DOE Announces New Opportunities to Improve Commercial Building Energy Efficiency

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)  announced support for energy-saving commercial building projects as part of an ongoing effort by DOE to improve the energy efficiency of buildings in the United States. With money from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, DOE’s national laboratories will select and fund technical experts to provide technical guidance to commercial building owners and operators.  The goal of this Commercial Building Partnerships (CBP) initiative is to increase the energy efficiency of selected new and existing buildings.

DOE’s CBP initiative will foster collaborative relationships among the owners and operators of commercial buildings, researchers from DOE national laboratories and private-sector technical experts. Building owners receive technical expertise on how to design, build and maintain low-energy buildings that can reduce energy use and lower energy bills across their building portfolios. These collaborations help to move energy-saving strategies into the marketplace quickly and cost-effectively. Each of the CBP building projects will be documented in publicly available case studies that will provide detailed energy use data and best practices to other building operators across the country.

Three DOE national laboratories are managing this new effort: the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colo., the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, Calif., and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Wash.

“CBP participants will create buildings with measured energy savings of at least 50 percent for new construction and 30 percent for existing buildings,” said Paul Torcellini, group manager for commercial building research at NREL. “This initiative is unique because it demonstrates that it’s cost-effective to make buildings more energy efficient, and that energy-efficient buildings are easy to replicate.”

Applicants can apply through the laboratories for the following two initiatives:

Call for Energy Efficient Commercial Building Projects

To get involved, owners and operators of commercial buildings—retail and office buildings, for example—will submit plans for projects that will upgrade new or existing buildings, and they commit to working with the laboratories and technical experts to make these buildings significantly more energy efficient. Although they receive no direct funding, owners and operators have access to state-of-the-art technical guidance to implement energy efficiency technologies throughout the design, construction, and evaluation of their building and retrofit projects. This technical expertise includes guidance with energy modeling, assessing and choosing appropriate energy efficiency measures, and energy performance verification.

Online applications to the call for projects are due by May 10, 2010. Learn more about the call for projects and access the application.

Request for Proposals from Commercial Building Technical Experts

Technical expert teams and measurement and verification technical contractors interested in providing technical guidance to the successful applicants to the call for projects can respond to this request for proposals (RFP). Technical expert teams need to provide a broad range of technical expertise including all or some of the following areas: architecture, engineering, HVAC and controls, daylighting, lighting, energy modeling, commissioning, building auditing and data collection, and cost estimation. Using Recovery Act funding, the participating national laboratories will contract with technical experts to provide this guidance.

Completed proposals are due by May 10, 2010. Learn more about this opportunity and read the RFP.

Learn more about Commercial Building Partnerships and these new opportunities at the Building Technologies Program website.

Consumers Save Money, Water with EPA’s WaterSense Program

Showerheads added to the WaterSense product list

According to the EPA, in 2009,  WaterSense program helped consumers save more than 36 billion gallons of water and $267 million on their water and sewer bills. That’s nearly four times as much water as consumers saved with WaterSense labeled toilets, faucets, and faucet accessories in 2008. 

“By raising awareness about the value of smart water use, the WaterSense program encourages consumers to take environmental action into their own hands,” said Peter S. Silva, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Water. “WaterSense labeled products provide Americans another opportunity to keep the country moving towards a green economy.” 

EPA created WaterSense in 2006 as a voluntary program to label products that are at least 20 percent more water efficient and perform as well as or better than standard models. WaterSense labels toilets, bathroom faucets and faucet accessories, flushing urinals, new homes, and, most recently, residential showerheads. WaterSense also certifies programs for irrigation professionals. 

With about 17 percent of all residential indoor water use in the United States going to showering, replacing a water-hogging showerhead with a WaterSense labeled model can save enough water each year to wash more than two months’ worth of laundry. Like all WaterSense labeled products, showerheads must be independently tested and certified to meet EPA’s efficiency and performance criteria before they can earn the label. 

