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ACEEE 1996 Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings: profiting from energy efficiency
Energy Policy,Vol. 25, No. 5, pp. 541-542, 1997
ELSEVIER
© 1997 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd Printed in Great Britain. All rights reserved 0301-42L5/97 $17.00 + 0.00
PII:S0301-4215(96)00024-4
Conference report ACEEE 1996 Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings: profiting from energy efficiency Howard Geller Executive Director, American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, USA
Every two years, the American Council for an EnergyEfficient Economy (ACEEE) organizes the premier conference on energy efficiency in buildings held in North America. The conference, known as the ACEEE Summer Study, brings together a diverse group of energy professionals from utilities, universities, national laboratories, private industry, public interest groups, and government agencies. About 600 people attended the ninth Summer Study which took place on August 25-31, 1996 in Pacific Grove, CA. While most of the participants are from North America, energy efficiencyexperts from Europe and other regions also attended the conference. The Summer Study features presentations on the latest developments in energy-efficient technologies for residential and commercial buildings, conservation program design, implementation and evaluation, utility and environmental issues, human behavior, and building industry trends. Approximately 250 peer-reviewed papers were presented at the conference and are contained in a ten-volume proceedings, which is now available in either paper or CD-ROM format (see ordering instructions at end of paper). The Summer Study also features informal discussions on topics of interest to participants. Many of these papers and discussions addressed the theme of the 1996 conference - 'Profiting from Energy Efficiency'. The status of utility demand-side management (DSM) efforts in North America was prominently featured at the 1996 Summer Study. Participants reported in informal sessions on recent developments in regulatory and legislative debates on utility restructuring at the state level. Of particular interest was news of approval of non-bypassable 'wires charges' to continue the funding of utility DSM and other public benefits programs in California and New England, two regions where utilities have been particularly active in DSM. This news brought a sense of relief and optimism to the conference, as the DSM field has faced budget cuts and uncertainty concerning its future while restructuring was debated. Papers related to DSM and utility issues presented at the
Summer Study and contained in the proceedings include: reviews of different proposals to continue utility energy efficiency programs in a restructured utility industry; new directions in DSM program design; the design of and results from DSM programs that attempt to recover a larger fraction of costs from program participants; alternative sources of financing for DSM programs; and the future for integrated resource planning as traditional utility functions are unbundled. In addition, the proceedings contains evaluations of approximately 30 different utility DSM programs in North America. Despite cuts in utility DSM programs in North America, private sector energy efficiency efforts are on the increase. The 1996 Summer Study included many papers related to energy efficiency markets and energy service companies (ESCOs) including: trends in the ESCO industry in the US and Canada; measurement and verification of energy savings; results from utility demand-side bidding programs; progress in the use of performance contracting to retrofit federal buildings, and performance contracting for improving new commercial buildings. One paper included survey results showing that the ESCO industry in the US has been growing about 25"/0per year. Achieving lasting change in end-use energy efficiency (socalled market transformation) has become a hot topic in the energy efficiency field. The 1996 Summer Study included numerous presentations and papers on this topic, including reviews of market transformation efforts for gas furnaces, refrigerators, clothes washers, compact fluorescent lamps, office equipment, windows, and manufactured housing. These papers show that concerted efforts to increase the efficiency of certain products or building types have been effective in some parts of the US. Increasing energy efficiency in government buildings was another area that received considerable attention at the 1996 Summer Study. The proceedings includes papers on changing government purchasing practices; changing the behavior
542
Conferencereport
of facility managers; using building monitoring and operational modifications to achieve energy savings; alternative financing strategies for retrofitting federal buildings; and projects for conserving both energy and water. These papers show that federal and state agencies in the US have finally begun to upgrade energy efficiency on a wide scale. The ACEEE Summer Study always turns up some surprises, and the 1996 Summer Study was no exception. On the positive side, for example, the Texas LoanSTAR program continues to produce actual energy savings in state and local buildings far above the savings predicted in energy audits. The high level of savings results from a combination of retrofit measures, operational improvements, and continuous monitoring of energy use. This stellar program was given an ACEEE 'Champion of Energy Efficiency Award' during the Summer Study. Unfortunately, not all energy efficiency efforts are this successful. Among the problems discussed at the Summer Study, researchers reported on a field study showing that power-managed personal computers are not providing
nearly as much energy savings as expected due to limited enabling of energy-saving features and other problems. These are just two of the many 'real world experiences' reported on at the 1996 Summer Study. On the international front, the 1996 Summer Study proceedings contains papers on energy efficiency efforts in Asia, Bahrain, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Ghana, Jamaica, Japan, Kyrghyzstan, Russia and Western Europe. Some of these papers report on energy efficiency 'success stories' that could be replicated elsewhere. Printed sets of the Proceedings of the 1996 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings (10 volumes plus index) are available for $220 (includes postage within US). A CD-ROM containing the Proceedings of the 1996 AND 1994 ACEEE Summer Studies on Energy Efficiency in Buildings is available for $165. Send orders to: ACEEE Publications, 1001 Connecticut Ave., N.W., Suite 801, Washington, DC, 20036. Tel: (202) 429-8873; Fax: (202) 429-2248; Email:[email protected]
