Related Posts for Energy efficiency
March 14, 2011
From the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner: Karl Kassel fell in love with the site while ptarmigan hunting in 1975. At the top of Murphy Dome, his octagonal wood house overlooks Denali and Murphy Dome Valley. It was 2 below zero outside and 70 degrees inside when he woke up Wednesday. He hadn’t heated the home for three days.
Energy from his windows, solar photovoltaic panels, wind turbine and solar thermal panels was being stashed for next winter.
“If it stays sunny for the next several days, we’ll probably not have to light the fire again until October,” he said.
Kassel, his wife Billie and their 15-year-old son moved into the off-the-grid house last January.
“It’s crazy the amount of energy that’s available here in Fairbanks, that we waste,” said Kassel, who had been dreaming up the house since the 1970s. “I finally said, ‘I’m going to do this. It makes sense, the energy’s available, the efficient designs are here. We know how to do this. Why aren’t we?’”
So Kassel hired Thorsten Chlupp, general contractor and owner of Reina LLC, to build a highly efficient home that made the most of the area’s resources. They designed a house that combines passive solar design, renewable technologies and energy storage to make the variable sunlight in Fairbanks last almost the whole year. They are studying its performance to make the design more efficient, less expensive and less dependent on fossil fuels.
Passive design
The southern side of Kassel’s 1,800-square-foot house is mostly windows, letting in every drop of available sunlight.
The octagon is 20 percent more efficient than a square design because it has a lower surface-to-volume ratio and softer corners, which is where you lose the most heat, Chlupp said.
It was just as warm in the shadowed arctic entryway as by the sunny window.
“You don’t have any loss, you don’t have any drafts,” Chlupp said. “You can feel very comfortable in a house like this at 64, 66 degrees.” Read more
February 21, 2011
Can a house in cold Edmonton produce as much power as it consumes? Environmentalists are trying
By Maurice Tougas in See Magazine: It’s a cold February morning, with the temperature barely nudging -25C. Inside a Mill Creek home shared by Conrad Nobert, his wife Rechel Amores and their two young children, it’s cool but comfortable. Very comfortable, in fact, if you take into consideration their home doesn’t have a furnace.
The Nobert-Amores home looks like any other from the front, but if you go around the back — where you’ll find a garden and the three different fruit trees in the summer months — you’ll see more than 30 solar panels, some on the roof, others on movable awnings. It’s all part of the Nobert-Amores family’s efforts to make as small an imprint on the planet as humanely possible, and as a hedge against the future.
It’s what is called a net zero home, one of only two in the city, with more in the construction and planning state.
A net zero building is one that produces all of its own energy for heating, lighting , appliances, and hot water on site over the course of a year. To do this, the house might draw on the power grid during the cold winter months, but sell back to the grid during the summer or warmer winter days. The net result, if all goes well, is zero.
Whether the Nobert-Amores home — or the first Edmonton net zero home in Riverdale — has achieved actual net zero is not entirely clear. Nobert has been scrupulously gauging his energy production and use this year, and so far it looks promising. Nobert expects they might be able to achieve net zero from the period of October 2010 to October 2011.
Saving your pocket book
But even if it doesn’t achieve the net zero effect, you have to be envious of his power bill, which is about $25 a month, all of which is service charges. And, thanks to the absence of a furnace, there is no natural gas being used, resulting in a remarkable level of savings. To gauge how much, just look at your gas bill for a month like January, and imagine that entire bill, with its laundry list of incomprehensible riders and usage fees, all gone.
Raised by parents who taught him the value of conservation, Nobert is a dedicated environmentalist (he doesn’t even own a car). He and Rechel did everything you can do with their previous house, just a few doors down from their current house, like replacing windows and improving insulation.
Still, that wasn’t enough.
“I realized that it was still consuming a huge amount of energy,” says Nobert. “We don’t really have a good idea, because it just comes in from a pipe in the basement. But the amount of energy used was massive.”
Worried about climate change, and the potential for energy scarcity — one day, he warns, there will be no natural gas left — he and his wife decided to go big and go home, and the easiest way to do that was to start from scratch. Net zero, or even coming close to it, isn’t just a matter of improving insulation and using energy-efficient appliances. The net zero effort begins, literally, from the ground up.
In 2008, he “deconstructed” a house that stood on the site of his current net zero home, saving the fir and maple flooring, the brickwork and the interior doors for use in the new house.
