Abstract
Northern Ireland (NI) extends to 14,000 square kilometers and has a population of 1.8 million. Despite being remote from main world markets, lacking oil and gas resources, it has significant opportunities for exploiting offshore renewable energy. Suffering from the effects of economic recession, currently 44% of households are in fuel poverty against England’s 16%. There is overdependence on an unregulated oil sector which accounts for 70% of household heating costs. Energy prices are higher than mainland Europe. Over 38% of houses were built before 1964 and are energy inefficient. Following a bank-financed housing boom, the recession resulted in loan defaults and construction job losses, doubling unemployment to 8%. A legal requirement to meet climate change targets exists. NI construction companies are diversifying their markets to exploit opportunities in this environment, needing to up-skill or reskill their workforce, develop product range and become more competitive. South Eastern Regional College (SERC), a Higher and Further Education College needs to assist companies by providing technical, business and training support for the Region’s existing and future workforces. To assist this, SERC in 2011 built a $15m Environmental Skills Centre. Leading international companies, through donation of cutting-edge industry-standard equipment, facilitate curriculum and training enhancement while benefiting from the direct support SERC offers. SERC carries out developmental research and delivers skills training in energy reduction, carbon zero construction, passive house design and micro-generation. A member of a number of global networks, SERC carried out an innovative cross-border partnership with the Republic of Ireland and since 2010 has trained over 900 refrigeration engineers to meet environmental regulations. A new sustainability course for junior high schools across NI is shaped by SERC staff. The Centre directly assists startup companies and provides incubation space, a recent example being the development of an affordable and innovative air heat pump system for use in social housing and care homes. Last year SERC seminars and workshops informed over 3,000 industry participants of the opportunities within the growing environmental sector. More than 2,500 practitioners received specialist sustainable energy and construction training. While a good start has been made, significant opportunities exist to support the burgeoning offshore wind, tidal and wave power industries in exploiting NI’s natural resources.
