Related Posts for Energy efficiency
January 23, 2012
By Marc Lifsher of Los Angeles Times: California’s cellphones, tablet computers, power tools and hundreds of other portable electronic devices will be required to have energy-stingy battery chargers beginning next year.
The California Energy Commission on a 3-0 vote Thursday approved first-in-the-nation efficiency standards targeting about 170 million so-called vampire charging systems that waste as much as 60% of the electricity they suck from outlets.
The regulations generated strong opposition from appliance and consumer products makers. But they are expected to save enough electricity to power 350,000 homes, equivalent to a city the size of Bakersfield. The rules also are projected to shave an estimated $306 million a year off residential and commercial electricity bills.
“This means that we can have the devices that we like in our lives and that make our lives easier,” Commissioner Karen Douglas said. “But by taking a few relatively simple steps to improve battery chargers, we can save so much electricity, take care of the environment and save ratepayers money.”
Many currently available battery chargers already comply with the new California standards, the Energy Commission said. Most of the new technology is off the shelf and inexpensive, Douglas said.
For example, consumers might pay an additional 40 cents for an electric toothbrush with an efficient battery charger, but would save $1.19 in electricity costs over the lifetime of the product, according to a commission staff report. An upgraded battery charger would boost the price of a laptop computer by 50 cents but would save $19 in power costs.
The new rules would take effect on Feb. 1, 2013, for chargers used with consumer goods, such as phones and power tools; on Jan. 1, 2014, for industrial chargers, such as forklifts; and on Jan. 1, 2017, for commercial equipment chargers, including walkie-talkies for emergency personnel and portable bar-code scanners.
The standards are part of a more than three-decade drive in California to make appliances and buildings more efficient to cut energy use, reduce pollution and save money. California’s official energy policy gives efficiency the highest priority because it’s far cheaper than developing solar, wind and other renewable power or construction of natural-gas-fired power plants.
The effort began with air conditioners in 1977, 13 years ahead of the U.S. government. Since then, state regulations have forced appliance and electronics makers to develop electricity-sipping refrigerators, lighting and, most recently, big-screen, flat-panel television sets in 2009.
The Energy Commission estimates that those initiatives have saved ratepayers about $36 billion. They’ve also helped California to keep its per-capita energy consumption flat over the last 30 years, while the rest of the country’s power demand grew 50%. Read more
January 20, 2012
By Katherine Tweed on Green Tech Enterprise: Energy efficiency is often called the low-hanging fruit of a clean-energy economy. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu likes to say it’s not just hanging, it’s rotting on the ground.
The easy pickings are apparently not that easy, though. Energy efficiency programs have picked up speed in the past few years with concerns about the bottom line and/or sustainability, but those programs often come in fits and starts.
To look for more comprehensive solutions, the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) evaluated five energy efficiency programs in large workplaces to find some of what it takes to make reductions using behavior programs, rather than just retrofits.
The report examined five case studies: “Green the Capitol” in the U.S. House of Representatives; a behavior campaign at a Canadian provincial government building; “Conservation Action!” at BC Hydro; “TLC – Care to Conserve” at the University Health Network at University of Toronto; and “Tenant Energy Management Program” at the Empire State Building.
It’s worth noting upfront that four of the five facilities studied are institutions where the tenant also owns the building. Although navigating the tenant/owner relationship to achieve energy savings is more difficult, it is not impossible. With the proliferation of energy benchmarking, owners of large buildings in many cities and states are examining their energy use and looking to team up with tenants on energy efficiency.
But whatever is being done is far short of what could be accomplished. Commercial energy use is growing faster than the transportation, residential or industrial sectors.
According to anther recent report from ACEEE, “The Long-Term Energy Efficiency Potential: What the Evidence Suggests,” heating and cooling loads in new construction could be reduced 70 percent to 90 percent by 2050 with improvements in building shells. Even building shell retrofits with the latest technology could save up to 40 percent in energy.
But buildings have long life spans, and money for capital improvements is hard to come across these days. In lieu of a retrofit with the most advanced technologies, cutting energy and greening the workplace is possible (beyond replacing light bulbs). Here are 10 findings from the ACEEE.
