Energy Exchange

Nudging Behavior to Lower Energy Bills in North Carolina Office Buildings

By Greg Andeck / Published: July 14, 2014

Source: Advanced Telemetry

Office building employees in Charlotte, North Carolina are taking small, voluntary actions to save energy. These steps are making a noticeable difference on utility bills and Duke Energy, the country’s largest utility, can prove it.

Duke’s Smart Energy Now program is the first commercially-available program of its kind in the country to use behavior change to reduce energy use in office buildings. The program helped participating customers save about six percent in energy over three years, exceeding the five percent goal and representing enough savings to power nearly 2,600 homes for a year.

Through the use of gentle reminders and friendly games, the program encourages uptown office workers to turn off computers and lights and find other easy ways to save energy. An innovative electronic kiosk in the lobby of each participating building shows real-time energy use, and participants can check their progress.

Smart Energy Now is part of Envision Charlotte, an initiative led by companies in the city center to improve energy efficiency and sustainability. The program is helping Envision Charlotte meet its goal of reducing energy use by 20 percent over five years. Read More »

Posted in Clean Energy, Energy Efficiency, General, Grid Modernization, North Carolina / Comments are closed

Methane emissions: the weak link in California’s climate plan

By EDF Blogs / Published: July 14, 2014

By Andy Wunder, Policy Intern, US Climate and Energy Program

Nearly seven years ago, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) adopted a 5-year plan to reduce climate pollution in the state. In this 2008 Scoping Plan, measures were outlined reflecting the need to cut methane pollution from oil and gas operations. Though CARB has demonstrated commitment to addressing this urgent issue the need to take action as soon as possible is becoming increasingly clear.

Source: Wikipedia/Makaristos

The Value of Action

Addressing methane emissions is critical. Oil and natural gas production continues to expand rapidly in the United States – and with it the potential for climate-destabilizing methane emissions. Unburned natural gas is primarily methane, a powerful greenhouse gas. Data from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) suggests over the first twenty years after it is released into the atmosphere, methane is 84 times more potent than carbon dioxide (CO2) in trapping heat at the Earth’s surface. Methane leaks across the entire natural gas supply chain–from extraction to distribution—and these leaks represent a significant threat to our climate. Read More »

Posted in Methane, Natural Gas / Comments are closed

Wyoming’s Opportunity to Head off Pollution at the Pass

By Jon Goldstein / Published: July 11, 2014

$frackingwyo_92689731_rf_0$ Yesterday we explored how Wyoming regulators and Governor Mead are making progress on a set of potentially strong air pollution measures in Pinedale and across the Upper Green River Basin of Southwestern Wyoming.

But today a similar drilling boom is happening in Converse and Campbell counties in the northeast area of the state. Unfortunately, none of these strong, sensible new air pollution requirements apply in these areas.

The numbers are stark. A full 80 percent of the current drilling in Wyoming is occurring out in the part of the state with the least restrictive air quality controls. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management is currently beginning a process to consider as many as 5,000 new oil and gas wells in Converse County alone, and equal or greater drilling activity is expected in neighboring Campbell County over the next decade.

Posted in Air Quality, Methane, Natural Gas, Wyoming / Comments are closed

Goldman Sachs Supports Methane Policy, and Why it Matters

By Ben Ratner / Published: July 10, 2014

Source: Shutterstock

Good energy policy ideas can come from all corners, and Wall Street is no exception.

Goldman Sachs recently served up a powerful case for action on methane in a stroke of market logic grounded in data. In a recent report, the investment bank argues that environmental regulation is more than a necessary evil when it comes to oil and gas development – it’s a vital enabler for economic growth.

There’s power in diverse groups coming together.

Goldman’s insight for the U.S. oil and gas industry – that the current environmental policy vacuum is a major cause of investor queasiness – suggests that markets can help drive environmental progress. Read More »

Posted in General, Methane, Natural Gas / Read 6 Responses

EDF Energy Innovation Series Feature: Desalination – Here Comes the Sun. And Freshwater.

By Jim Marston / Published: July 10, 2014

EDF’s Energy Innovation Series highlights innovations across a broad range of energy categories, including smart grid and renewable energy technologies, energy efficiency financing and progressive utilities, to name a few. This Series helps illustrate that cost-effective, clean energy solutions are available now and imperative to lowering our dependence on fossil fuels.

Find more information on this featured innovation here.

WaterFX can turn virtually any water source into clean, drinkable water. And all they need is a sunny day.

This is great news for drought-stricken states like California and Texas, where water is becoming an increasingly scarce resource. In Central California, for example, the drought has essentially cut off thousands of farmers this year; they have no water, and their land now lays fallow.

Part of what’s draining this precious resource is our energy use. Taking into account the acquisition, treatment, and movement required to ensure water comes out the faucet when we turn it on, it is no surprise that water is among the country’s greatest users of electricity. Read More »

Posted in Clean Energy, Energy Innovation, Energy-Water Nexus / Comments are closed

A Wyoming Two Step for Better Air Regulations

By Jon Goldstein / Published: July 10, 2014

Photo credit: G. Thomas at en.wikipedia

Wyoming is a national energy leader, producing more BTU’s from federal lands than every other state combined. It also has a long history of leading the nation on smart, sensible oil and gas air pollution regulations. The Cowboy State was among the first to require reduced emission completions (RECs or “green” completions) to control emissions from newly drilled oil and gas wells. It has also implemented some of the country’s best requirements to find and fix leaky oil and gas equipment.

The state now has an opportunity to continue this tradition by tightening controls on existing oil and gas pollution sources in the Upper Green River Basin. Draft rules recently released by the state show promise, and with key improvements–including expanded leak inspections and extending emission controls to compressor stations–these new requirements could again emphasize the state’s role as a national leader on oil and gas regulation. Read More »

Posted in Air Quality, General, Natural Gas, Wyoming / Read 1 Response