Colorado Green Building Post

January 29, 2010

Clean Energy Week Feb 1-5 in Washington, DC

Filed under: Events — Tags: — uswx @ 5:17 pm

Washington, D.C., January 29, 2010 - Nearly 100 organizations in the renewable energy, energy efficiency and environmental arenas - representing hundreds of companies and tens of thousands of workers and citizens - are joining forces to turn February 1-5, 2010, into Clean Energy Week.

The week is focused on the national imperative to enact comprehensive clean energy policy - including climate solutions, renewable energy and energy efficiency programs - as a means of creating vast numbers of new jobs, ensuring U.S. global leadership in the emerging clean energy era, enhancing our security and preserving our planet for the generations to follow.

The organizers of Clean Energy Week assert that comprehensive clean energy policy will create good American jobs while making America a world leader in clean, healthy and safe energy production. They point to an analysis from the University of California at Berkeley, which found that the clean energy legislation adopted by the U.S. House of Representatives, the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES), could create up to 1.9 million jobs between its enactment and 2020.

In addition, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has found that ACES would reduce CO2 emissions by 1 billion metric tons in 2020 alone, the equivalent to taking 200 million cars off the road for one year.

http://www.cleanenergyweek.org/

Click here for a list of Clean Energy Week Events.
Highlighted Events:
Clean Energy Week Press Conference - Feb. 1st at 9:30am. The Clean Energy Week news conference will be webcast live in streaming video. Register in advance!
RETECH 2010
NASEO State Energy Policy and Technology Outlook Conference
Business Advocacy Day for Jobs, Climate & New Energy Leadership - Clean Economy Network and Ceres’ Business for Innovative Climate & Energy Policy.

Two Techs Summary from New York Times

Filed under: ARRA Stimulus, Case Studies, New — Tags: , , — uswx @ 5:00 am

Boulder has already changed its building codes to require that [electric] meters be installed on new rental properties and on rennovations…”most of the University of Colorado’s 20,000 students and many of the city’s poorer residents will remain meterless, because they tend to live in older rental apartment buildings. They don’t fall under the building code changes as long as they’re not remodeled. “That’s the problem, and you have to be very careful about finding the solution,” the mayor explained. “It’s all on the council’s agenda for next year.”

“Most nations of the world that signed Kyoto have found it difficult to make much of a dent in carbon emissions,” sighed Don Mock, another former member of the city council, who has a degree in atmospheric physics. “Boulder is just a microcosm of that universe.” Older houses in town, he explained, are either “popped,” expanded by adding on a new story, or “scraped,” bulldozed to make way for larger buildings, he explained.

Mock lives in a smaller, older home and buys electricity under a program that gives him 100 percent wind-generated power from Xcel. Recently, he applied for a home energy audit, a program subsidized by the the city with some of the $1.8 million it raises annually from the carbon tax. Technicians came with a blower that sucked air out of his front door, exposing a cavernous gap under his fireplace that lets in large drafts of cold air in the winter.

Delays in making energy efficiency improvements are another thing the City Council wants to fix. Mayor Appelbaum said it will follow up the house energy audits with a new program called “two techs in a truck.” The city will help pay for two trained technicians who can make needed repairs right away and as inexpensively as possible. “We’re trying to make this as easy as we possibly can.”

complete story

January 28, 2010

Engaging the Community in Energy Conservation with Zerofootprint

Filed under: Events — Tags: , — uswx @ 8:56 am

Boulder and Boulder County have partnered with Zerofootprint, a Toronto-based organization, that helps cities and individuals track, compare and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.

Zerofootprint’s ClimateSmart online carbon calculator and other tools can help you determine your own carbon footprint, and understand steps to reduce your score into the future. The tool permits groups and organizations to aggregate their efforts to participate in carbon reduction challenges, so business, schools and cities can compare their efforts to other groups.

You don’t have to be a Boulder resident to use Zerofootprint’s Personal Carbon Manager. They offer a range of tools for individuals and business, including a One Minute Calculator and Calculator Widget. There are also calculators and educational materials for children, youth and schools.

Commerical Retrofit Technology
Zerofootprint also sponsors the ZEROprize and the Re-Skinning Award to stimulate “market-disrupting” improvements in the design and development of retrofitting and re- skinning technologies (They use the term re-skinning as a shorthand for a holistic retrofit). These are the newly evolving technologies and building systems that improve the energy efficiency, sustainability, and livability of older buildings.

Energy management
Zerofootprint also developed a web-based software for large, multi-location organizations who must measure, manage, and report their environmental footprint. VELO facilitates data integration across operations while also automating the measurement, monitoring and modeling of an organization’s carbon emissions.

