As you know on June 2 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced new restrictions on emissions from power plants. To be sure, controversy has followed as individuals, organizations, companies and politicians from across the spectrum take turns interpreting the rule.
Our approach has been to look at the rule through the lens of our constituency — the energy efficiency industry in Virginia — and provide insight and commentary from that perspective. To that end, we just submitted a letter to Governor McAuliffe outlining some of the myriad ways that energy efficiency is poised to make the EPA’s requirements attainable and smart for Virginia. An excerpt:
We believe that a focus on energy efficiency would provide an opportunity to address the potential federal guidelines while generating significant benefits for Virginians. The Council stands ready to work with your Administration and all stakeholders to produce the best possible outcomes for the Commonwealth…
While there may be many tools to help meet the state’s emissions targets, energy efficiency represents a solution that has been proven to be among the most cost-effective options. The proposed rule would also provide an opportunity to further the benefits that we are already experiencing – an increase of in-state jobs and related economic activity attributed to energy efficiency, and a vehicle for reducing energy bills through reduced demand.
You can download the full letter here.
Read more on the role energy efficiency can play regarding the new EPA rule from the American Council on an Energy Efficiency Economy.
And stay tuned as we will have more information and analysis of state and federal energy policies that impact — and are impacted by — our work in the energy efficiency sector.
The Spring Meeting of the Virginia Energy Efficiency Council attracted an overflowing crowd on May 29, and exemplified the emerging enthusiasm for energy efficiency in the Commonwealth. Held in Richmond, the biannual gathering drew a packed audience of approximately 100 attendees representing a wide variety of interests, including business large and small, nonprofit groups, national associations, colleges and school districts, and local governments and state agencies.
VAEEC members took part in a special opportunity during the membership portion of the meeting, as we were pleased to be joined by Hayes Framme, the Governor’s newly-appointed Advisor for Infrastructure and Development in the Secretariat for Commerce and Trade, and Al Christopher, Director of the Division of Energy at the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy. The pair presented on the status of the development of the new Virginia Energy Plan, and solicited input and questions from the VAEEC membership. We were thrilled to have this exercise take place at our meeting, and look forward to participating further in the plan’s development, due for completion by October 1.
The agenda for the general meeting covered a number of timely, emerging issues as well as ongoing VAEEC priorities:
- Attendees heard an up-to-the-minute report on the outlook for regulation through Section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act, from Kara Saul Rinaldi of the National Home Performance Council;
- Ralph Joyce of Dominion Virginia Power (and VAEEC Governance Board Member) joined with Jim Fawcett of Appalachian Power Company to share the very latest on energy efficiency programs from their respective utilities;
- Ed Carroll and Harry Godfrey of Opower teamed up to provide insight on the company’s exciting work on Behavioral Demand Response, specifically how smart meter data and behavioral science are driving voluntary peak reduction in the residential sector;
- Eric Lacey, chairman of the Responsible Energy Codes Alliance, shared his perspective on where Virginia stands on building energy codes — what Virginia is doing right and where we have room to grow; and
- VAEEC Governance Board Member Bill Greenleaf summarized the recommendations that emerged from the council’s first-ever industry census, and solicited volunteers to form working groups that will advance the recommendations into action steps.
There was a surplus of exceptional content and dialogue crowded into one afternoon, and the networking hour that followed the meeting lasted well after its scheduled time. Many of the presentations are available on our website, and please let us know if you have any questions about the meeting.
Further details will be coming soon on many of the above items. Judging by the audience, the speakers and the agenda at the Spring Meeting, exciting times are ahead.
Twice a year the VAEEC convenes a meeting of members and other stakeholders to be briefed on the latest energy efficiency policies, contribute to discussions an decisions on the VAEEC’s direction, and network with other industry leaders.
Our next meeting is Thursday, May 29 2-5pm.
Register today.
