Council on Environmental Quality Blog

Delivering Energy Savings to Taxpayers

It is no secret Americans everywhere are looking for more ways to save. From electricity bills to gas pumps, families and businesses are turning over more stones to save on their energy use. 

The Federal Government is no different. As the nation’s top energy consumer, there is great potential to deliver energy savings to taxpayers. Thankfully, there is a giant opportunity right in front of us: Commissioning.

As with ships, commissioning for new buildings is meant to assure that systems are properly installed and operate within specifications. Commissioning identifies and corrects such errors as fans installed backwards or wired to stay “always-on,” faulty equipment, and improperly programmed building energy systems. Properly done, commissioning includes training so building staff can provide high performance operation.

However, over time, building performance tends to drift. Building use can change, equipment can be altered, and new staff are not always fully trained.  Equipment may no longer operate within specifications; leaks may go unrepaired.  The result is that energy performance suffers, along with occupant comfort.  This can drive up energy costs and our bills. Without a quality-assurance process, problems may go unfixed for years and even decades.

Recommissioning (or retrocommissioning for a building not previously commissioned) can be thought of as a “tune-up” to restore and enhance building performance. Commissioning agents work with building operators to do this. Good recommissioning includes training so operators can keep buildings operating optimally long after the process.

And the savings offered are impressive. A Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory study of 643 buildings across 26 states found that commissioning led to median energy savings of 16 percent in existing buildings and 13 percent in new construction.

Most of this vast potential remains untapped – but change is coming. California and New York City both recently began including commissioning as part of their strategies to advance building efficiency, and the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 established commissioning as part of its Federal energy management goals and requirements.                                                                                                                                         

As the operator of more than 500,000 buildings covering 3.1 billion square feet, the Federal Government is leading by example here. But they cannot do it alone. Add in 5 million commercial buildings totaling 72 billion square feet and commissioning becomes a prime opportunity for business and government to come together to help Americans save money and power the economy forward.

Commissioning and other innovative ideas will be discussed at the upcoming 2012 GreenGov Symposium, which will focus on sharing ways to create jobs and save taxpayers money by making the Federal Government more sustainable and energy efficient.   

Kateri Callahan is President of the Alliance to Save Energy

USDA Drought Code Sprint: Giving Americans One-Click Access to Federal Drought Relief

Ed. note: This is cross-posted from the United States Department of Agriculture Blog

Americans across the country are feeling the impact of the most severe and extensive drought in the last 25 years. We’ve heard from people throughout the United States, asking how they can help. That’s why today we’re launching USDA’s first-ever Drought Code Sprint, a call to developers across the country to use publicly available government information to help farmers, ranchers, and others gain quick and reliable “one-click” access to information on drought conditions and Federal drought relief. Developers can submit their apps using this form by October 5. Some of the most innovative ones will be featured on USDA.gov.

Crops are withering as a result of this historic drought and feed for livestock is growing ever more scarce and expensive. None of us is immune—these conditions are affecting over 50% of the country and almost 80% of our agricultural land. But our rural communities and family farmers and ranchers are on the front lines, and have been the first to feel the drought’s full effects. They are working hard to overcome these hardships, and the Federal Government has stepped up to help.

Of course, apps can’t influence the weather or refill our reservoirs. But they can help farmers and ranchers become more easily aware of the kinds of assistance available to them, and they can simplify the process of taking advantage of these options so relief gets to the people who need it as efficiently as possible.

Some tools we’d love to see include apps that provide “one-click” access to the nearest USDA service centers and available drought programs; county-level drought disaster designations and program eligibility; information on Federal assistance available based on location and sector; types of loans or refinance options available with a handy repayment calculator and eligibility requirements; drought maps; and localized weather outlooks. These are just a few of our ideas but we’re confident that you have even better ones—so get coding!

To get started, check out these publicly available data sets in the Natural Hazards Data Community on Safety.Data.gov and on the USDA drought website:

• USDA Service Center Locator
• USDA Secretarial County Disaster Designations
• Monthly Crop Production Reports
• Weekly Crop Progress and Condition Reports
• Hay Stocks
• National Integrated Drought Information System

• National Water and Climate Center data including SNOwpack TELemetry Network (SNOTEL) and Soil Climate Analysis Network (SCAN)

We encourage developers to use other freely available resources on safety.data.gov or the USDA website as well—including Agriculture Weather and Drought Outlook blog posts and Drought Assistance Programs and Information sites—and any other data resources that would be helpful to those affected by the drought.

Here is a great opportunity to apply American ingenuity and technology to the cause of helping America’s farms. We look forward to seeing your ideas.

 Amanda Eamich is Director of Web Communications at the United States Department of Agriculture

Brian Forde is Senior Advisor to the U.S. Chief Technology Officer at the Office of Science and Technology Policy