Category: News

Washington, D.C., July 27, 2010 – The Alliance to Save Energy expressed its support for inclusion of the Home Star Energy Retrofits Act in the Clean Energy Jobs and Oil Spill Accountability Act sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and expected to be introduced later today. The Home Star program, which would create as many as 168,000 American construction jobs over the next two years, offers rebates to homeowners who make energy efficiency home improvements.
“Including Home Star in the Senate energy bill underscores the widespread benefits that energy efficiency offers to U.S. households and to the nation as a whole,” said Alliance President Kateri Callahan.
“With the American construction industry experiencing record unemployment in recent years, it’s time for Congress to deliver a program that will not only create thousands of jobs but also will help thousands of Americans invest in home energy efficiency, thus helping to lay the foundation for a clean energy economy,” she added.
Home Star would provide rebates to homeowners who retrofit their homes with energy-efficient equipment and materials, including insulation, windows and heating and cooling equipment. The legislation would create two rebate programs: Silver Star for those specific improvements, would offer rebates of up to $3,000 per home; Gold Star would offer up to $8,000 per home for whole-house reductions in energy use.
Callahan continued: “While we are disappointed at the limited scope of the overall bill introduced today, Home Star is a creative solution to the energy and economic problems facing our country. It provides needed financial resources to help make it possible for Americans to invest in energy efficiency upgrades so they can realize substantial energy and money savings, improve the comfort of their homes and reduce the amount of pollution that their homes produce. In addition, the work generated by the demand for such home improvements will create up to 168,000 new jobs.
“We call on Congress to pass this provision promptly and set in motion a tidal wave of American energy efficiency investment that will have a positive and immediate impact on our economy.”

The Alliance to Save Energy is a coalition of prominent business, government, environmental, and consumer leaders who promote the efficient and clean use of energy worldwide to benefit consumers, the environment, economy, and national security.

For further information:

Ronnie Kweller: 202-530-2203

Craig Schattner : (202) 530-4346

Did you know that small businesses may be eligible for tax incentives for energy-efficiency upgrades made to commercial buildings? The way the credits work for commercial buildings (non-residences that pay taxes) is that you need to show energy saved and do not automatically get credit for installing an ENERGY STAR qualified unit or product, which is different than the way incentives are given for residential credits. Per IRS notice 179D, a tax deduction of up to $1.80 per square foot is available to owners or designers of new or existing commercial buildings that save at least 50% of the heating and cooling energy of a building that meets ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2001. Partial deductions of up to $.60 per square foot can be taken for measures affecting any one of three building systems: the building envelope, lighting, or heating and cooling systems. These tax deductions are available for systems placed in service from January 1, 2006 through December 31, 2013. The credits are being administered by the IRS, so although ENERGY STAR can provide you with general information, if you need specific details you may need to speak with your accountant or a representative from the IRS. For information on what falls under the categories “building envelope, lighting, or heating and cooling systems”, how to actually measure energy savings, and how to apply for the credits see the following links.

Federal Tax Credits for Consumer Energy Efficiency

If you purchase an energy-efficient product or renewable energy system for your home, you may be eligible for a federal tax credit. Below you will find an overview of the federal tax credits for energy efficiency.

Please note, not all ENERGY STAR qualified products qualify for a tax credit. ENERGY STAR distinguishes energy efficient products which, although they may cost more to purchase than standard models, will pay you back in lower energy bills within a reasonable amount of time, without a tax credit.

Energy Star Tax Deductions for Commercial Buildings

A tax deduction of up to $1.80 per square foot is available to owners or designers of new or existing commercial buildings that save at least 50% of the heating and cooling energy of a building that meets ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2001. Partial deductions of up to $.60 per square foot can be taken for measures affecting any one of three building systems: the building envelope, lighting, or heating and cooling systems. These tax deductions are available for systems “placed in service” from January 1, 2006 through December 31, 2013.

Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency: DSIRE is a comprehensive source of information on state, local, utility and federal incentives and policies that promote renewable energy and energy efficiency. Established in 1995 and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, DSIRE is an ongoing project of the N.C. Solar Center and the Interstate Renewable Energy Council.

North Carolina State University researchers have developed a computer model that will accurately predict stormwater pollution impacts from proposed real-estate developments — allowing regulators to make informed decisions about which development projects can be approved without endangering water quality. The model could serve as a blueprint for similar efforts across the country.

“The model is designed to evaluate the amount of nitrogen and phosphorus found in stormwater runoff from residential and commercial developments — particularly runoff from a completed project, not a site that is under construction,” says Dr. Bill Hunt, an associate professor and extension specialist of biological and agricultural engineering at NC State who helped develop the model. “To comply with regional water-quality regulations, cities and counties have to account for nutrient loads,” Hunt says, “but the existing tools are antiquated and aren’t giving us sufficiently accurate data.”

The researchers developed the model using chemical, physical and land-use data specific to North Carolina and surrounding states. This allowed them to account for regional conditions, which will improve the model’s accuracy. “Because the model uses regional data, it could be modified easily for use east of the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Carolina and adjoining states,” Hunt says.

The model could also serve as a blueprint for similar efforts nationally. “The primary obstacle to applying this model outside North Carolina — in Florida or Colorado, for example — would be collecting relevant data from those areas and incorporating it into the model’s framework,” Hunt says. “The actual model itself would be fairly easy to modify.”

Read the complete article at Science Daily

The Intersolar Conference held in San Francisco was a dramatic demonstration of the Green Economic Revolution’s potential for delivering lower prices, a cleaner environment, economic development and jobs.

