Plumbing is changing in the UK! It's been going green - referring of course, to the supply of renewable energy and not the colour of the water! Growing awareness of the urgent necessity to respond to climate change means making a significant reduction to this country's CO2 emission levels in accordance with the European directive.For men and women enrolling on plumbing courses, it is becoming increasingly important for them to understand what the new sustainable technologies are and how they work. This is because the services they will be providing and the type of systems they will be installing will be more dependent on renewable energy sources from now on. Plumbing students embarking on solar courses will find out about the new 'green' technologies on a short renewable energy awareness course at AbleSkills Renewable Energy Centre before undertaking City & Guilds/BPEC and NICEIC approved renewable energy courses.With the launch of the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) we are seeing the continuing revolution of heating and hot water in the domestic and residential sector. For the average household, the traditional central heating boiler is beginning to be replaced by an appliance that makes both heat and electricity, is more efficient, and means lower household energy bills because of a reduction in energy use and carbon emissions.With a UK installations market potential of around 50 million, plumbing course candidates will need to learn the key skills knowledge in micro CHP (micro combined heat and power) to be 'competent' and legally qualified to participate in the developing market opportunities. Micro CHP is a small-scale heating technology, which generates both heat and electricity from the same energy source, whether in domestic residences - at a typical ratio of about 6:1 - or other types of buildings, whilst also providing surplus electricity to sell back to the national grid.Most domestic micro-CHP systems today use mains gas or LPG as a heating fuel, although they can also be powered by oil or bio fuels. While gas and oil are fossil fuels, and not renewable energy sources, the technology is still considered to be a 'low carbon technology' as it is still a more efficient method than just burning the fossil fuel for heat whilst also receiving electricity from the national grid.Micro-CHP systems are comparable in size and shape to an ordinary, modern, domestic boiler and can be wall hung or floor standing. Likewise, servicing costs and maintenance are also estimated to be similar to a standard boiler, and the only difference to a standard boiler is that they are able to generate electricity while they are also heating water.With the EU renewable energy target for the UK set to 15 per cent within the next 20 years, it is predicted that renewable heat could contribute at least 11-12 per cent to achieving the required target.