Now what are we going to do together with the people of Wassenaar?
- Less CO2 emissions by insulating
The municipality wants to reduce CO2 emissions by an average of 15% per home or building by 2030. To achieve this, we will first insulate buildings. This will mean that less natural gas will be needed to heat them, thus reducing CO2 emissions. This 15% goal is in line with the goal of the Regional Energy Strategy (RES): 30% less CO2 emissions in homes and other buildings (the built environment) by 2050. Whether the goals are met depends on many factors. For example, we as a municipality cannot do this alone, which is why we are going to do this together with the homeowners. We really need them. Also, it will not work without government schemes (subsidies and other money) and laws and regulations. The municipality will actively look for bottlenecks that could prevent us from achieving the goal. In that case, the municipality wants to take measures to remove or reduce those bottlenecks. If this has financial consequences, these will be submitted to the city council.
- Drawing up neighborhood plans
We will begin drawing up neighborhood plans, together with the residents of Wassenaar, starting in 2022. A neighborhood plan will state how we want to save energy and reduce CO2 in homes and other buildings, complete with goals and timeline. We then focus on insulating, but also on low-temperature heating, energy-efficient installations and other energy-saving options. A hybrid heat pump can be an interim solution for those homes where it is clear that they will not switch to a collective heat system. We will start with a limited number of neighborhoods and expand that over the years.
- Looking at the feasibility of the Standard and target values for home insulation for pre-war homes in protected village areas
The municipality, together with the neighborhoods and the various neighborhood initiatives that exist, is going to Map the technical and financial feasibility and implications of applying the Standard to pre-war homes in protected village areas as soon as possible. The Standard indicates when a home is insulated well enough to become natural gas-free. If the cost-benefit picture then clearly deviates from the national estimate, we will report this back to the rijksoverheid. Another important part is that we will be looking at in the process is what steps can be taken by residents who have previously taken sustainability measures without regret and now want to continue with sustainability up to the Standard.
- Updates transition vision heat
Before 2030 we want to publish at least 5 updates of the transition vision heat, at least once every 5 years. This will incorporate the latest state of technology and government policy. The experience we gain from the neighborhood plans will be used for the next versions of the transition vision heat. By the second update of the TVW (2026), the heat alternative is known for 30% of the neighborhoods. Therefore, we immediately start a search for suitable local heat sources. For 80% of the neighborhoods we want to know by 2030 what an unequivocal heat alternative is.
As a resident, what can you do yourself?
Residents can get started now on making their homes more sustainable. The municipality wants to support this in various ways, with advice from the Sustainable Building Counter and by working closely with the neighborhood teams. On this site you can also see what is possible per neighborhood via an online tool.
Do you have a question?
Check out our frequently asked questions about the energy transition. Is your question not listed? Then email energietransitie@wassenaar.nl.