I worked the after-conference receptions to gain candid information on solar’s current pricing and future. I was blown away by how low solar prices have fallen. I can’t name names due to confidentialities but I heard concrete examples from solar power developers that utility scale PV panels are selling for around $1.75-$1.85 per watt. This is approximately 60-70% LESS than the price for panels just four years ago! Inverters are now priced around 40+ cents per watt. Completed solar power plants are coming on line at $3.50 to $4 per watt.
The spark behind this dramatic price drop is worldwide competition. The Intersolar Conference filled THREE huge conference floors within the Moscone Center with solar technology vendors including what appeared to be an entire floor of Chinese companies offering solar panel and solar hot water heating technologies. Also represented was an impressive array of manufacturers from Japan, Europe and the U.S. including a really cool technology developed by DEGERenergie, a German company that enables a solar panel to so effectively track the sun’s UV radiation that it increases a solar system’s output by 40+%.

But there is a dark cloud hanging over the bright future for solar and the smart grid. A common theme expressed in private conversations and public panel discussions was a view of utilities as the 800-pound gorilla standing in the way of progress.

Read the complete article at Triple Pundit

Smarter water and energy conservation policies are intertwined.  The droughts in the West and South.  The gyrations in the price of oil.  Just these two realities alone have taught us how much water and energy will define our futures.

Yet, what isn’t always obvious is the connection between the two.  Maybe it’s because most of us thought of water and energy as commodities until recently.  And why not?  The price of gas was so cheap, its impact on the environment so little understood, that most of us didn’t pay much attention to how much we bought at the pump. And water was so available that communities such as Fresno, Calif., thought nothing of charging homeowners flat monthly water bills, no matter how much water they used.

Water and energy are intricately linked, though. A lot of water goes into making the everyday staples of our lives. It takes 10 liters of water to produce just one sheet of paper, 10,855 for a pair of jeans, and 15,500 for a kilogram of beef. Meantime, the systems that send water to our factories, homes, farms, malls, and offices have their own hefty energy requirements. About one-fifth of California’s electricity is used for pumping and treating water. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that around $4 billion is spent annually on the electricity to run water and wastewater utilities.

Yet, municipalities lose up to 50% of their water to leakages, and agriculture wastes 60%. Our water resources are coming under increasing threats of contamination.

That’s why the status quo for how we handle water and energy won’t cut it in the future. The demand for these two resources is going to increase dramatically as the world’s population reaches a peak of 9.4 billion in 2050. By 2025, two-thirds of the world is projected to face water scarcity. At the same time, we have to cut the amount of energy we’re using so that we can slash the carbon emissions we’re sending into the atmosphere.

Read the complete article at Environmental Leader:

WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Department of Energy has launched a cool roof initiative, and Energy Secretary Steven Chu is urging other government agencies to follow his department’s lead.

“Cool roofs are one of the quickest and lowest cost ways we can reduce our global carbon emissions and begin the hard work of slowing climate change,” Chu said in a statement this week.

“By demonstrating the benefits of cool roofs on our facilities, the federal government can lead the nation toward more sustainable building practices, while reducing the federal carbon footprint and saving money for taxpayers.”

Cool roofs reflect sunlight and reduce heat gain, which decreases the need for air conditioning, saves energy and reduces carbon emissions. Cool roofs also reduce the heat island effect found in urban and campus settings where concentrations of black or dark roofs and paved surfaces create areas where the ambient air temperature is higher and the air quality is poorer.

Chu has directed his department to install cool roofs when constructing new ones, or replacing old ones, as long as it is cost effective to do so given the life expectancy of the roof.
This week, Chu detailed the DOE initiative, sent letters to the heads of other government departments and agencies and released the DOE Guidelines for Selecting Cool Roofs (pdf). The resource explains how cool roofs work, their benefits and how to select the right one for a facility.

Read more at GreenBiz News:

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is inviting small businesses and municipalities to nominate representatives to provide input on a proposed stormwater rule. The rule would strengthen the national stormwater program under the Clean Water Act (CWA) and focus on stormwater discharges from developed sites, such as subdivisions, roadways, industrial facilities, and commercial buildings or shopping centers.

Selected participants would provide input to a Small Business Advocacy Review panel, which will consist of officials from EPA, the U.S. Small Business Administration and the Office of Management and Budget. As required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act, EPA is establishing this panel because the rule could have a significant economic impact on small entities. The representatives will provide input on how EPA can minimize the potential burden on small entities of the proposed regulation. Nominations must be received by August 4, 2010.

More information about participating in the panel

More information about the rulemaking

At the world’s first Clean Energy Ministerial, U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced that the United States is helping launch more than 10 international clean energy initiatives. These initiatives will cut energy waste; help deploy smart grid, electric vehicle, and carbon capture technologies; support renewable energy markets; expand access to clean energy resources and jobs; and support women pursuing careers in clean energy. The new programs offer partners concrete, technical actions to promote economic growth while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants. The initiatives will eliminate the need to build more than 500 mid-sized power plants world-wide in the next 20 years.

“The Clean Energy Ministerial has brought together leaders from around the world to take unprecedented actions to deploy clean energy technologies—from energy efficiency to renewable energy to smart grids to carbon capture. These steps will promote economic growth, create jobs, and cut greenhouse gas emissions,” said Secretary Chu. “What we’ve seen here is that working together, we can accomplish more, faster, than working alone.”

Additional information on each of the initiatives announced at the Clean Energy Ministerial is available.