Now with just a hole in the ground, they planned a house that would “push the envelope” of energy conservation, aiming for a net zero house. Read more
February 15, 2011
By Jennifer Gibbins for The Cordova Times: With a goal of reducing energy costs and bringing homes up to safe, healthy and energy efficient standards, 14 homes in Cordova have recently received weatherization services through the Alaska Weatherization Program.
“This program is wonderful. I could not have afforded to hire anyone to come and do this work on my home,” said Gloria Clark. “Now I can stand at the sink and do my dishes and the wind isn’t blowing right off the lake and into the house.”
Like other participants in the program, Clark’s home underwent three assessments prior to weatherization. First, a simple written application examined annual energy usage, square footage and other basic information to determine eligibility. Following that, an onsite inspection was conducted by an energy specialist with the Alaska Community Development Corp. (AKCDC), as well as a diagnostic Blower-Door test that uses specialized software to model home energy use. The AKCDC energy specialist created a customized weatherization plan for the house that was later implemented by a professional contractor team from Alaska SafeTech Industries, including targeting diagnostic goals based on weatherization,.
The plan for Clark’s home included caulking leaks throughout the home, plugging holes in the skirting, three new windows, a new Toyo stove, a fan in the bathroom and new smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. The contractor team repeated diagnostic testing prior to commencing work and upon completion, measured results against the targeted goals for each home. The level of investment varies from home to home depending on a number of factors, however, it can be as much as $8,500. Read more
February 9, 2011
By Katie Hyslop for the TheTyee.ca: When the provincial government decided all new school buildings must meet the LEED Gold standard in 2008, the motive was making B.C. the province with the first carbon-neutral government in Canada, with the added benefit of saving school districts some energy costs.
But new avenues of research into the effects of school buildings on human health and productivity are producing evidence that the government’s move towards greener schools could be producing healthier, more productive and more environmentally aware students.
A tale of a green Dickens
The new Charles Dickens Elementary School was the first in the Vancouver School District when it opened in May 2008, however the government wasn’t enforcing LEED Gold certification then, so the district had to use their own funds to reach LEED Silver status.
Some of the green features include an underground rainwater cistern for non-potable water, geothermal rods that mine the earth’s heat to warm and cool the building, and electronic sensors that monitor the number of people in the room to determine how much light and heat is required.
But while the custodial staff estimates significant energy savings in comparison to the old buildings — as much as 50 per cent less gas than previously required — there is little more than anecdotal evidence the building is producing healthier, more productive students and teachers.
“I think the air quality is definitely different, I noticed that right away from all the buildings that I’ve worked in,” says principal Kathy O’Sullivan.
“And we do have some sickness, colds and the occasional flu, which is during certain seasons, but I don’t see a high absenteeism due to illness, so I think that’s a positive thing. I do see less dust and dirt.”
Researchers in Canada and the U.S. want to turn anecdotes into hard facts by monitoring the affects of natural light, air quality, and acoustics on children’s ability to learn, and as a result are discovering many requirements of sustainable structures are meeting the educational and health needs of children far better than traditional buildings can. Read more
February 4, 2011
From the U.S. Department of Energy’s EERE Office: In a move designed to encourage energy conservation, the Hawaii Electric Light Co. has begun using a lower price per kilowatt hour (kWh) when billing residential customers who use less electricity. The Hawaii Public Utilities Commission recently approved the new three-tiered rate structure, and as of January 14, the structure was in effect on Maui, the Big Island, Molokai, and Lanai. The utility company also has permission to extend the new incentives to Oahu customers. The company said that most electricity users would be in the first two tiers. The lowest tier provides the most savings, though rates vary from island to island. For example, on the Big Island, customers in the lowest tier would pay about 20% less per kWh than those whose usage puts them in the highest category. Read more
February 3, 2011
From KOTZ Radio: Kotzebue-based NANA Regional Corporation announced Monday it will be partnering with Ruralcap to bring Ruralcap’s Energy Wise program to the NANA region. NANA is contributing $860,000 to roll out the three-phase project. Hear the story here
January 25, 2011
By Monte Paulsen of the Tyee: The home of the future was built 34 years ago in Regina. It was called the Saskatchewan Conservation House. It used less than a fifth of the energy consumed by comparable homes. More than 30,000 people came to see it. But Canadian homebuilders ignored the ideas it offered, and the Canadian public forgot about it.