There will be a Membership Meeting 2-3pm open to 2013-2014 VAEEC members (and anyone who joins for 2014-2015 in advance of the meeting). The Open Meeting is 3-5pm, followed by a Social Hour with a cash bar 5-6pm.
The spring 2014 meeting is free to all thanks in part to generous support from our event sponsor Dominion Virginia Power.
Please visit the official event page to keep up to date with the agenda speakers and sessions.
Read the full report from Climate Central.
Virginia Energy Efficiency Council Releases Report on First-Ever Industry Census; Announces New Executive Director
Richmond, Virginia – Energy efficiency is a robust if largely invisible industry that conservative estimates show generates $300M+ in economic activity and supports 9,400 jobs, according to a report released today by the nonprofit trade association Virginia Energy Efficiency Council (VAEEC). Based on a census conducted last fall to which 300 firms responded, the report underscores energy efficiency’s critical role in meeting energy demand, greenhouse gas emissions reductions, cost savings, job creation and other state and national goals.
“2013 Virginia Energy Efficiency Industry Census: Report and Recommendations” is available online.
The VAEEC also announced that Ken Rosenfeld, formerly of the National League of Cities, will be the organization’s first Executive Director. Read more about Mr. Rosenfeld.
Among the report’s key findings:
• Energy efficiency represents a $300M+ industry with an estimated 9,400 jobs in Virginia
• Companies cited consumer awareness and access to utility programs and incentives as primary factors they consider when deciding whether to hire additional employees
• Factors that would help catalyze the market include green building programs, rebates, performance based incentives, adoption or enforcement of enhanced building codes, and improved access to consumer energy usage data
“We’re not as sexy as solar or wind turbines or as well recognized as power plants, but this report confirms that energy efficiency is a critical part of the Commonwealth’s energy mix,” said Bill Greenleaf of the VAEEC Governance Board who oversaw the census.
The report closes with five key recommendations based on the census findings that VAEEC will pursue, with the help of Rosenfeld as Executive Director:
1. Expand state support for the residential Home Performance with ENERGY STAR program
2. Enable the creation of a statewide commercial PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy) program for nonresidential buildings based on national best practice standards for supporting legislation, program structure and implementation
3. Expand performance contracting in state-owned buildings
4. Adopt IECC 2012 building code for new residential construction without revisions
5. Convene a stakeholder session on increasing the breadth and depth of energy efficiency programs to help the state meet its voluntary energy efficiency goal
“These recommendations represent the first time policymakers and regulators have heard the collective voice of the energy efficiency industry,” said Greenleaf. “We’ve outlined specific ways we can further bolster the industry, spur economic growth and meet our energy demands.”
The VAEEC conducted the census in concert with other regional organizations as part of the four-state Southeast Clean Energy Industry Census (www.cleanenergyindustry.org).
The inaugural census will be the first of many and serve as a baseline by which we can gauge the growth of the industry and effectiveness of new policies and initiatives. The report will be presented at a statewide series of briefings, including sessions with policymakers and implementers in Richmond in the coming months.
The VAEEC is a nonprofit membership organization formed in 2011 with a mission to access and support programs, innovation, best practices and policies which grow the implementation of energy efficiency in Virginia and provide a forum for stakeholder interaction. www.vaeec.org.
Contact: Annie Suttle, 434.249.9817, annie@leap-va.org
We are thrilled to announce that Ken Rosenfeld has joined the Virginia Energy Efficiency Council as Executive Director. Here’s more about Ken, and stay tuned for more details about his role.
Ken brings to VAEEC a long track record of leadership on sustainability issues, and extensive experience in nonprofit management, issue advocacy, and partnership development. He was the founding director of the sustainability program at the National League of Cities in Washington, DC, providing relevant resources to cities and catalyzing action by local officials. Ken served as program director for the first, national Green Cities Conference, held in Portland, Oregon, in 2009. During his tenure at NLC, Ken also served as the organization’s policy director, and for many years he personally staffed the Energy, Environment and Natural Resources policy committee. He has served on a number of regional and national advisory boards, and has spoken to national and international audiences.
