LoginThe 2024 EPBD recast formally introduces Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) as a defined concept in EU law for the first time, embedding IEQ within the core objectives of the directive rather than treating it as a supplementary consideration. IEQ covers parameters that influence occupant health and comfort — such as temperature, humidity, ventilation rates and indoor air contaminants — and must be factored into national building standards and energy performance assessments. Member States are required to establish requirements to maintain a healthy indoor climate, and in non-residential zero-emission buildings, appropriate monitoring and control devices for IEQ must be installed. This ensures that energy efficiency improvements do not compromise the indoor environment or occupant wellbeing.
The EPBD recast broadens inspection obligations to stand alone ventilation systems if the total of heating and cooling power is at least 70 kW. Inspections are now expected to assess performance under typical operating conditions and explicitly identify issues affecting IEQ, such as inadequate ventilation rates. Such inspections are not mandatory in case if a BACS system is in place in combination with IEQ monitoring that complies with national requirements.
As the transposition of the directive must be carried out by EU Member States, which have relatively broad discretion in its implementation, significant variation in the impact of these new requirements is possible.