Describes local energy planning projects in France, urban and land use planning, siting regulations structural effects on energy demand, for an energy conscious urban planning and promoting and better integration of land use, land development and energy supply planning, the ADEME AEU experience in the North of France.

Considerable emphasis has been placed on energy consumption management in the residential sector in France over the last twenty years, and a regulation device defining requirements of a substantial level was setup at the end of the eighties.

At present, in France three quarters of new housing is fitted with a mechanically controlled ventilation system (MCV). In the last twenty years this type of ventilation system has progressed considerably, notably because of the help given by energy management policies in the housing sector

In the last fifteen years "Local Energy Planning" (LEP), has been developed in several countries as a means of designing energy efficient communities. Discussions show that there are widely differing opinions on the definition of LEP, depending on national or local supply structures or legal responsibilities of local administrations. Theobjective of an LEP project is to develop a conception to find environmentally acceptable cost effectiveness solutions for the supply of a defined area with (low temperature heating) energy.

In the field of insulation techniques, technical advances are mainly due to an interactive approach resulting from three complementary factors: * National building standards and government supported incentive programmes which aim to increase the thermal efficiency of residential and commercial buildings. * Research and Development programmes set up by manufacturers in order to lead to new or improved insulation materials or components with increasing R-values. * New construction techniques used by designers and builders to reduce heat loss through building envelopes.