Prior to his time at NLC, Ken was the national advocacy director for the nonprofit Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, and he previously served as chief-of-staff for a member of the Fairfax County, Va., Board of Supervisors. Most recently, before joining VAEEC, Ken was an independent consultant on sustainability and energy issues, while also directing a nonprofit historic preservation organization. Ken is a graduate of the University of Virginia, and holds a Master’s degree in government from the College of William and Mary.
“I’m honored and excited by this opportunity, and there’s so much potential surrounding energy efficiency. VAEEC has demonstrated in just a few years that it can bring everyone to the table and be a leader on this issue. I’m looking forward to building on this foundation, ensuring that VAEEC is a leading resource, and promoting programs and policies that will benefit all Virginians for years to come.”
Last night President Obama delivered his State of the Union address and while he didn’t address energy efficiency specifically as he has done in this forum in the past, climate and energy issues were atop his agenda. You can read that excerpt below or the full speech here.
The ways in which the President, in addition to or instead of Congress, can promote clean energy and energy efficiency were recently outlined in the “Powering Forward: Presidential and Executive Agency Actions to Drive Clean Energy in America” by the Center for the New Energy Economy and Colorado State University.
Here are some key excerpts from the report:
In March 2013 President Obama met with 14 energy thought leaders, representing a variety of stakeholder groups, to discuss how he could further pursue a clean energy agenda using his lawful authority. Following the meeting, the leaders asked the Center for the New Energy (CNEE) to undertake a deeper examination of the President’s options in five discrete areas. In response, CNEE launched an eight-month initiative to gather ideas for additional presidential action on climate and clean energy. In dialogues, roundtables and peer reviews, CNEE engaged more than 100 participants, including chief executive officers, chief financial officers and other top executives from industry, academia, research institutions, NGOs and state and local governments. CNEE asked them what new actions by the President and his executive agencies would help our nation be more effective in meeting our climate and our energy goals.
The five areas of focus are:
1. Doubling energy productivity
2. Financing renewable energy
3. Producing natural gas responsibly
4. Developing alternative fuels and vehicles, and
5. Enabling electric and gas utilities to adapt to the new realities of the 21st century
The full report offers President Obama and his administration more than 200 recommendations for America’s transition to a clean energy economy – recommendations that CNEE believes can be implemented with the President’s existing authority.
Focusing on “Doubling Energy Productivity” a few recommendations follow:
• Amend the December 2011 Energy Saving Performance Contracts (ESPC) directive to require that agencies execute $1 billion in energy saving contracts in each of the next five years.
• Direct agencies to use ESPC more widely to fund efficiency projects in public housing, demand-response programs, data center consolidations, combined heat and power systems, waste-to-energy projects, and other energy-saving projects.
• Order the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to complete its review of new appliance efficiency standards within 90 days, as its own rules require.
• Direct the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the Federal Housing Finance Authority to analyze government mortgage data to find out whether residential energy efficiency investments reduce mortgage defaults. If they do, direct federal agencies that administer mortgage programs to reflect this benefit in their loan terms. Encourage private lenders to do the same.
• Allow electric utilities to earn credit for energy efficiency investments beyond the fence lines of their power plants as they comply with EPA’s regulation of greenhouse gas emissions from generation plants.
• Work with the building industry to develop a model national code for net-zero energy buildings.
For the complete list of CNEE’s recommendations to the President, go to www.poweringforwardplan.org .
The Potential of Productivity: The President’s challenge to the country is mirrored in a report issued a week before his 2013 State of the Union address by the Alliance Commission on National Energy Efficiency Policy. Convened by the Alliance to Save Energy (ASE) in 2012, the commission found that:
Over the past 30 years, the U.S. has made large gains in energy productivity. More specifically, the U.S. has expanded its economic output by more than three times the 1970 level, while the demand for energy and power resources grew by only 50% during the same time period. According to the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE), three quarters of the energy required to fuel this economic growth did not stem from new energy supplies, but rather an assortment of efficiency measures.
