BERLIN (dpa-AFX) – According to the Bundestag, it is making progress in implementing its energy-saving plans. The employees of the building technology work on it every day, the parliament announced on Wednesday. However, the complex technology and the various control programs in the properties required several work steps before implementation. Some measures have already been completed. The “Bild” newspaper had previously reported that the Bundestag was not yet complying with its own guidelines.
Due to the looming energy crisis, the Bundestag Council of Elders decided in early July that the offices for members of parliament, their employees and the Bundestag administration should only be heated to 20 degrees instead of the previous 22 degrees in winter. While the air conditioning systems used to provide a pleasant 24 to 26 degrees in summer, depending on the outside temperature, it will be 26 to 28 degrees in the future. The plenary hall and the parliamentary group and committee meeting rooms are also to be cooled less in the future.
According to the Bundestag, changes in the IT programs must be made for this. Depending on the size and technical equipment of the building, this means a longer processing time. In the Reichstag building, the target values for the plenary hall and the parliamentary group meeting rooms have already been adjusted to the new energy saving values. A changeover in the committee rooms of the Paul-Löbe-Haus is currently being worked on, it said.
The energy-saving measures will also be visible from the outside in the future: starting this Wednesday evening, the lighting in the Reichstag building is to be gradually reduced. The dome should not be illuminated at night when it is closed to visitors./csd/DP/nas