1. Lead From the Top. Upper management must not only take ownership of the program, but must also set the tone for the entire project. It means that upper management has to involve stakeholders in the organization early and come up with a clear plan. In the case of the Empire State Building, the Rocky Mountain Institute, which was one of the program participants, noted that project prep time could have been shortened through better coordination. Read more
January 4, 2012
A new report predicts that 100 million new smart meters will be installed across Europe between now and the end of 2016 as nations continent-wide aim to achieve greater energy efficiency and increased reliance on renewable sources of energy. According to GTM Research, European investment in smart grid improvements will reach €6.8 billion annually, with much of that money targeting advanced meter infrastructure, energy distribution automation, and electric vehicle technology. Among those sectors, the report says, smart meters, which allow consumers to track their energy use in real time and relay that information to utilities, are currently the most developed technology. According to the report, many European utilities hope to use smart meter technology to improve their relationships with customers. Meanwhile, U.S.-based Pike Research reports that 19.2 million smart meters were shipped worldwide during the third quarter of 2011, a 5.3 percent increase over the previous quarter; growth was particularly strong in North America and China, according to the Pike report.
December 27, 2011
By Ellen Lockyer, KSKA: RuralCap, an organization which advocates for services for rural villages, has taken on the work of energy saving upgrades for many of Alaska’s most remote communities.
Kent Banks, a coordinator with the Energywise program for RuralCap in Anchorage, says the program has helped some of Alaska’s most economically strapped residents save on energy costs. Currently the program is operating with funds from NANA Regional Corporation.
Banks says the program is aimed at creating an awareness among rural homeowners on how and where energy is wasted. Energywise trained crews visit with residents to find out where “vampire power” is sucking up energy.. and raising costs.. in both old and new appliances.
Banks says about 20 percent of utility energy costs to the homeowner can be saved by going through the Energywise proram.
Most rural villages have diesel powered electrical generation facilities.
The Energywise program creates jobs, too. Energy workers, such as the ones brought into Kotzebue by NANA, are paid. A crew leader is hired and trained from each village. Crew leaders return to their own villages and hire energy workers locally, who are in turn trained in energy assessment work.
Banks says information on energy loss coming back from the villages will be put into a database. One of the big energy wasting culprits.
NANA is funding the program for all villages in its region. Banks says other Alaska Native regional corporations have expressed interest in helping with the program. Hear more
December 27, 2011
By Patty Sullivan of the Mat-Su Borough: The Matanuska-Susitna Borough continues to lead the state in constructing energy efficient and sustainable buildings. The year-old community recycling center is the first industrial facility in Alaska to be LEED certified at the Gold level. Today Mat-Su Borough Mayor Larry DeVilbiss accepted a glass plaque for the achievement.
LEED Is Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. It’s a third-party certification program and a nationally accepted benchmark. Mayor DeVilbiss accepted the plaque from Mark Masteller, the Alaska Director for the Cascadia Green Building Council and a former Chair of the Borough Planning Commission. Masteller spoke before a small gathering in the recycling center classroom off 49th State Street near Palmer.
“Achieving better buildings—including LEED certification—truly involves an integrated team approach. As we move forward in Alaska, and especially given the growing concern about energy costs, we need stellar examples of leadership like this,” Masteller said.
“The Mat-Su Borough has shown that leadership in the arena of high-performance buildings, with the farthest-north LEED schools in the world, and now the first LEED-Gold Industrial building in the state,” he said.
Mayor DeVilbiss highlighted the savings for taxpayers on such buildings. The recycling center alone will save a projected $8,916 annually in utility costs, he said. The first LEED certified school in the state is the Machetanz Elementary School. Its utility costs, under traditional building standards, would have been $300,000 annually. Under LEED standards they were expected to be $85,000. The annual utility costs turned out to be $64,000, DeVilbiss said. “It’s important to build it right, up front,” DeVilbiss said.
Mollie Boyer is Executive Director of the Valley Community for Recycling Solutions, the nonprofit that operates the recycling center for the Borough. Boyer said the center achieved the Gold LEED certification. because how the building was made reflects its ongoing activities. MORE
December 22, 2011
By Tim Ellis, KUAC -Fairbanks: A group of Ester-area residents working to build a community library have approved a ultra energy-efficient design. Thorsten Chlupp, who has worked on net zero energy homes, in Fairbanks, is working on this project as well. Hear more
December 14, 2011
President Obama announced on December 2 nearly $4 billion in combined federal and private sector energy upgrades to buildings over the next two years. These investments will save billions in energy costs, promote energy independence, and, according to independent estimates, create tens of thousands of jobs in the hard-hit construction sector. The $4 billion investment includes a $2 billion commitment, made through the issuance of a presidential memorandum, to energy upgrades of federal buildings using long-term energy savings to pay for up-front costs, at no cost to taxpayers. In addition, 60 Chief Executive Officers, mayors, university presidents, and labor leaders committed to invest nearly $2 billion of private capital into energy efficiency projects. They also pledged to upgrade energy performance by a minimum of 20% by 2020 in 1.6 billion square feet of office, industrial, municipal, hospital, university, community college, and school buildings.