They have recently announced the TalkingPlug, a smart electrical outlet  that contains energy measurement instruments, on-off relays, appliance identification tags, and wireless networking technology. The TalkingPlug outlet serves as a wireless communication node on a building energy network. These nodes continuously send appliance-specific energy consumption data to a local gateway for data collection and storage. Zerofootprint is currently working with utility companies, appliance manufacturers and technology resellers to bring the product to market.

January 27, 2010

HUD Multifamiy Funding for Energy Efficiency

Filed under: Case Studies, Weatherizing and Retrofit — Tags: , — uswx @ 12:48 pm

Jonathan Rose Companies, a New York based developer of housing, including Elitch Highland Gardens in Denver, was awarded the first stimulus award for funding “green” apartment renovations in Harlem. The award- a $3.6 million federal housing loan is part of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) energy-efficiency renovations program for multifamily housing.

“I am very excited about this award,” said Congressman Rangel. “This renovation will not only create jobs, it will bring about a cleaner and more energy-efficient living environment, which will benefit our economy and our health. It will also serve as a national model for energy-efficient construction and preserving affordable housing.”

Nearly 200 apartments along 135th Street are the first to be renovated under a energy efficiency program funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The energy-efficient renovations, or “retrofits,” would lower utility costs by approximately 25% for the 135th Street Apartments, a 198-unit, 10 building, Section 8 assisted property in Central Harlem. Such savings will help maintain affordable living costs for Rose, whose firm last year signed a 15-year Section 8 contract extension with HUD.

“I am grateful to HUD for this loan from the Green Retrofit Program” said Jonathan Rose, CEO and Founder of Jonathan Rose Companies. “These funds, in conjunction with City financing, will allow the project to undertake a comprehensive green capital improvement program, improving energy efficiency and the quality of tenants’ lives.” 

Jonathan Rose Companies is a leading developer and advocate of green building, particularly for affordable housing. The project will provide numerous job opportunities for construction-related union positions, with HUD funding approximately half of the project’s renovation costs.

PROJECT DETAILS

Retrofits to the housing development will include EnergyStar refrigerators, replacement of 32 old boilers with 10 high-efficiency boilers, rooftop solar photovoltaic panels, formaldehyde-free kitchen cabinets, recycled-material kitchen counters, EnergyStar ceiling fans, compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) fixtures and bulbs, double-pane argon-filled low emissivity (low-e) windows, insulated exterior doors, low-flow fixtures, shower heads and toilets, linoleum flooring to replace vinyl tile, wood floor installations using Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)-certified wood, and non-toxic paints, adhesives and sealants throughout.

HUD’s Green Retrofit Program provides funds nationally to reduce energy costs, cut water consumption, and improve indoor air quality. It is designed to create thousands of green jobs across the country. Grants and loans provided through the program help owners of HUD-assisted housing projects hire workers to retrofit older developments with the next generation of energy efficient technologies

Boulder Sustainability Planning Kick-off Event Jan. 28

Filed under: New — Tags: , — uswx @ 11:46 am

To kick-off “Sustainable Boulder: Creating our Future,” three events have been planned that will begin in January and run through March.

The first event, “Sustainable Boulder: Challenges and Opportunities,” is co-sponsored with Boulder County, Boulder Valley School District, City of Boulder and the University of Colorado and will be held on:
Thursday, Jan. 28, 2010
5:30 to 7 p.m.
University Memorial Center on the CU Campus, Room 235
1669 Euclid Ave.

This will be an evening of “big picture” future trends that are shaping social, economic, and environmental sustainability. Questions from the audience will be encouraged. The event will be moderated by City of Boulder Mayor Susan Osborne. Three panelists will frame some of the larger planning and sustainability issues facing the nation and world today while providing some insight into how these issues might affect planning efforts in Boulder. The panelists include:

Josie Heath - Social Sustainability

Josie Heath has spent her life organizing and leading community organizations combating inequality and social injustices. In 1979, Heath was appointed by President Jimmy Carter as Denver regional director for ACTION, which was a federal agency for volunteer service.  She taught at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in 1991, and later served as the Assistant to the Director of the White House Office of National Service during the Clinton administration. Currently, Ms. Heath is the President of the Community Foundation serving Boulder Boulder County.

L. Hunter Lovins, Esq. - Environmental Sustainability

Hunter Lovins is the President of Natural Capitalism Solutions and co-creator of the Natural Capitalism concept. She is a worldwide recognized leader in helping communities and companies profit from more sustainable practices. She has authored and co-authored hundreds of papers and articles and numerous books, including the acclaimed Natural Capitalism in 1999 and more recently Transforming Industry in Asia, commissioned by UNIDO in 2009. She is also a founding Professor of Business at Presidio Graduate School.