The world would have forgotten the Saskatchewan house, too, were it not for a quirky German physicist interested in energy-saving buildings. After studying the Saskatchewan house and a handful of similar buildings, Dr. Wolfgang Feist wrote a mathematically precise — and elegantly simple — criterion for designing buildings that require less than a tenth of the energy of average buildings. He called it the Passivhaus standard. Feist’s formula has gone viral. There are now more than 25,000 certified Passivhaus buildings in Europe, and thousands more under construction around the world. But, here in Canada? There’s just one.
Sans furnace in Saskatchewan
The Saskatchewan Conservation House was built in 1977 by the Saskatchewan Research Council, with support from partners including the University of Regina and the University of Saskatchewan. Read more
January 7, 2011
From the Anchorage Daily News: It can be cheaper for Fairbanks to invest in energy savings than in new energy sources, according to a new report commissioned by the nonprofit Alaska Conservation Alliance.
The report said the city can cut energy demand in half by investing $100 million in energy efficiency, such as better building insulation and efficient appliances. For example, replacing old refrigerators in 38,000 Fairbanks homes would save 32 million kilowatt-hours per year. State and local officials gathered Wednesday to discuss the issue, the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported. They say energy efficiency would save money, improve the business climate and create jobs.
“Energy efficiency and conservation will always be our best economic value and most secure investment. It comes with a high, tax-free rate of return,” said Todd Hoener of Golden Valley Electric Association.
The “Fairbanks First Fuel” report explores how residents, businesses and industries can reduce electricity demand by investing in efficiency. It recommends measures for different sectors. According to the report, financing is key to getting residents and businesses on board. The utility, for example, could reward those who save by tying rates to how much is energy is used.
“There is no incentive to conserve electricity with the current rate structure,” said Tom DeLong, who is on the board of GVEA. “We could come up with new rates, adjust things between customers.” Read more
December 18, 2010
From the U.S. Department of Energy: Washington, DC – Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced today that more than $38 million in funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is being awarded to 4 states to support energy efficiency and conservation activities. Under DOE’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) program, these states – Alaska, Kansas, Utah and West Virginia – will implement programs that lower energy use, reduce carbon pollution, and create green jobs locally.
“This funding will allow states across the country to make major investments in energy solutions that will strengthen America’s economy and create jobs at the local level,” said Secretary Chu. “It will also promote some of the cheapest, cleanest and most reliable energy technologies we have – energy efficiency and conservation – which can be deployed immediately. Local communities can now make strategic investments to help meet the nation’s long term clean energy and climate goals.”
Today’s awards to the State Energy Offices will be used to support state-level energy efficiency priorities, along with funding local conservation projects in smaller cities and counties. At least 60 percent of each state’s award will be passed through to local cities and counties not eligible for direct EECBG awards from the Department of Energy. The EECBG Program was funded for the first time by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and provides formula grants to states, cities, counties, territories and federally-recognized Indian tribes nationwide to implement energy efficiency projects locally.
Projects eligible for support include the development of an energy efficiency and conservation strategy, energy efficiency audits and retrofits, transportation programs, the creation of financial incentive programs for energy efficiency improvements, the development and implementation of advanced building codes and inspections, and installation of renewable energy technologies on municipal buildings.
Transparency and accountability are important priorities for the EECBG program and all Recovery Act projects. All grantees have specific measures they must take before spending the full amount of awarded funding, such as ensuring oversight and transparency, submitting a conservation strategy to the Department of Energy, and complying with environmental regulations.
Throughout the program’s implementation, DOE will provide strong oversight at the local, state, and tribal level, while emphasizing the need to quickly award funds to help create new jobs and stimulate local economies. Communities will be required to report regularly to DOE on the progress they have made toward successfully completing projects and reaching program goals.
For a full list of awards to date, visit the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants Program.
DOE announced today that the following states are receiving their state-level EECBG awards:
ALASKA – $9,593,500 awarded
Alaska will use its Recovery Act EECBG funding to implement energy efficiency and renewable energy projects in local communities across the state, including energy audits and building retrofits, transportation efficiency programs, and installations of renewable energy technologies on government buildings. The Alaska Housing Finance Corporation will work in coordination with the Alaska Energy Authority to administer the funding, including competitively passing a majority of the state’s funding onto local cities and counties.
