy and advisor companies (Enìa S.p.A., Tozzi Renewable Energy S.p.A., PPi&Partners and Power Blue S.p.A.), A>E has developed several research activities in renewable technologies (wind power, photovoltaic and biomass), fuel cells, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Life Cycle Cost (LCC).

A success story

Recent relevant scientific results have been applied and used with the definition of municipality energy plans and the implementation of guidelines in the retrofit of existing industrial areas. Reggio Emilia Energy Plan has been an especially successful research product having contributed to the region’s winning the prestigious Klima Energy Prize for the best energy policy delivered in Italy in 2008.

The city of Reggio Emilia has 150,000 inhabitants and one of the highest energy consuming industrial districts in Northern Italy. In early 2007, it had to urgently undertake a whole set of actions focused on controlling its increasing energy demand for the next decade, attempting to turn into a virtuous case study.

	Project masterplan of the overall area of Mancasale; focus on the new tree-lined boulevards and the transportation ways hierarchy
	click to enlarge

The approach to this challenge was developed under the strategic supervision of A>E experts, with the resulting strategy adopted by city council based on two main pillars:

• The environmental budget, developed within the European Union Life project CLEAR (City and Local Environmental Accounting and Reporting);

• The energy plan and the ECOABITA energy certification method for buildings.

The energy plan, approved in 2008 and developed within a two-year schedule, identified the main actions needed to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, increase the energy production from renewable energy and fulfil the Kyoto and Copenhagen targets. The plan highlighted three main targets:

• Respect of international covenants (in particular Kyoto) to reduce GHG emissions for Reggio Emilia end users;

• Optimisation of energy requirements to reduce fossil primary energy consumption; and,

• Adoption of clean technologies (low NOX, dust emissions).

The study developed a city-energy balance through a detailed reconstruction of the energy demand characterising the main macro-sectors (electricity generation, residential and tertiary sector, industry, agriculture, transport, public administration). The result of the work was an accurate “energy model” depicting energy consumption since the early 1990s and predicting possible future scenarios affected by local administration energy policies.

With reference to retrofitting the industrial area, the plan evaluated the feasibility of implementing biomass combined with heat and power plant technology. A handbook of possible actions and useful guidelines of interventions has been distributed to key local stakeholders (for example, refurbishment of industrial buildings through an improvement of the thermal insulation of the envelopes, a widespread adoption of green roofs and of integrated photovoltaic systems).

University of Ferrara
Faculty of Architecture
W: www.unife.it/centro/architetturaenergia

Two distinct types: Carbon Offset Credits (COC’s) and Carbon Reduction Credits (CRC’s). Carbon Offset Credits consist of clean forms of energy production, wind, solar, hydro and biofuels.