Dr. Richard Wobbekind - Economic Sustainability

Dr. Wobbekind is an Associate Dean of the MBA and Executive Education programs at the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado, a preeminent economist and a member of Colorado Governor’s Revenue Estimating Advisory Committee. He brings years of experience in understanding local and national economic conditions and how those conditions affect our future economic outlook.

Download an  informational brochure that explains this event and two others that have been scheduled to kick-off the 2010 Major Update to the Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan.

Event #2 - Shaping Sustainability Workshop

Saturday, Feb. 27
9 to 11:30 a.m.
West Senior Center
909 Arapahoe Avenue

Interact with fellow residents and offer your input on the futre growth and development of the City of Boulder. Issues related to urban sustainability will be discussed and workshop activities will allow participants to explore questions associated with sustainable growth and development.

Bring the family! A break-out session designed especially for young people has been developed with Growing Up Boulder to encourage their input and involvement.

Please RSVP to BVCP@bouldercolorado.gov

The Shaping Sustainabiltiy Workshop is also a “Meeting-in-a-Box” for individual organizations, neighborhood groups, etc. to participate on their own. Please contact Julie Johnston at 303-441-1886 or johnstonj@bouldercolorado.gov This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to check out the “Meeting-in-a-Box” from Feb. 22 through March 5, 2010.

Event #3 - Values and PrioritiesWednesday, March 10, 2010
6 to 7:30 p.m.
West Senior Center
909 Arapahoe Avenue

City staff will report back to the public on the input gathered from the community. Participants will work in small groups to prioritize top areas of focus based on community values for presentation to City Council.

January 26, 2010

Efficiency First Colorado

Filed under: ARRA Stimulus, New — Tags: , — uswx @ 5:00 am

From Efficiency First Colorado:

 Have you been asking yourself how to get involved with “The New Green Economy”?  Are you interested in finding out more about what “Green” even means?  If you or someone you know is interested in anything to do with either of these or have other questions please join us.

 Efficiency First Colorado Chapter will hold our monthly meeting at RMEC:

When:          Thursday January 28th 2010

Meet & Greet’ starts at 5:00 pm and the meeting starts at 6:00 pm

 Where:  Red Rocks Community College
13300 West Sixth Avenue
Lakewood , CO 80228
RMEC Room 2696

http://www.rrcc.edu/rmec/

 FYI it is a big campus so make sure you park and enter at the west entrance.
We will be discussing energy audits, renewable energy, home performance contracting and the recent Home Star $9.6 Billion legislation going to home energy efficiency upgrades over the next 12-36 months.  We will also be discussing the recent formation of student chapters throughout Colorado and the involvement of student chapters in the ‘Living Communities’ project.
For additional information my contact info is below.
Stephen

 Stephen Michael Self

Sustainable Interiors
Post Office Box 20896
Boulder, CO 80308

 720.771.1708
SustainableInteriors@yahoo.com
www.SustainableInteriorsBoulder.com

January 25, 2010

Home Star: Overview and Call to Action

Filed under: ARRA Stimulus, New — Tags: , — uswx @ 11:36 am

Exclusive Webinar for Energy Efficiency Companies
Friday, January 29, 2009
12:00 to ~ 1:00 PM, EST

Please register by COB Jan 28th to receive call- and log-in info
For more information contact Patrick.Roche@csgrp.com

The Home Star program would create the first ever nation-wide rebate program for energy efficiency work and is included as a proposal in the larger jobs bill under development in the Senate. Home Star would direct billions of dollars to be spent in its first year alone on efficiency work. Home Star is not yet law, but with the help of energy efficiency business like yours, we can ensure that this game-changing legislation becomes reality. Join us for our webinar to discuss the details of the Home Star proposal, its effect on your business, and how you can help impact its passage. Industry experts will present our webinar and answer your questions.

Webinar agenda

  • Home Star goals, timing, and impact on efficiency industry
  • Overview of Silver Star and Gold Star incentives
  • Considerations for builders and raters
  • How your business can help pass Home Star
  • Q&A

 

List of speakers

  • Facilitator: Jared Asch, Director of Efficiency First
  • Larry Zarker, President of the Building Performance Institute
  • Matt Golden, President of ReCurve and Chairman of Efficiency First
  • Steve Cowell, Chairman and CEO of Conservation Services Group and Founder of the National SAVE Energy Coalition.

Steve Baden, Executive Director of RESNET
HOSTED BY
Efficiency First, BPI,
RESNET, National Save Energy Coalition

Buyers Want Energy Efficiency and Comfort

Filed under: Case Studies — Tags: — uswx @ 5:00 am

Debbie Arrington

Jan 21, 2010 The Sacramento Bee

Jan. 20, 2010 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) — What do Americans want in their next home? Smaller, greener, family-friendly space.

