Department of Energy's Retrofit Ramp-Up Initiative Hits Home

There has never been a better time to make energy efficicency improvements to our communities or to add renewable energy generation technologies to our homes and businesses.

Commitment Starts at the Top

On April 21, Vice President Joe Biden announced total grants of up to $452 million dollars for the U.S. Department of Energy's Retrofit Ramp-Up initiative. Under this initiative, governments, private companies, non-profits and other groups will work together to research and implement energy efficiency improvements in entire communities.

These efforts are expected to save $100 million dollars in energy usage by businesses and homes and will create more than 30,000 jobs during the next three years in the process (Source: http://eere.energy.gov, April 21). The initiative, which is part of the $80 billion in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act dollars that are allocated via the DOE's Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program, is expected to spark an additional $2.8 billion in other funding over the same three-year span. (Image Credit: http://smallbiztrends.com/)

One of the larger awards went to Boulder County, Colorado, which will receive $25 million in funding. Boulder County, in partnership with the Governor’s Energy Office, Xcel Energy City and County of Denver, Garfield County and other participants, will use the funds to connect home owners with affordable energy efficiency upgrades.

Though all of the details have not been determined, this group is considering implementation of the following:

• creating an energy “concierge service” to distribute information to homeowners and businesses
• providing targeted rebates
• expanding the popular City of Boulder "Two Techs and a Truck" program to provide onsite assistance with business and residential efficiency retrofits
• expanding the successful Boulder County ClimateSmart Loan Program, and complement these efforts with innovative financing strategies.

This federal investment in Boulder County is expected to spark $180 million in efficiency upgrades and to eliminate some 200,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions (Source: www.bouldercounty.org, April 21). 

Successful Programs in Boulder -  A Unique Mix of Innovations

The ClimateSmart Loan Program "provides a voluntary mechanism for commercial and residential property owners to obtain financing for renewable energy and/or energy efficiency improvements to properties in Boulder County, including properties in all cities and towns. Each property owner who receives financing through the program will be responsible for repaying the loan via a special assessment on the improved property" (Source: www.bouldercounty.org).  The most unique part of this program is the fact that these loans are tied to the property itself, not the person taking out the loan.  This allows for features such as solar panels to be paid for over time as part of the home's purchase and promotes the idea that such features are a part of a home or land's value, regardless of who owns it.

The "Two Techs and a Truck" program involves door-to-door visits to residences in which one technician does an energy audit to suggest larger-scale energy efficiency improvements and provide the resident with resources to implement them while the other make whatever on-site improvements that are possible (installation of efficient light bulbs, weather stripping, etc.).  The program will begin in May of 2010 and is funded by a carbon tax that was approved by the Boulder City Council last fall.

In addition, the City of Boulder is the site of Xcel Energy's SmartGrid City program, which is Xcel's first full-scale roll out of a fully communicating electric grid.  For more on the SmartGrid city project, please click here.

(Image Credit: www.consumerenergyreport.com)

Recharge Colorado - Connecting You with Resources

In other local developments, the State of Colorado and the Governor's Energy Office (GEO) has hit the ground running with its “Recharge Colorado” website. The state's program, which I wrote about in this March entry, includes:

• Colorado’s Main Street Energy Initiative
• residential rebates for everything from Energy Star appliances and efficiency measures to residential renewable energy generation
• the Colorado Industrial Challenge Program

This new website is a great interactive tool for anyone who’s interested in purchasing energy efficient appliances or materials and for those interested in submitting a grant proposal. For a full list of these programs, please click here.

In addition, Recharge Colorado is a great place to learn more about state programs involving renewable energy generation and research. To read more, please visit the Governor’s Energy Office’s Renewable Energy Programs page.

(Image Credit: www.thisefficienthouse.com)