The commitments were announced by President Obama and former President Clinton along with representatives from more than 60 organizations as part of DOE’s Better Buildings Challenge. The challenge is part of the Better Buildings Initiative launched in February by the president. President Clinton is spearheading the effort along with the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness to support job creation by catalyzing private sector investment in commercial and industrial building energy upgrades to make buildings 20% more efficient over the next decade. Such improvements would reduce energy costs for U.S. businesses by nearly $40 billion. Last year, commercial buildings consumed roughly 20% of all energy used by the U.S. economy.
Among those pledging to reduce energy consumption were the District of Columbia, which is committed to a multi-pronged action plan to reduce energy consumption in more than 90 million square feet of city- and privately held buildings in the downtown core by at least 20% by 2020. And Prologis, a global leader in industrial real estate, has made it a key priority to work with its customers to reduce energy consumption in 100 million square feet by 20% by 2020. See the White House press release.
DOE announced on December 1 its $12 million in funding for the awardees of the Rooftop Solar Challenge. The Challenge supports 22 regional teams in 18 states to spur solar power deployment by cutting red tape. The effort streamlines and standardizes permitting, zoning, metering, and connection processes, while also improves finance options for residential and small commercial rooftop solar systems. This project is part DOE’s SunShot Initiative, and is designed to make solar energy more accessible and affordable, increase domestic solar deployment, and position the United States as a leader in the global solar market.
Using a “race to the top” model, the Rooftop Solar Challenge incentivizes the regional awardees to address the differing and expensive permitting, zoning, metering, and connection processes required to install and finance residential and small business solar systems. The 22 teams bring together city, county, and state officials, regulatory entities, private industry, universities, local utilities, and other regional stakeholders to clear a path for rapid expansion of solar energy and serve as models for other communities across the country. The teams will implement step-by-step actions to standardize permit processes, update planning and zoning codes, improve standards for connecting solar power to the electric grid and increase access to financing. Non-hardware costs like permitting, installation, design, and maintenance currently account for up to 40% of the total cost of installed rooftop photovoltaic systems in the United States.
The SunShot Initiative is a collaborative national effort to make solar cost-competitive with other forms of energy by the end of the decade. See the DOE press release, a complete list of awardees, and the SunShot Initiative website.
November 28, 2011
By Shaina Kilcone, Kate McKeown and Louisa Yanes in the Anchorage Daily News: The winter holidays bring great cheer, great food and greater utility bills. Holiday cooking, festive lights and inefficient appliances all contribute to rising electric bills. Alaskans already pay some of the highest energy costs in the United States and use on average 40 percent more electricity in the winter months than in the summer. But before you say “bah, humbug,” check out some of these simple holidays tricks to use your energy more efficiently and give yourself the gift of lowered energy bills this season.
We know you have already checked your list twice — your grocery list, that is. What holiday fete is complete without a sumptuous spread and what better place to start seeing energy savings than in your kitchen. When using your oven, put in as many dishes as possible, since an almost empty oven requires the same amount of energy as a full one.
Resist sneaking a peek at those gingerbread cookies. Every time you open the door, the oven loses up to 25 degrees, which increases cooking time and wastes energy. Also, using glass or ceramic pans allows you to decrease the suggested recipe temperature by 25 degrees. When using the range, make sure to use lids and match the size of your pan to the heating element or gas flame. Using a smaller pan than your element means you are just heating open air.
Don’t underestimate your microwave. Although grandma may disapprove, microwaves use about half the energy required by a conventional oven. At the end of the night, remember to start your dishwasher only if you have a full load, which shouldn’t be a problem given the holiday feast. When your guests arrive, turn down the thermostat. The extra bodies, the baking and the snappy holiday sweater will warm the space more than expected. For every degree you lower the thermostat you save about 2 percent on your heating bill, which is significant in Alaska since heating is the largest part of our energy bills.
Go a step further and add a programmable thermostat. Programmable thermostats allow you to set a heating schedule in your home so you don’t have to remember to adjust the heat. According to Energy Star, a programmable thermostat can help a family save up to $180 a year when used correctly.
