PROTECTING HISTORICAL BUILDINGS DOESN’T MEAN ONLY TO RESPECT THEIR APPEARANCE

This paper outlines mainly the concept of energy improvement of historical buildings, that is already present in a nutshell in the European Directives, and that has to be introduced into Italian legislation. The present delay of its application is due to the difficulties of balancing different needs (conservation, comparison with the performances of elements of efficient contemporary buildings, choice of the parameters for the comparison, etc), the limits of the actual tools for efficiency diagnostics and the current knowledge about the historical buildings. Moreover, the paper deals with the necessity to consider also the improvement due to a most conscious use, management and maintenance of the buildings together with the improvement of the efficiency of the single components: this is mandatory especially for the historical centres, that are under a higher risk substitution/non-controlled transformation because of the higher target of energy efficiency required by the Italian present law. This approach shows that is possible to increase the energy efficiency by changing the minds and habits of the inhabitants, rather than the historical elements of the ancient artefacts. Most of the historical buildings belong to ancient settlements, therefore the way to grow a higher consciousness of users, owners, managers of such settlements has a wider impact and more durable effects than to change a “hard” part of the single building itself. A few bibliography exists on the topic whilst there are many national and international researches exploring present limits and boundaries. The topic rises interests from many sides (including the market of new components for historic buildings) nevertheless the balance between conservation needs and enhancement of the performances of the existing buildings is a perspective scarcely followed, also because of the improper analysis tools, methods and parameters commonly taken into account to classify the energy behaviour of the historical buildings. This consideration opens the discussion on a different level of the debate, particularly vivid at present in Italy, where the issue of substitution of materials and elements of the historical matter crashes into the concept to preserve the authenticity of the historical materials and buildings itself. The Italian culture of restoration considers necessary to maintain the historical existing elements, full of unique memory and cultural and social values. The subject of energy efficiency has to be discussed therefore trying to accept the challenge of energy saving combined with the preservation of what we still have now, particularly in those delicate contests that are not protected by law, such as the historical centres.