TEESCHOOLS is a European project implemented under the Interreg MED Programme in 7 Mediterranean countries.
It was created to aid EU in their mission to reduce 20% of its total emissions within 2020. Renovation of buildings emerged as an urgent issue that needs to be addressed to accomplish targeted reduction of emissions by 20%. It has also been seen that there is a lack of knowledge on advanced component and systems from implementing efficient renovation of buildings.
The two of the Croatian project partners are: Municipality of City of Split as institutional partner and HEP ESCO d.o.o. as technical partner.
It aims at providing new technical and financial solutions to Local Authorities in order to apply Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB) renovation activities in Mediterranean Schools. 7 pilot areas were selected and 35 energy audits took place from an expert transnational working team consisting from the partners.
The five schools selected to participate in Croatia belong to the Municipality of City of Split.
Croatian report of “current condition” after the audits resulted in the formulation of suggested interventions based on inputs, such as: climate data of the area, electricity and oil bills, annual rates of thermal and electrical consumptions of the schools, photos from classes and boiler rooms
Accordingly, proposals for specific interventions in the school buildings followed, aiming at approaching the NZEB status, as it is defined by the “National Energy Efficiency Law” and “Technical regulation about rational energy use and thermal protection of buildings” of Ministry of Environment and Energy.
Following interventions should be implemented to improve energy efficiency:
- Windows replacement
- Replacement of traditional lighting fixtures with LED Panels
- Implementation of roof Photovoltaic systems
- Building Envelope Insulation
- Modernization of central heating systems or installation of energy efficient AC systems
Croatian partner defined levels of investments level and expected energy savings after implementation of recommended interventions. The average energy savings, as it is presented in a total audits report, are projected to be 75-80 % in four of the schools, and for one of the five schools that already has some level of thermal insulation 44%.
Also, as a part of the project 10 open lessons were held for students of pilot schools trough interactive workshops. Main objective was to raise awareness of sustainable, environmental and energy behavior in schools.
Making a short project review, the main outputs are:
- Creation of a friendly-user web tool for stakeholders, technical and school staff adapted to single climate zones
- A carbon footprint calculator based on the building life cycle information
- An innovative database of BAT (Best Available Technics) for renovation of school buildings
- Creation of tailored financing models
- Internal and external trainings on energy efficiency and web-tool usability
- An e-learning platform which integrates TEESCHOOLS methodology in activities, studies and action plans of several stakeholders. 13 e-learning modules were generated in total