Setting the Table for Building Decarbonization

For the last year and a half, seemingly every conversation about energy policy has been dominated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) plans to regulate the emissions of carbon dioxide from power plants. Interchangeably referred to as the Clean Power Plan, 111d (in reference to the relevant section of the federal Clean Air Act) or carbon pollution standards, the issue hit…

How do you do your laundry? Generally, people do it begrudgingly, but when NEEP thinks about laundry we see an opportunity. Especially when policies for clothes dryers lag behind other household appliances, there could be potentially large energy, financial, and carbon emission savings. Coupled with the fact that about 80% American households have dryers, those individual appliances can really…

Thanks to Danielle Sass Byrnett and the U.S. Department of Energy for sharing this piece on their new Better Buildings Residential Program Solution Center! Efficiency Maine’s transition to a sustainable level of home performance incentives is one of nearly 1,000 examples, strategies, and resources making up the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) new Better Buildings Residential Program Solution…

Thanks to Shanna Cleveland and Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) for this piece outlining three crucial points you may not be aware of surrounding the natural gas/winter peak conversation. Rahm Emanuel, President Obama’s first White House chief of staff, was once quoted as saying “You never want to let a serious crisis go to waste,” referring to the opportunities to…

Welcome to Highlights! October 2014 As the region girds for what the Farmer’s Almanac predicts to be a cold, snowy winter, states, utilities and consumers alike are concerned about gas and electric bills. While there is no silver bullet, energy efficiency programs can help blunt the impact for utility customers. With that in mind, NEEP and the National Association…

Last month, NEEP held its annual full day Regional Building Energy Codes Leadership Group meeting in Philadelphia at the Consortium for Building Energy Innovation (CBEI). NEEP’s Codes Leadership Group is a forum for information dissemination and exchange between building energy code stakeholders in our region, including state and municipal agencies, utilities, building officials,…

Fort Lauderdale, Florida September 28 – October 4, 2014:  The International Code Council’s (ICC) Annual Meeting and Conference brought together over a thousand code officials from across the nation and around the world, and NEEP was there, representing the region. The conference and annual business meeting offered educational seminars, regional networking events, and strategic…

New York has some of the region’s most aggressive energy efficiency programs, and is now in the midst of an ambitious set of initiatives aimed at “Reforming the Energy Vision.” As the state tackles complex issues of new utility models and a changing view of state, utility and market roles, NEEP is watching closely to ensure there is a continuing and prominent role for energy efficiency — the…

Last month, the City of Portland became the latest city to partner with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) on their High Performance Outdoor Lighting Accelerator. The move is the latest in a suite of energy efficiency initiatives taken by the Forest City with the goal of saving taxpayer money and cutting carbon emissions. The partnership provides Portland with DOE tools, resources, and…

Regional efficiency stakeholders have a lot riding on the outcomes of several important federal appliance standards rulemakings in the fourth quarter of 2014, including proposal stages for residential gas furnaces, residential boilers (gas and oil) and commercial package air conditioner/heat pumps —commonly referred to as roof-top units. Each of these product categories offer the region unique…