Target: Ed Miliband, UK Secretary of State for Energy Security
Goal: Uphold phase-out of gas boilers and promotion of green technologies such as solar panels.
United Kingdom (UK) leaders once touted a “revolution” in home-building that would both lead to energy savings for consumers and reduce the region’s carbon footprint in accordance with climate goals. The “revolution” never commenced and now, leaders are backtracking on these promises. The UK has scuttled a planned future ban on the creation and sale of gas boilers, which are linked to almost 20 percent of the UK’s carbon emissions in any given year.
A Future Homes Standard plan championed by the government would have focused home-building efforts on environmentally friendly resources like solar panels on roofs and heat pumps in place of gas boilers that are estimated to emit as much carbon annually as seven flights across the Atlantic. The plan would have saved the average homeowner an average of $50,000 over years. But after significant revisions, solar panels are now “optional” and gas boiler replacements will merely be “encouraged.” The ban has officially been lifted, and with it the hopes of making a meaningful dent in the UK’s carbon footprint.
Sign the petition below to call on leadership to mend its broken promises and recommit to a plan that could have helped consumers and the planet they call home.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Secretary Miliband,
For every 1,000 households in the United Kingdom, an estimated 15 contain heat pumps. Far too many households are instead reliant on an outdated technology that is costing consumers and costing the environment. An eventual ban on gas boilers was a key component of the Future Homes Standard for a reason. These devices emit more greenhouse gasses than several transatlantic flights and spew out almost one-fifth of the United Kingdom’s emissions yearly. Plus, their usage increases the financial burden on consumers.
Because of the weakening of gas boiler regulations and the deemphasis on other eco-friendly resources, home heating will remain expensive and costs of transitioning to alternative sources will be passed on to consumers. These outcomes fall far short of the “revolution” in home-building promised. Please reinstate the original goals of the Future Home Standard and solidify the UK’s commitment to a cleaner and more affordable future.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo Credit: Dunnd74
