Energy Efficiency Programs - News, Notes and New Year's Resolutions

One interesting energy efficiency initiative in the early days of 2010 comes from the technology sector, specifically in IT and communications. Companies ranging from IBM to Yahoo! will receive portions of a $47 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to improve energy efficiency within their offices and operational centers, the DOE announced on January 7, 2010. The funds, which are part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, will be paired with approximately $70 million more in private-sector funds to reduce the 3% overall (120 billion kWh per year) demand that the companies’ operational centers drain annually from the nation’s energy grid (Source: RenewableEnergyNews.com, January 7).  These companies are so innovative when it comes to their technological and communications solutions that it should be very interesting to see what measures they come up with to improve their energy efficiency. The DOE's investment here could spark unique efficiency innovations that apply to commercial building efficiency projects nationwide.  (Photo Credit: http://www.cleantechnica.com/)

The Challenges of Large-Scale Weatherization Implementation

While city, county and state governments are beginning to feel the influx of money allocated toward weatherization programs, a recent red flag in Illinois illustrates the difficulty in managing these large-scale stimulus-funded weatherization efforts. When the U.S. DOE recently examined $242 million in weatherization funding allocated to the state of Illinois, it found that one of state’s contractors, which was overseeing and implementing the projects, did not thoroughly inspect or safeguard its work. The audit found that one contractor failed to detect a potentially dangerous gas leak and that the state, which is required to inspect 5% of the homes that are weatherized under its program (by the contractors), did not conduct all of the necessary inspections (Source: NewYorkTimes.com, December 21, 2009). (Photo Credit: http://www.homeenergy.org/)

This finding sheds some light on the set of challenges facing these wonderful programs. It is critical to expediently funnel this unprecedented funding into the maximum number of beneficial weatherization projects possible and to ensure that they’re all safely executed. Yet staffing on a state, county, city or contractor level may not have caught up with the program’s requirements, particularly because government budgets at all levels are so stretched. One definitively positive outcome from this finding will be that all participants will tighten up procedures and oversight, in some cases by adding adequate staffing, thus ensuring the appropriate use of taxpayer money for the lofty and worthy goals set forth by the program. Expect to see changes on this front in the coming months.

Energy Efficient Appliance Rebates - State vs. Federal Oversight

The effect of a $300 million U.S. government rebate program aimed at the purchase of energy efficient appliances meeting federal Energy Star designations may be tripped up by state oversight, say industry experts. The structure of the rebate program dictates that the rebate terms and timing will be handled individually by the states, rather than the federal government. Some industry experts contend that the inherent inconsistencies in the states’ handling of these funds will hinder a much-needed boost to the appliance industry (Source: Online.WSJ.com, January 8). The counter-argument to these comments, however, is that each state has unique needs when it comes to its population and that programs which may be popular and useful in one state may be stagnant and largely inapplicable in another. Time will tell how popular these programs turn out to be and how large of an impact they will have on the appliance manufacturers, but chances are good that these manufacturers will see a significant boost in business once these programs are in full swing no matter how they are administered. (Photo Credit: www.mytorontohomeimprovement.com)

Major City’s Commitment to Energy Efficiency Grows

In some energy efficiency news across the Atlantic, it appears that new commercial building developments in London are cutting carbon emissions by one-thid as a part of Mayor Boris Johnson’s push to cut the city’s total emissions by 60% in 2025. According to reports, 71% of London’s emissions come from buildings, so these efforts are crucial to keeping on track with Mayor Johnson’s goal (Source: RenewableEnergyNews.com, January 7). In addition, the Mayor’s Building Energy Efficiency Programme (BEEP), which aims to deliver energy efficiency retrofits on an expedient basis, continues to see new signatories, recently welcoming energy supplier EDF Energy. Mayor Johnson has also pledged to tighten carbon emissions standards for all buildings sometime in the next four years, which has spurred preemptive action on the part of several private-sector companies.  (Photo Credit:  http://www.tripadvisor.com/)

In other developments beyond our borders, the U.S. Department of Energy announced three projects under the Low-Carbon Communities of the Americas (LCCA) program, which was announced in June 2009 and aims to assist Latin American countries with the implementation of energy efficiency measures (Source: http://www.doe.gov/, January 8). Included within the three projects are training programs, wind generation program testing, and technical support programs for everything from auditing to reporting in Costa Rica, several Caribbean nations, and Dominica.