New IREC Report Identifies Strategies for Permitting Solar Rooftops

The Interstate Renewable Energy Council, Inc. (IREC) today released Sharing Success - Emerging Approaches to Efficient Rooftop Solar Permitting, a new report that outlines innovative strategies being implemented across the United States to help increase the efficiency of permitting procedures for rooftop solar systems.  The report aims to serve as both a vehicle for discussion of permitting challenges, and as a source of inspiration for communities looking for realistic and effective ways to improve solar permitting while ensuring safe solar installations.

"IREC has been a leading resource for city and county building officials by providing field inspection guidelines and workshops," said Jane Weissman, IREC's Executive Director.  "The Sharing Success report becomes another valuable tool to help jurisdictions ensure safe solar installations in their community."

Sky Stanfield, Erica Schroeder and Thad Culley of Keyes, Fox & Wiedman LLP prepared the Sharing Success report after extensive one-on-one conversations with cities and counties regarding their permitting processes and the specific improvements they were putting in place. "As we spoke with city and county staff and solar installers, we came to appreciate the need to develop methods that would result in efficiency improvements for both entities," said Sky Stanfield, lead author of the report. "We found that communities are identifying permitting improvements that can save time for everyone involved."

IREC found that the dramatic increase in the volume of solar applications is placing a burden on local permitting agencies. As a result, the desire for increased efficiency comes not only from solar installers but also from municipal staff. 

Energy Efficiency for Commercial Buildings in Focus

The Existing Commercial Buildings Working Group of the State and Local Energy Efficiency Action Network (SEE Action) has developed best practice recommendations to improve energy efficiency in public and private commercial buildings through whole-building approaches. These best practices can save energy, save money, and create jobs. For example, retro-commissioning offers 10% to 30% energy savings, dollar savings of 2 to 10 times the cost, and can add up to millions of dollars saved across a building portfolio. Retro-commissioning programs create an estimated 5 to 15 green jobs per $1 million invested. SEE Action fact sheets are available on:

• Energy benchmarking to measure the energy performance of buildings, improve information transparency in the market, and identify good candidates for energy audits and upgrades.
• Strategic energy management to reduce upgrade costs across a portfolio of facilities and institutionalize practices to sustain long-term savings.
• Retro-commissioning to “tune up” a building’s equipment to increase efficiency without a major capital investment.
• High performance leasing to overcome the “split incentive” problem faced by tenants and property owners by incorporating energy efficiency benefit- and cost-sharing practices into lease terms.

About SEE Action

SEE Action is a state- and local-led effort to achieve all cost-effective energy efficiency by 2020. Facilitated by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), SEE Action offers knowledge, resources, and technical assistance to state and local decision makers as they advance energy efficiency policies and programs in their jurisdictions.

Solar Leasing and Solar as a Revenue Generator for Local Governments

ICLEI’s partner, The Solar Foundation, has released two new fact sheets for local governments:

• Leasing Municipal and Private Property for Solar: Key Steps and Considerations (pdf)
  The resource provides readers with general guidance on how to unlock the revenue potential of idle property by leasing land and roof space for solar development.
  
  
• Solar as a Revenue Generator for Local Governments: (pdf)
  This resource demonstrates how cities and counties across the nation have leveraged solar for their fiscal benefit.
  

The Solar Foundation created these as part of its efforts under the Solar Outreach Partnership, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s SunShot Initiative. As a member of this partnership, The Solar Foundation helps provide information and technical expertise to local governments interested in implementing solar programs and policies.

The More Local the Energy, the More Valuable

John Farrell at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance posted this great chart on their website that is worth reposting for ICLEI members. John's take-home: Local ownership of a wind project accounts for half of its lifetime economic value to the community!

Sustainable Funding for Local Energy Efficiency Initiatives

The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), has released a new research report titled, "Keeping It in the Community: Sustainable Funding for Local Energy Efficiency Initiatives." Here's a quick summary of the report:

Initial investments have already been made by thousands of local governments in energy efficiency projects, programs, policies, and expanding staff capacity, but most federal funds that have supported these efforts are expiring. Some communities have considered or adopted sustainable funding mechanisms for their energy efficiency investments. These efforts provide important examples for other communities hoping to sustain funding for their efficiency efforts.

This report describes several of these local funding options and provides examples where each has been adopted. Options discussed include utility partnerships; licensing, service, or waste fees; energy or carbon taxes; systems benefit funds; bonds; and options to capture the value created by avoided energy costs to create self-sustaining funds through revolving loan funds or other mechanisms. Additional items discussed include leadership and management practices that have made the establishment and continuation of these funding mechanisms viable, such as champions, issue framing, dedicated staff, performance benchmarking, and measurement and verification. 