With the addition of showerheads, consumers can now renovate their bathrooms with a full suite of WaterSense labeled products. A bathroom remodel that includes a WaterSense labeled toilet, faucet, and showerhead will not only conserve water, but also save enough electricity each year to run a refrigerator for two months and save about $60 in utility bills. 

WaterSense, a partnership program sponsored by EPA, seeks to protect the future of our nation’s water supply by offering people a simple way to use less water with water-efficient products, new homes and services. 

More information on WaterSense labeled showerheads: http://www.epa.gov/watersense/products/showerheads.html 

To view the WaterSense accomplishments report: http://www.epa.gov/watersense/about_us/program_accomplishments.html

Five More States Reach Major Recovery Act Weatherization Milestone

completing weatherization work for more than 30% of the homes they have planned

The U.S. Department of Energy announced today that five more states have reached a significant milestone under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act—completing weatherization work for more than 30% of the homes they have planned. Now that New Hampshire, New Mexico, Montana, Minnesota, and Utah have each met this target, along with completing a series of monitoring and reporting milestones, the states will have access to the remaining 50% of their Recovery Act funding for the program. The Weatherization Assistance Program under the Recovery Act has weatherized more than 108,000 homes nationally, saving American families more than $47 million on their energy bills and according to state reports, supporting more than 10,000 jobs in the first quarter of this year.

“The weatherization program under the Recovery Act is creating opportunities nationwide—opportunities for energy savings and job growth. These states are helping to lead the way toward a stronger economic future with a sound foundation in clean energy,” said U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu.

The five states highlighted today join seven other states nationally who met this Recovery Act milestone in the last month: Idaho, Maine, Mississippi, Nevada, Ohio, Vermont, and Washington.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Weatherization Assistance Program helps low-income households save energy and money by improving their energy efficiency. Local community action agencies or non-profit organizations provide whole-home weatherization services under the program. This includes conducting an energy audit in the home to identify the most cost-effective improvements and implementing solutions that range from installing additional insulation and weatherstripping, sealing windows and doors, caulking cracks in the building, and replacing inefficient heating and cooling systems. According to a recent study by Oak Ridge National Laboratory, weatherization services save families an average of more than $400 in energy costs during the first year.

The weatherization program is also creating jobs and providing career training opportunities nationwide. Earlier this month, the Department announced $29 million in funding for 34 weatherization training centers, which will more than triple the number of federally funded training centers and lay the foundation for an energy efficiency workforce for years to come.

More information on the five states that have now weatherized 30% of their planned homes under the Recovery Act and met a set of monitoring and compliance milestones is below:

• New Hampshire has weatherized 985 homes under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act as of May 31, 2010. New Hampshire now has access to the full $23.2 million in funding to weatherize more than 2,600 total homes with Recovery Act funding. According to the state, 110 workers were employed by state and local weatherization providers during the first three months of the year.
• New Mexico has weatherized 881 homes under the Recovery Act as of May 31, 2010. The state now has access to the full $26.8 million in funding to weatherize more than 2,700 homes. According to the state, nearly 50 workers were employed by state and local weatherization providers during the first three months of the year.
• Montana has weatherized 989 homes under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act as of May 31, 2010. Montana now has access to the full $26.5 million in Recovery Act funding to weatherize more than 2,400 total homes. According to the state, more than 110 workers were employed by state and local weatherization providers during the first three months of the year.
• Minnesota has weatherized 5,268 homes under the Recovery Act as of May 31, 2010. Minnesota now has access to the full $131.9 million to weatherize more than 16,800 homes with their Recovery Act funding. According to the state, more than 450 workers were employed by state and local weatherization providers during the first three months of the year.
• Utah has weatherized 1,402 homes under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act as of April 30, 2010. Utah now has access to the full $37.8 million to weatherize a total of more than 4,400 homes with Recovery Act funding. According to the state, approximately 80 workers were employed by state and local weatherization providers during the first three months of the year.