Despite these gains, the opportunities for greater energy productivity remain ubiquitous. They range from how we build our cities to how we get from place to place and how we design our vehicles, appliances and homes. The Alliance Commission reported that the building sector alone offers an investment opportunity in the hundreds of billions of dollars and savings as high as $1 trillion over the next 10 years – 30% of what we now spend annually on electricity. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) estimates that our manufacturing sector, which accounts for 11% of our GDP and 27% of our energy consumption, can improve its energy productivity by a third between now and 2035.
*Energy and climate excerpt from 2014 State of the Union (full transcript):
“Now, one of the biggest factors in bringing more jobs back is our commitment to American energy. The “all the above” energy strategy I announced a few years ago is working, and today America is closer to energy independence than we have been in decades. (Applause.) One of the reasons why is natural gas. If extracted safely, it’s the bridge fuel that can power our economy with less of the carbon pollution that causes climate change. (Applause.) Businesses plan to invest almost a hundred billion dollars in new factories that use natural gas. I’ll cut red tape to help states get those factories built and put folks to work, and this Congress can help by putting people to work building fueling stations that shift more cars and trucks from foreign oil to American natural gas. (Applause.) Meanwhile, my administration will keep working with the industry to sustain production and jobs growth while strengthening protection of our air, our water, our communities. And while we’re at it, I’ll use my authority to protect more of our pristine federal lands for future generations. (Applause.) Now, it’s not just oil and natural gas production that’s booming; we’re becoming a global leader in solar too. Every four minutes another American home or business goes solar, every panel pounded into place by a worker whose job can’t be outsourced. Let’s continue that progress with a smarter tax policy that stops giving $4 billion a year to fossil fuel industries that don’t need it so we can invest more in fuels of the future that do. (Cheers, applause.)
And even as we’ve increased energy production, we’ve partnered with businesses, builders and local communities to reduce the energy we consume. When we rescued our automakers, for example, we worked with them to set higher fuel efficiency standards for our cars. In the coming months I’ll build on that success by setting new standards for our trucks so we can keep driving down oil imports and what we pay at the pump. And taken together, our energy policy is creating jobs and leading to a cleaner, safer planet. Over the past eight years the United States has reduced our total carbon pollution more than any other nation on Earth. (Applause.)
But we have to act with more urgency because a changing climate is already harming western communities struggling with drought and coastal cities dealing with floods. That’s why I directed my administration to work with states, utilities and others to set new standards on the amount of carbon pollution our power plants are allowed to dump into the air. The shift — (applause) — the shift to a cleaner energy economy won’t happen overnight, and it will require some tough choices along the way. But the debate is settled. Climate change is a fact. (Applause.) And when our children’s children look us in the eye and ask if we did all we could to leave them a safer, more stable world, with new sources of energy, I want us to be able to say yes, we did. (Cheers, applause.)”
Back in late 2010, The Bush Companies, a multifamily property developer, asked Abacus Property Solutions (“Abacus”), a real estate energy advisory firm, to assist them in retrofitting their multifamily property portfolio in Virginia. One of their criteria was to finance these improvements with reduced owner equity, in order to meet their IRR hurdle rates. Abacus evaluated the usual suspects from local, state, and federal rebates, tax credits (e.g. 45L and 179D) to conventional debt. However, in Virginia, rebates for multifamily buildings were fairly limited and eligibility of the tax credits could only be confirmed after paying for energy modeling and/or an energy audit. Terms for construction financing required owner guarantees and signficant upfront equity contributions.
