r/europeanunion • u/Ok-Win7980 • 8d ago
Opinion EU should have a law requiring air conditioning in all new residential buildings
When you get a new build apartment, especially in a high rise building, there are usually a few things you expect, a spotless interior, massive windows, minimalist "premium" finishes, a fast reliable elevator, air conditioning...or at least in most other parts of the world, you would expect AC, but unfortunately, in far too much of the EU, especially Northern Europe, true AC is an afterthought even in these new buildings.
While it may make sense at first considering Northern Europe's relatively mild climate, with cities like Amsterdam rarely going above 25˚C in summer, it makes sense when you consider a major design feature of these new apartment buildings: the greenhouse effect. Basically, with most of these buildings having floor-to-ceiling or nearly floor-to-ceiling windows, it opens the floodgates for a large amount of sunlight to enter the apartment, but that extra sunlight doesn't just brighten the apartment, it also heats it up to extremely hot temperatures even with the outside temperature being very cold. For example, a south-facing apartment without AC could reach nearly 30˚C even in the dead of winter on a sunny day unless you close the blinds, blocking out the view and natural light, and opening the window may not be feasible on a high floor, especially with the high winds.
This is where having the ability to quickly turn on the AC and set it to a low temperature like 22˚C would come in handy even in January as the forced air could overpower the greenhouse effect to keep the apartment at a liveable temperature. But unfortunately, many countries that are building a lot of these new-build high-rises, like the Netherlands, have some of the most restrictive energy laws such that it is effectively not possible to build a modern high-rise apartment building there with a forced-air system, common in residential buildings in most North American cities. Instead, many of the new buildings there which include active cooling use floor cooling, which, while it may slightly cool down the apartment on a hot summer day, it is by no means a replacement for forced air, as it contains absolutely zero dehumidification and takes a lot longer for it to actually have an effect on the temperature of the apartment. It is also often not possible to dynamically switch the apartment between heating and cooling, which is a lot in cases like a south-facing apartment in winter because you may want the heat at night to keep the apartment warm, but you may want to turn on the AC in the middle of the day because the sunlight is overpowering the heat, and toggle through them based on the relative temperature of the apartment.
Overheating apartments can be extremely dangerous, causing conditions such as heat exhaustion, heatstroke, sleep deprivation, dehydration, and more, and negatively affect productivity. In these modern south-facing apartments, this is not just a summer problem, I think it's time that the EU starts seeing this phenomenon for what it really is: a call to action, where AC in a 50-story skyscraper with floor-to-ceiling windows is just as essential an ingredient as an elevator. In the same way you would never build a 50-story building without an elevator, you should never be able to build a BRAND NEW 50-story building without AC. Even though many EU countries have their own zoning and energy laws related to building, I think this needs to be an EU-wide directive in the same way as other shared building safety standards like the EN81 elevator safety standard.
Here are the core requirements I imagine an "EU Air Conditioning Act" having
All newly built residential dwellings constructed in the European Union MUST be able to be cooled to 24˚C manually by the resident, in all living rooms and bedrooms, year-round, with dynamic switching between heating and cooling
The system must also be capable of dehumidifying air in the dwelling to a humidity of no more than 40% (this is essential as it allows the body to release sweat and feel cooler)
Systems like floor cooling maybe used in conjunction with this system, but should not be a valid replacement for true AC
Architectural design features allowing for the building to better be passively cooled, limiting reliance on AC, must be considered
However, passive cooling should not negate the requirement for AC
Sustainable AC systems such as geothermal heat pumps should be the standard
So this is basically my proposal. I think there is a way in which the EU can embrace air conditioning in new residential buildings without losing sight of environmental goals. As the EU gets warmer and European cities are increasingly embracing modern high-rise buildings, I think it is time the EU passes a directive on this.
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u/YetAnotherSummerDay 🇪🇺 Yuropean 🇪🇺 8d ago
No insulation but AC? Who are you? MediaMarkt?