For more information, visit the Weatherization Assistance Program Web page

DOE Seeks Input on National Energy Rating Program for Homes

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) issued a Request for Information (RFI) on Tuesday, June 8, 2010 inviting interested parties to submit comments that will help to develop a National Energy Rating Program for Homes. This rating program will offer consumers easy-to-understand, reliable information about the energy performance of existing homes, and help them identify cost-effective energy efficiency investments for their homes.

Even though home energy retrofits are good investments that save families money, consumers often do not have the straightforward information on a home’s energy use that they need to decide whether to retrofit their homes and what investments make the most sense. This national program will enable consumers to access additional information about their home’s energy use. It will facilitate a new level of investment in home energy efficiency by developing a consistent way of measuring a home’s energy performance and a clear method for conveying information to consumers. Greater investment in home energy retrofits will create jobs, save homeowners money on their energy bills, help avoid emissions of greenhouse gases and other air pollutants, and improve energy security. The program is meant to complement existing home retrofit efforts, such as Home Performance with ENERGY STAR, weatherization, and other state and local energy efficiency initiatives.

The National Energy Rating Program for Homes will consist of standardized approaches for evaluating home energy performance and options for conveying this information to consumers. DOE is considering a wide range of issues including how to measure energy performance, what performance metrics to use, and how best to present information to consumers. Interested stakeholders such as state and local energy offices, realtors, consumer groups, utilities, Home Performance with ENERGY STAR contractors and administrators, weatherization contractors, home energy rating organizations, lenders, environmental groups and non-profit organizations involved with energy efficiency initiatives, are encouraged to participate.

This RFI seeks public input on the following aspects of the program:

• Guiding principles for the program
• Options and approaches for key elements of the program
• Proposed DOE approaches
• Additional work that the Department is considering

The deadline for comments is July 10, 2010. The Department plans to have an initial program design available by early fall 2010. The Department expects to partner with interested parties and ongoing residential energy efficiency retrofit programs to implement this effort.

Learn more about the proposed National Energy Rating Program for Homes (PDF 300 KB) and how to submit your comments through the Request for Information.

Or send an e-mail with your comments to buildingratingRFI[AT]EE.DOE.GOV. Please include “RFI: National Energy Rating Program for Homes” in the subject line of the message. The Buildings Program will also host a Webinar on the RFI with all stakeholders at 1:30 Eastern on Monday, June 21.

Energy Secretary Steven Chu Meets with Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle

Pledges to Move Quickly on Clean Energy Investments to Create Wisconsin Jobs

(March 4, 2009; Washington, D.C.) – U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu met with Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle today about the important investments in the President’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act – investments that will help Wisconsin and other states to create jobs, save families on their energy bills and address the climate crisis.

Secretary Chu stressed the important role that state and local governments will play in ensuring that Recovery Act funds are invested quickly, effectively and responsibly.  He pledged a close partnership with state and local governments, and promised to reduce unnecessary paperwork and streamline the process so that important investments that will create jobs in Wisconsin can go forward quickly.

“Wisconsin is a leader in developing and implementing renewable energy sources that will power our economy and address the climate crisis,” Secretary Chu said.  “The President’s Recovery plan represents a huge opportunity for Wisconsin to build on this strength – supporting investments that will create a new generation of clean energy jobs, reduce our dependence on foreign oil and save families money on their energy bills.  I look forward to working with Governor Doyle and other leaders in Wisconsin as we make these important investments in our economic future.”

Secretary Chu also noted that Wisconsin’s status as a manufacturing state puts it in a strong position to create jobs producing wind turbines, solar panels and a broad range of other components that will be needed as the Obama Administration uses Recovery Act funding to make major investments to deploy renewable energy technology.  Wisconsin homeowners will also see significant benefit from a broad range of other Recovery Act provisions, including a $5 billion investment in weatherization and a tax credit of up to $1,500 to help families offset the costs of new windows, doors, insulation, appliances and other energy efficient home improvements that will lower their energy bills.

More information about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is available on Recovery.gov and Energy.gov/recovery.