Fortunately, the client’s properties met the income criteria for affordable housing, and were therefore eligible for two types of grant funding under the Federal Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP). For one of their client’s properties, a 50-unit low rise apartment complex in Waverley, Virginia, Abacus secured grant funding covering 100% of the renovation costs (~$300,000) or $6,000 per unit. However, due to some issues with rolling out the WAP program in other areas of Virginia, Bush’s other properties were ineligible for this type of grant. Abacus identified another grant program, the Weatherization Innovation Pilot Program (WIPP) – which provides for up to 50% matching funds of the total project cost. To date, Abacus and Bush have retrofitted three projects under the WIPP grant, with estimated savings ranging from 12-25+% and total matching funds of $500,000.
However, these projects under WIPP would not have come to fruition had a key part of the grant not been altered early in the process through the collaborative effort of Abacus, the building owner and the grant administrator, LEAP. Initially, all aspects of the retrofit funded by WIPP – from the energy audit to financing, construction and measurement and verification – were to be completed through an energy service company (ESCO). After we began the process with the ESCO, it became abundantly clear that the costs for going through one source for relatively small projects (under $500K each) would not result in viable projects from a return on investment perspective. Furthermore, using an ESCO removed any potential compeitition among third party consultants and vendors that would lower overall project costs. Abacus worked with LEAP to allow for the owner to choose their own consultants as well as act as the general contractor. By removing the ESCO requirement, more grant dollars went towards the actual energy and water measures such as new boilers, lighting, water fixtures, variable frequency drives, PTACs, refrigerators, etc. that serve the needs of both the owners and tenants alike.
Lunch with foreign diplomats, interviews with the press, meetings with politicians, and consultations with business leaders sounds like a job description for a world leader, but was in fact just a typical day for Anthony Cox and Caleb Simon of Christiansburg, Virginia-based Community Housing Partners (CHP) when they visited Argentina as unofficial ambassadors for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP).
Cox, a building science manager, and Simon, a project manager at CHP’s Energy Solutions Research and Training Center, were invited to Buenos Aires by an Argentine NGO (non-governmental organization) known as FOVISEE (Foro de Vivienda Sustentabilidad y Energias) that is dedicated to promoting energy efficiency and sustainability in low-income and social housing. Having already visited CHP’s training facility last winter to learn more about establishing a weatherization program in their home country, FOVISEE staff asked CHP to come to Argentina and share its expertise with interested stakeholders.
Cox and Simon spent a busy week this past November working with FOVISEE to help develop interest in a national weatherization effort and another program in the works called Weatherizers Without Borders that would encourage skilled energy conservation professionals to provide weatherization training and mentoring to community volunteers in South American communities.
FOVISEE’s Nicolas Maggio commented, “The need for energy efficiency in existing housing becomes even more important for low-income families, as they end up paying more for energy and are subject to health and safety threats due to irregular and precarious electric connections and homes. Due to the impact weatherization can have on energy bills and improving the ‘livability’ of a home, we believe that the WAP model would be a perfect fit for Argentina.”
To help foster support for the programs across a wide platform, Cox and Simon met with U.S. embassy staff, local community and business leaders, educators, manufacturers, and the media to explain the social, financial, and environmental benefits of investing in weatherization in Argentina. They also helped perform modified energy assessments on homes in the municipalities of Campana and Moreno and gave a hands-on weatherization demonstration to professors and students at a university in Campana.
According to Cox, “almost everyone we talked with was very interested in learning more about weatherization and how it can have such a significant impact on people’s quality of life. It’s exciting to be a part of the momentum that’s building in Argentina around energy conservation.”
Simon agreed that the weatherization message was well received in Argentina and attributed that fact to a simple truth: “People are the same everywhere. Everyone wants a better life, and we can help with that.”
On January 15, 2014, the US Chamber of Commerce unveiled a 64-point energy platform today called ‘Energy Works for US,’ designed to move changes in national energy policy to reflect major landscape changes over the past few years. The 64 ‘planks’ are strewn throughout nine policy areas and will cover energy sources from oil and coal to nuclear and renewables as well as issues like worker shortages, cybersecurity, permitting and infrastructure. The platform will serve as the Chamber’s energy plan for the coming years. You can access the platform here.
