Vol. 409 No. 3
7 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for Energy if he will outline the steps which have been taken to honour the commitment given in the environmental action programme for a major energy conservation programme; the budget which has been allocated for the programme in the current year; the form the programme is taking; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
The energy conservation programme arising from the Government's Environment Action Programme published last year took the form of a number of new initiatives as well as a continuation of existing activities.
The National Energy Conservation and Efficiency Advisory Group which I established last year completed a report for me on energy conservation proposals which would be worth pursuing. Their suggestions are being examined as a matter of priority. In addition a number of headline practical projects were undertaken notably a survey to trace more precisely the location of groundwater, which can be used in conjunction with heat pumps to provide heat for buildings in the city centre area of Dublin, has been completed; support by way of a grant was provided to the charitable group "Energy Action" for draught-proofing the houses of the needy and elderly and a project to demonstrate the energy and cost savings which can be made by the installation of energy management systems in hospitals is still ongoing and will be completed this year. The budget for those elements of the programme which were carried forward into the current year is approximately £140,000 which is included in the total provision for conservation of £570,000.
The Deputy will appreciate, of course, that apart from the above measures an on-going programme of conservation activities is being promoted by Eolas on behalf of my Department, and that the ESB are also engaged in energy efficiency promotion activities in the electricity end-use area.
I thank the Minister for his reply. I am very interested in the survey of groundwater supply to be used for home heating. The Minister said the survey has been completed. Are the results of the survey available, is there any evidence that this is an efficient way of heating homes and that it can be used to conserve energy?
The aim of the project was to demonstrate the potential for using groundwater in conjunction with heat pumps to provide heat for buildings in the Dublin city centre area. This resulted from the discovery used for the Trinity College heating system. As Deputies know, that area is not a highly residential area but has mostly commercial buildings, including this complex. Of the 13 bore holes drilled four sites yielded promising results and the Department will be monitoring follow-up work by the owners of these sites. A seminar will be held on 18 June 1991 to publicise the results of the study.
The Minister has indicated that this year only £140,000 is available for the energy conservation programme. Will the Minister say in what way this money is being spent? Is it being spent by the Department or is it given in grants? What is the procedure for spending the £570,000 and the remaining £140,000?
The Department's Estimate contains £570,000 for energy conservation and all of that amount is committed to energy conservation.
On what is the £140,000 being spent?
On the projects mentioned in the reply. There are other projects.
