Heating bills now make up a substantial, and increasing, proportion of household expenditure which will leave many people on low incomes facing a bleak winter. They will be keen to take advantage of every cost saving initiative available.

In a bid to reduce Northern Ireland's domestic carbon footprint, the government has introduced both a carrot and a stick for householders. Every new home will now have to have an energy performance certificate giving its eco-friendly credentials and anyone selling their property will have to be able to provide this certificate to the new owners. Failure to do so will result in a £200 fine. That is the penalty.

But, proposals published last week by the Department of Finance and Personnel in Northern Ireland also introduce an incentive for both householders and developers to become more eco-friendly. At the most basic level, home owners who upgrade their homes through the installation of cavity wall and/or loft insulation will be in line for a rates rebate.

There is an even better incentive for people buying homes which conform to the government's zero carbon standards. They could be exempt from rates for the first five years. That is a substantial financial gain given the way rates bills have shot up since the recent reform of the rating system.

This incentive is aimed a persuading people to buy eco-friendly homes and, therefore, put pressure on developers to improve their standards of building and incorporate the latest eco-friendly devices such as solar heating.

The Northern Ireland Executive is to be applauded for this innovative approach to the issue of environmental protection and energy conservation. It is using the rating system in a novel manner to make people think seriously about how they can play their part in protecting the planet.

And it seems that property developers are also catching onto the concept. In May the first eco-village, comprising of up to 1,000 homes, was unveiled outside Lisburn. The properties will be heated by special wood chip burning stoves driving a biomass system.

With the financial incentives on offer, there is now a real chance that Northern Ireland homes will reach new standards of energy efficiency. Home owners and developers both have a reason to ensure that new and existing properties reach the levels of efficiency required by government and that the improvements made are now simple marketing ploys but investments which will make a real difference to conserving scarce resources.

And the bottom line for householders is that eventually they will see an improvement in their own bottom line expenditure. They will be able to reduce outgoings and also get a rebate in assistance through the rates. That would make everyone a winner.