Of course, Thanksgiving is just the kickoff to the holiday season. Next come the festive lights and other holiday decorations. When choosing holiday lights, the choice is simple — use LED (light emitting diode) lights. They are cool-burning, which means they are not a fire hazard, and can save you up to 90 percent on decorative lighting energy costs.
Maximize those savings by plugging lighting into power strips to make it easy to turn them off when you are not using them. Using timers and photo cells for outside lighting can also help reduce power usage. Last, to make sure you are not haunted by the ghost of energy bills to come, consider adding energy efficient appliances to your wish list.
Look for the Energy Star label, which indicates that the product meets strict energy efficiency guidelines set by the U.S. Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency. Energy Star ratings have already helped Americans save nearly $18 billion on their utility bills in 2010. For example, Energy Star-rated televisions are on average 40 percent more energy efficient than standard models, meaning you will have even more to be thankful for when watching next year’s Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade on your new flat screen.
By following these simple tricks, you can enjoy seasonally low energy bills without sacrificing any of that holiday cheer. So this year, when the stockings are taken down from the chimney with care and the last of the fruitcake is … taken care of, lift a well-deserved glass of eggnog to yourself. Not only were you the hostess with the mostest, but you were also the hostess with the most energy savings.
Shaina Kilcoyne is energy efficiency director for the Renewable Alaska Energy Project (REAP). Kate McKeown is clean energy coordinator for the Alaska Conservation Alliance. Louisa Yanes is energy organizer for the Alaska Center for the Environment.
November 28, 2011
Jonathan Grass of Alaska Journal of Commerce: A ballerina hovers on stage at the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts. The PAC has invested thousands of dollars in recent years to become more energy efficient, including the lighting in the theaters and in the lobbies. The nonprofit that runs the PAC said the efforts have proven a savings of more than $100,000 a year.
The lights go up and the performers hit the stage … and then again, more than a thousand times a year. Just think of the electricity bill with lights across 176,000 square feet of space.
But the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts has worked to cut its utility bill, undergoing an energy efficiency program that has saved the nonprofit more than $100,000 a year in electricity alone.
Officials at the PAC have done extensive renovations for the past decade or more.
PAC President Nancy Harbour and her recently retired plant manager, Gene Dale, originally realized their contract to manage the building on behalf of the city was becoming too difficult to keep up without some real efficiency changes.
“Honestly, we could look into the future and realize that if we didn’t do something we would be in serious trouble financially,” said Harbour.
They developed a conservation plan that started with simple steps like wattage reduction and photo cells both inside and outside. They substituted fluorescent lights and light-emitting diodes (LEDs) for incandescent lights. LED strip lighting was added to the lobbies. Mercury vapor fixtures in the dock area and backstage were replaced with other fluorescent fixtures with motion detectors.
These simple steps worked. Harbour said the center has saved more than $100,000 annually in electricity. In some years, it was much more.
“Then we took some serious actions and installed a heat exchanger in the south side of the building,” she said.
There is also a very aggressive air filter replacement plan plus regular calibration and testing on major equipment. Air is also handled through an automated control system.
Continuous progress included timers in all the dressing rooms, toilets and showers. There are motion sensors throughout the building. A remote cooler was installed to reduce chiller time in the sound rack and amp rooms.
October 23, 2011
The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy’s latest assessment of the states, released Thursday, showed California edged out of first place for the first time in the five years that the rankings have been conducted.
The council’s State Energy Efficiency Scorecard showed Massachusetts in the top spot, edging out California with a score of 45.5 out of a possible 50 points. California had 44 points, then there was a drop to New York in third with a score of 38, followed by Oregon (37.5). Washington, Vermont and Rhode Island were next with identical scores of 34.
The scores were based on weighted criteria that gave more credit to states that offered utility and public benefits funds and also had the best efficiency programs and policies (20 points possible). That was followed in importance by transportation, building energy codes and state government initiatives.
California finished first or second in every category including the one gauging appliance efficiency standards, where it tied for first.
ACEEE representatives said the report card showed that many states were taking the problem of energy efficiency seriously in spite of a sour economy and severe budget constraints.
“Energy efficiency is America’s abundant, untapped energy resource and the states continue to press forward to reap its economic and environmental benefits,” said ACEEE Executive Director Steven Nadel.
“The message here is that energy efficiency is a pragmatic, bipartisan solution that political leaders from both sides of the aisle can support. As they have over the past decades, states continue to provide the leadership needed to forge an energy-efficient economy, which reduces energy costs, spurs job growth, and benefits the environment,” Nadel added. Read more
2011 ACEEE Scorecard Report (.pdf)
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