To bring this closer to home, VAEEC asked the Virginia Chamber of Commerce if they have developed a position with respect to the US Chamber’s energy platform, if they will be adopting the national plan, and what should we expect here in the Commonwealth?
The Virginia Chamber’s Keith Martin, Vice President of Public Policy & General Counsel, responded, “The Virginia Chamber just completed a strategic business plan called Blueprint Virginia. We met with over 7,000 businesses throughout the state to discuss issues of economic competitiveness. One of our focus areas was energy. Based on the recommendations we received from the business community, our goal is to create a balanced, sustainable energy policy that supports economic development and job growth while meeting the growing needs of our population and business community.”
“As you can see from our recommendations on energy, there is a lot of overlap between our blueprint and the U.S. Chamber’s energy platform. We intend to take our recommendations to Governor McAuliffe as he develops his energy plan for the Commonwealth.”
Blueprint Virginia’s Energy focus is on four areas:
Efficiency & Education
• Leverage private-sector investments for energy-efficiency improvements in state-owned buildings.
• Bring new energy-efficiency technologies to market through incentives.
• Strengthen consumer education and technical support for energy efficiency.
• Provide understandable, useable information to energy consumers directly at the consumer and retail level.
• Localize Virginia’s energy education efforts.
Energy Reliability
• Support investments in grid reliability and security to promote the most reliable possible service.
• Promote energy infrastructure planning to make the state’s energy supply resilient and secure.
• Encourage energy policy that accounts for the increased risk of energy disruption.
• Emphasize the importance of infrastructure investments to energy regulators and companies.
Infrastructure Investment
• Encourage continued fuel diversity through traditional and alternative energy investments in new sources of power generation, including but not limited to natural gas, coal, nuclear, biomass, solar, and wind.
• Identify highest potential opportunities for gas infrastructure investment to spur economic development.
• Better position Virginia’s offshore wind industry through investments in data technology, port capacity, and other opportunities to increase the supply chain potential of offshore wind.
Strategy Job Creation
• Shape public policies to take advantage of the dramatic increases in domestic energy supply.
• Support the full range of energy resources in Virginia to promote stable rates, economic development, energy independence, and environmental protection.
• Focus on energy investment opportunities that promote jobs, capital investment, and economic development.
• Build on Virginia’s affordable energy prices and reliable energy supply as a competitive advantage in recruiting business to the Commonwealth.
Blueprint Virginia’s Technology, Innovation & Startups focus is in six areas:
Innovation Funding
• Identify and encourage adequate funding and tax policy: Center for Innovative Technology GAP Funds; Angel Investment Tax Credit; capital gains tax exemption; Commonwealth Research Commercialization Fund; R&D Tax Credit.
• Promote the creation of regional private investment funds.
• Support the creation of industry-specific accelerators.
Entrepreneurship
• Create a stronger environment for entrepreneurship (outreach on available resources, teaching entrepreneurship in the schools, and statewide recognition).
• Enhance Virginia’s Business One-Stop portal.
STEM Education
• Continue to encourage experiential STEM opportunities for students, such as the CSIIP.
• Continue to explore policies to recruit and retain STEM teachers.
• Continue to emphasize STEM degree attainment.
Technology Sectors
• Continue to use the R&T Strategic Roadmap for investment in priority sectors.
Commercialization
• Strengthen the Commonwealth’s efforts to commercialize university intellectual property and support federal facilities IP transfer initiatives.
Broadband
• Continue to invest in expanding broadband coverage and planning efforts.
• Promote cooperation and coordination through public-private partnerships to expand broadband services and lower deployment costs in areas where broadband expansion is not economically feasible.
For an Executive Summary of Blueprint Virginia, click here.
For the Energy Works for Us plan, click here.