Download Now (free registration require)

Sustainable Cities Making Headlines This Week

It's been a action-packed week for sustainable cities, who are making headlines with their innovative initiatives and success stories.

• Cincinnati Becomes First Major City to Offer 100% Green Electricity to Residents

• Houston Mayor Annise Parker Launches Public Bike Share Program

• NYC Takes the Red Tape Out of Building Green

• Manhattan Beach, CA, Wins Water Conservation Challenge

• Killer tornadoes: 2 Resilient Cities 1 Year Later in Joplin and Tuscaloosa

• Jim Johnston: Assessing sustainability in Springfield, IL

• NYC Rides Green Wave to Clean Up Stormwater

• Houston Mayor Parker Announces Green Office Challenge Winners

• Bellingham, WA, Recycles Toilets into Sidewalks

• Portland City Council Unanimously Adopts the Portland Plan

Talking Climate Change and Cities on "Fire It Up with CJ" Radio Show

Listen as ICLEI's Monica Gilchrist chats with radio host CJ Liu of "Fire It Up With CJ" about the opportunities and success stories of local governments in addressing climate change, saving energy, and creating healthier, more prosperous communities in the process.

Listen Now

In the second half of the show, Keya Chatterjee of the World Wildlife Fund talks about the Earth Hour City Challenge, and how cities can get involved in this challenge program to fight climate change and expand local renewable energy sources.

Listen Now

Houston Mayor Parker Announces Green Office Challenge Winners

City of Houston Creates Largest Challenge in U.S.

Mayor Annise Parker (right) congratulates members of Smith and Associates Green
Team, which took home the Overall Winner honors for "Greatest Implementation of
Green Building Innovations." Photo credit: Richard J. Carson

The City of Houston, in partnership with ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability, the Clinton Climate Initiative and over 25 Houston nonprofits, announced the winners of the City’s first annual Green Office Challenge on Wednesday, April 18, 2012. The Houston Green Office Challenge officially began January 1, 2011 becoming the nation’s largest.

Since that time, the City of Houston has provided training opportunities and other resources, including financial incentives, to assist office building owners, property managers, management districts and tenants to increase their environmental and economic performance in the areas of energy conservation, waste reduction, water efficiency, cleaner transportation choices and property management/tenant engagement.

“The Green Office Challenge has been a success because of community commitment,” said Mayor Annise Parker. “More than 375 buildings and tenants participated representing approximately 75 million square feet.” In just the last year, with 176 buildings achieving LEED status, Houston rose from number seven to number four in the nation with the most LEED certified buildings and is quickly closing in on a top three spot. 

The Top Three Reasons Rio+20 Will Change the World

Vote for Maggie to be the official blogger for World Environment Day in Rio! Click “Vote Now” on the UNEP website below her picture or at the end of the blog and enter the security code. Please share with friends and colleagues! Voting ends April 30.

Though two months away, the UN Conference on Sustainable Development’s Earth Summit, better known as Rio+20, has already been labeled vital, momentous and historic. And while delegates, students and activists have yet to arrive in Brazil, we already know that Rio+20 has the potential to be a “big deal.”

It all begs the question, can the people engaging in Rio+20, in-person or remotely, really change the world?  My sage and inspiration for answering this question is Margaret Mead who said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”

Simply, Rio+20 is about being part of that thoughtful group committed to "getting it right" for future generations.  The outcome and commitments of the Conference will affect us all, from the farmer in Iowa to the IT specialist in India, and whether you attend the conference or not, your voice can and needs to be heard.

Submit Feedback on the Draft California Climate Change Adaptation Policy Guide

The California Natural Resources Agency, in partnership with the California Emergency Management Agency and with support from California Polytechnic State University – San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly), are developing an Adaptation Policy Guide (APG) to provide a decision‐making framework intended for use by local and regional stakeholders to aid in the interpretation of climate science and to develop a systematic rationale for reducing risks caused, or exacerbated, by climate change. The APG is not intended to provide a prescriptive set of strategies. Instead, it will provide a framework to guide decision makers through the critical considerations necessary for adaptation policy development.

Public Review Draft

Public comments on the Draft APG are being sought, and the document is now available for public review. To view the Draft APG, please choose the link below:

. The Draft APG will then be revised and finalized for release by the end of June 2012. Please visit this web page soon for updates.