Promoting efficiency in local communities is particularly important in Alaska, which faces very high electricity and heating costs, and has more than 180 villages that are only accessible by water or air and have to operate independent, stand alone electric grids. Under the EECBG program, community-owned facilities, city offices, health clinics and other buildings will be able to access funding for building retrofits and other efficiency projects, which will reduce energy consumption and save money for rural Alaskans.
Alaska will put its remaining EECBG funds toward a variety of initiatives, including an energy efficiency public education program, energy data management, waste heat capture projects from power plants in rural communities, and the establishment of a Technical Energy Advisory Group. Overall, these Recovery Act-funded projects will lead to substantial energy and cost savings, and create or save more than 75 green jobs statewide.
KANSAS – $9,593,500 awarded
Kansas will use its Recovery Act EECBG funds to implement a range of energy efficiency and renewable energy initiatives in both the public and private sector, including building retrofits, direct incentives for renewable energy projects, and support for local government energy managers. These projects will reduce energy consumption, limit carbon pollution, and create hundreds of jobs statewide.
Recovery Act funding will provide direct grants to cities and counties to encourage broader participation in the state’s existing Facility Conservation Improvement Program (FCIP), which helps local governments implement energy performance contracts with energy service companies. The state will also encourage local communities to install alternative energy generating systems (wind, solar, fuel cell or bio-based), by offering competitive grants for up to 25 percent of the cost. These grants will leverage private sector investments and are expected to support more than $11 million in new renewable energy projects. With the remaining Recovery Act funds, the state will allow local units of governments to compete for funding to hire energy managers.
UTAH – $9,593,500 awarded
Utah will use its Recovery Act EECBG funds to improve energy efficiency and reduce total energy use and fossil fuel emissions in communities throughout the state. Utah will direct all of its State Energy Program funding to local city and county governments that did not receive direct EECBG grants from the Department of Energy. Awards will be based upon a competitive process that will choose a wide variety of projects focused on meeting community needs for energy efficiency, conservation, and job creation.
The Utah State Energy Office will administer this program, awarding funds in two general areas. First, grants to local cities and counties to develop community and building energy efficiency strategies, monitoring and reporting mechanisms, and innovative policies that will promote energy efficiency and conservation. Second, funding will support the implementation of a range of efficiency initiatives, including energy efficiency retrofits, installing on-site renewable energy technologies for existing buildings, replacing traffic signals and street lights with energy efficient lighting, and other energy efficiency improvements. Utah’s Recovery Act-funded projects will lead to substantial energy and cost savings and will create nearly 100 jobs statewide.
WEST VIRGINIA – $9,593,500 awarded
West Virginia will use its Recovery Act EECBG funding to empower local governments and communities with the knowledge and resources they need to improve building energy efficiency. Through its Local Government Grant Program (LGGP), the West Virginia Department of Energy will work with the state’s eleven regional planning and development councils to coordinate and distribute nearly $9 million for local energy retrofit projects.
EECBG funding will also support local training and education initiatives. The West Virginia University Industrial Assessment Center, which has significant experience advising business and industry, will help local city and county governments in understanding energy efficiency measures, and their costs and benefits.
Additionally, the state’s Building Energy Collaborative will use EECBG funds to work with local stakeholders – including contractors, realtors, building inspectors, product suppliers, and city and county officials – to determine how to most effectively implement and enforce building codes.
December 5, 2010
By Sean Manget of the Alaska Journal of Commerce: With high fuel prices and harsh winter climes, constructing energy-efficient housing in rural Alaska communities can be a difficult task that is compounded by the prohibitively high costs. In Fairbanks, Jack Hebert and a team of engineers with the Cold Climate Housing Research Center are rising to the challenge, designing and building prototype homes and empowering communities to build more of them for themselves.
In 2008, the CCHRC began its Sustainable Northern Shelter Program. CCHRC designs sustainable home technology, with its aim being to reduce the amount of fuel used to heat rural homes.
The group contracts with local crews to get the homes built. In fact, CCHRC officials don’t actually build the homes; with input from the locals, they design it and the locals themselves build them. Consultations with the community help establish what their cultural needs are, among other things, Hebert said. The goal, Hebert said, is to enable local residents to build their own sustainable homes without the aid of outsiders. Read more
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