Gov1 held a roundtable discussion last month which brought together municipal leaders from across the country. At the event, local government officials shared experiences and best practices in energy efficiency programs, as well as predictions for future trends in sustainability.
Energy Efficiency Best Practices
Laura Padgett, City Council Member from Wilmington, North Carolina, explains the use of new technologies to save energy and increase efficiency has proven to be very successful for local initiatives.
“Cities are also benefiting from efficiency studies and strategic planning with an emphasis on personnel use,” Padgett told Gov1. “Citizen involvement in future planning is also key to long-term results.”
Padgett added that most cities are focused on keeping tax rates low and saving operational budgets, while creating a sustainable environment. Municipalities should develop protocol to preserve natural resources and surroundings as well as stimulate economic growth.
Vice Mayor Horace Webb from Petersburg, Virginia, identified LED lighting, leak detection water meters, energy efficient vehicles, high-performing building products and LEED certified buildings as staples to modern energy efficiency programs.
Moving Forward
In Petersburg, the local government has set a goal of improving water conservation while reducing vehicle emissions by 9 tons of carbon dioxide. Webb and officials have conducted an energy efficiency study of the city’s facilities to develop an Energy Improvement Plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions as well as provide an energy guarantee savings for maintenance and operations of water, lighting, HVAC and roofing.
“Those are our short-term goals,” Webb told Gov1. “In the long term, Petersburg is implementing a building LEED certification program for all construction and renovations of public facilities, as well as a Green Fleet Policy to reduce 20 percent of the city’s annual usage of petroleum by January 2018.”
In Wilmington, officials are continually experimenting with new ways to save energy and protect the environment while engaging citizens with the natural surroundings through parks and recreational facilities.
“Currently, we are installing LED lighting for traffic signals, street lights, motion sensors in all restrooms and other spaces,” Padgett told Gov1. “When constructing new buildings, we are using solar power technologies and setting high standards for LEED certification. Our transit centers are also using geothermal energy for heat and AC.”
Patricia Woodbury, Councilwoman for Newport News, Virginia, described the programs in place that helped the city achieve the highest Platinum-level status at the Green Government Challenge hosted by the Virginia Municipal League, among other awards in sustainability. Newport News has implemented a growing number of efficiency initiatives including:
- Adopting a high performance and green building standard policy for all public facilities
- Converting landfill gas into an energy resource to offset the cost for buying natural gas and reduce greenhouse gas emissions
- Launching a broken trash can recycling program to recycle more than 20,000 pounds of broken containers
- Retrofitting 27 municipal vehicles to save just under $10,000 and cut emissions by 51.65 tons
- Conducting a tree restoration program to conserve and restore forests along the Chesapeake Bay watershed
Much of Newport News’ programs are being funded through a combination of grants and savings generated from other successful efficiency efforts.
Beating the Odds
Though municipalities are diverse, many face the same obstacles when embarking on energy efficiency programs.
“Preoccupation with short-term issues and a lack of planning for the future is a common roadblock,” Padgett told Gov1. “Locally, there is always the issue of funding, while at the national level there a stronger need for building relationships and learning cooperation.”
Both Woodbury and Webb agreed that funding is a consistent barrier to energy efficiency, but incentives such as rebates and financing programs to encourage best practices that save energy and money can help overcome some of the challenges.
“At the national level, officials should also look to strengthen and streamline compliance with and enforcement of building codes and appliance or equipment standards,” Webb told Gov1. “This would help overcome the persistent problem of the failure of alterations to existing buildings to comply with state building energy efficiency standards.”
Webb also argued that a stronger emphasis on the use of performance contracts and training in building code regulations would further boost success rates for many efficiency programs.
Looking to the future, Webb foresees efficiency-related strategies evolving into a main component of several public initiatives including:
- Providing energy efficiency and infrastructure improvement project data to customers, contractors and other market actors to inform decision making
- Expanding public outreach and education
- Offering benchmarking and assessment tools for new construction and renovation projects
- Develop a workforce with the skills to sustain cost-effective energy efficiency practices
“In the future we will see more use of technology, increased analysis of energy use, high-tech controls of timing, and more efficiency appliances and machinery,” Padgett told Gov1. “I also expect there to be more emphasis on efficient transportation systems and integration of solar technologies where it works.”
According to Woodbury, energy efficiency can be achieved through small changes across all industries and agencies.
“We do not need to reinvent the wheel,” Woodbury explained. “We need to keep sharing ideas to identify best practices now and in the future.”
Keep It Clean
Gov1 is monitoring developments in local sustainability efforts, and the lessons learned on the road to success.