Towards zero emission refurbishment in historic urban districts

In Norway, studies from Heritage at Risk have shown that up to 1% of the historic buildings constructed prior to 1900 are lost every year. At this rate of loss, the cultural heritage of the country will be at increasing risk over the near future. Therefore, it is of critical importance to plan maintenance and adaptation interventions for this category of building. The level and choice of interventions is a complex subject because it should retain the functionality of the building but at the same time avoid the unnecessary replacement of historic fabric by ensuring principles of compatibility, reversibility and retreat-ability. Within these boundaries, interventions can also achieve sustainable targets by taking into account the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from the conception phase to the implementation of adaptation plan. The purpose of the present work is to overcome the collaboration difficulties among the groups associated with heritage conservation through the definition of an integrated Zero Emission Refurbishment (ZER) methodology that includes all the necessary steps from study to practice. The work aims to provide an effective tool for the process of cultural heritage preservation, with the goal to select the most suitable intervention by taking into account quality and environmental impact of the action. It incorporates current studies carried out in Norway in the refurbishment strategies of existing buildings and aims to identify and resolve research needs to enhance sustainable interventions at European level for reaching the ZER target.