That’s according to a new study released today (Wednesday) by Better Homes and Gardens.

At the International Builders Show in Las Vegas, BHG’s Eliot Nusbaum presented the results of the magazine’s “Next Home Survey.” The nationwide survey of more than 2,300 potential home buyers and current home owners found their top concerns include price, energy-efficiency, organization and comfort.

“Not surprisingly, we continue to see a ‘cents and sensibility’ approach when it comes to buying or improving a home, with practicality and price being top priorities,” Nusbaum said. “Today’s homeowner is also looking for a home that fits the entire family — from a multitasking home office, to expanding storage space needs, to a living room that can adapt to advancements in home entertainment and technology.”

Some highlights:

- Continuing the “downsizing” trend, more consumers (36 percent in 2009 compared to 32 percent in 2008) expect their next home to be “somewhat smaller” or “much smaller.” A greener home will be a priority, with 87 percent planning to have high-efficiency heating/cooling in their next home and 86 percent planning to have high-efficiency appliances.

- Almost half (48 percent) say green building practices and materials will be “more important” when purchasing their next home.

- The home office is a priority as 59 percent of consumers plan to have one in their next house. Of those, only 28 percent want a separate dedicated home office space (compared with 64 percent in 2008), with one-third now wanting a more multi-purposed space, such as combined office/computer/hobby/craft/art room.

A well-organized home is key, with 66 percent of respondents making “no-space-wasted” design a top priority. Also on the wish list is a separate laundry room (85 percent); an outdoor grilling and living area (68 percent); a kitchen with eating area (67 percent); and an extra bedroom with bath (65 percent).

Nearly two-thirds consider a comfortable family gathering space to be top priority in the next home. Instead of a kitchen-dining room combination, they’d rather have a family room partially separated from the kitchen (42 percent vs. 27 percent in 2008).

Three-quarters of respondents say the economy has had an impact on their home-improvement plans, with half having changed their home-improvement plans during the last year. Smaller projects prove to be the most popular, such as painting a room (54 percent), replacing/adding flooring or carpeting (38 percent), decorating/redecorating a room (35 percent) and landscaping the yard (30 percent).

January 22, 2010

Down the Path to Zero in Green Bay

Filed under: Case Studies, Weatherizing and Retrofit — Tags: , — uswx @ 5:00 am

by Wm. Hurrle

The Situation
The city of Green Bay used its power of condemnation to create a vision corner at the entrance to its new University Heights Business park on Hwy 54. I took out our old , red barn. My work shop was in it, chickens and sheep, too. The turn lane into the ‘park’ added beside the highway cut down shielding trees and brought highway traffic damn near into the kitchen. Our 1897 brick farm house was doomed to be an orphan agricultural remnant in a sodium vapor lit, gravel-dusted ‘park’, acres covered with blank-sided steel boxes. Time to move on.

 Design goals for the new place

  • No mortgage, no bills, stay put. We are on the cusp of retirement’s limited cash flows, seldom robust at best. The city’s payout was enough to buy 2.5 A. of industrial farm field in the New Franken-Bay Settlement ‘hood’ we’ve had property in for decades.
  • Build a small farm’s house, a homestead like the old place, maybe a doomstead which fits the agricultural work of the area and our Northern Tier climate.
  • Peak oil is happening. The house has to be well down the path to zero (p2z) fossil carbon, has to anticipate the after culture, after the Oil Era. By 2050 the garage will be a stable and being C-neutral the law.
  • Balance energy demand and supply by system integrations. Conserve capital.
  • In turmoil attendant upon peak oil, the house may become a refuge for extended family. The spaces have to stretch to accommodate three family groups, to house enough people to work the gardens.
  • Keep it simple, green, easy to maintain and resilient.
  • Don’t overspend, do a lot of it myself (and still doing)
  • Go for the architecture of happiness, www.patternlanguage.com

Complete story at AffordableComfort.org

January 21, 2010

Boston Globe Profile on Steve Cowell + Cash for Caulkers

Filed under: ARRA Stimulus, Weatherizing and Retrofit — Tags: , , , — uswx @ 5:00 am

By Erin Ailworth, Globe Staff  |  January 1, 2010

Steve Cowell is leading Conservation Services Group, a Westborough, Mass nonprofit that helps make businesses and homes more energy efficient. He also is one of the key players hashing out a federal program to retrofit and weatherize homes. Called HOME STAR, the energy-saving effort is more commonly known by the nickname “Cash for Caulkers,” a play on Cash for Clunkers, last summer’s federal rebate program for car buyers. HOME STAR is meant to cut the nation’s carbon footprint, and employ 250,000 workers this year to retrofit US homes to be more energy efficient.

 Full article

Older Posts »

Powered by WordPress