ELSEVIER
© 1997 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd Printed in Great Britain. All rights reserved 0301-42L5/97 $17.00 + 0.00
PII:S0301-4215(96)00024-4
Conference report ACEEE 1996 Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings: profiting from energy efficiency Howard Geller Executive Director, American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, USA
Every two years, the American Council for an EnergyEfficient Economy (ACEEE) organizes the premier conference on energy efficiency in buildings held in North America. The conference, known as the ACEEE Summer Study, brings together a diverse group of energy professionals from utilities, universities, national laboratories, private industry, public interest groups, and government agencies. About 600 people attended the ninth Summer Study which took place on August 25-31, 1996 in Pacific Grove, CA. While most of the participants are from North America, energy efficiencyexperts from Europe and other regions also attended the conference. The Summer Study features presentations on the latest developments in energy-efficient technologies for residential and commercial buildings, conservation program design, implementation and evaluation, utility and environmental issues, human behavior, and building industry trends. Approximately 250 peer-reviewed papers were presented at the conference and are contained in a ten-volume proceedings, which is now available in either paper or CD-ROM format (see ordering instructions at end of paper). The Summer Study also features informal discussions on topics of interest to participants. Many of these papers and discussions addressed the theme of the 1996 conference - 'Profiting from Energy Efficiency'. The status of utility demand-side management (DSM) efforts in North America was prominently featured at the 1996 Summer Study. Participants reported in informal sessions on recent developments in regulatory and legislative debates on utility restructuring at the state level. Of particular interest was news of approval of non-bypassable 'wires charges' to continue the funding of utility DSM and other public benefits programs in California and New England, two regions where utilities have been particularly active in DSM. This news brought a sense of relief and optimism to the conference, as the DSM field has faced budget cuts and uncertainty concerning its future while restructuring was debated. Papers related to DSM and utility issues presented at the
Summer Study and contained in the proceedings include: reviews of different proposals to continue utility energy efficiency programs in a restructured utility industry; new directions in DSM program design; the design of and results from DSM programs that attempt to recover a larger fraction of costs from program participants; alternative sources of financing for DSM programs; and the future for integrated resource planning as traditional utility functions are unbundled. In addition, the proceedings contains evaluations of approximately 30 different utility DSM programs in North America. Despite cuts in utility DSM programs in North America, private sector energy efficiency efforts are on the increase. The 1996 Summer Study included many papers related to energy efficiency markets and energy service companies (ESCOs) including: trends in the ESCO industry in the US and Canada; measurement and verification of energy savings; results from utility demand-side bidding programs; progress in the use of performance contracting to retrofit federal buildings, and performance contracting for improving new commercial buildings. One paper included survey results showing that the ESCO industry in the US has been growing about 25"/0per year. Achieving lasting change in end-use energy efficiency (socalled market transformation) has become a hot topic in the energy efficiency field. The 1996 Summer Study included numerous presentations and papers on this topic, including reviews of market transformation efforts for gas furnaces, refrigerators, clothes washers, compact fluorescent lamps, office equipment, windows, and manufactured housing. These papers show that concerted efforts to increase the efficiency of certain products or building types have been effective in some parts of the US. Increasing energy efficiency in government buildings was another area that received considerable attention at the 1996 Summer Study. The proceedings includes papers on changing government purchasing practices; changing the behavior
542
Conferencereport
of facility managers; using building monitoring and operational modifications to achieve energy savings; alternative financing strategies for retrofitting federal buildings; and projects for conserving both energy and water. These papers show that federal and state agencies in the US have finally begun to upgrade energy efficiency on a wide scale. The ACEEE Summer Study always turns up some surprises, and the 1996 Summer Study was no exception. On the positive side, for example, the Texas LoanSTAR program continues to produce actual energy savings in state and local buildings far above the savings predicted in energy audits. The high level of savings results from a combination of retrofit measures, operational improvements, and continuous monitoring of energy use. This stellar program was given an ACEEE 'Champion of Energy Efficiency Award' during the Summer Study. Unfortunately, not all energy efficiency efforts are this successful. Among the problems discussed at the Summer Study, researchers reported on a field study showing that power-managed personal computers are not providing
nearly as much energy savings as expected due to limited enabling of energy-saving features and other problems. These are just two of the many 'real world experiences' reported on at the 1996 Summer Study. On the international front, the 1996 Summer Study proceedings contains papers on energy efficiency efforts in Asia, Bahrain, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Ghana, Jamaica, Japan, Kyrghyzstan, Russia and Western Europe. Some of these papers report on energy efficiency 'success stories' that could be replicated elsewhere. Printed sets of the Proceedings of the 1996 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings (10 volumes plus index) are available for $220 (includes postage within US). A CD-ROM containing the Proceedings of the 1996 AND 1994 ACEEE Summer Studies on Energy Efficiency in Buildings is available for $165. Send orders to: ACEEE Publications, 1001 Connecticut Ave., N.W., Suite 801, Washington, DC, 20036. Tel: (202) 429-8873; Fax: (202) 429-2248; Email:[email protected]