Energy Efficiency - November 17, 2011

Roles Government Plays

Bringing technology down to earth: The DOE and NASA “…are collaborating on technologies and processes for what they say could become the ‘greenest’ and highest-performing building in the federal government by using technologies developed for space,” according to a DOE article.

Encouragement: Lend Lease, a property management company, has reportedly responded to the Obama Administration’s “Better Buildings” challenge. According to builderonline.com, it plans to reduce energy use of the military housing projects it manages by at least 20%.

Expanding in clean energy: According to Pew Charitable Trusts, the Department of Defense has increased its investments in clean energy by 300% from 2008 to 2009.

Helping Wal-Mart: Thanks to some help from the DOE’s Building Technologies program and the Retailer Energy Alliance, Wal-Mart’s parking lot lighting is better and now uses LEDs.

Pioneering: The General Services Administration, the government’s operating arm in terms of buildings, performed a study to evaluate whether green-building practices pay off. The study took place over the past four years and was performed first on 12 and then on 22 buildings.

Study on solar schools: A new report on financing options for K-12 solar schools was released last month. Below: A graphic from the report.

Supporting cutting-edge research: 60 research initiatives under ARPA-E, the DOE’s Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy, were recently funded. The 29 awards, covering biofuels, thermal storage, grid controls and solar electronics, totaled $156 million, according to the DOE.

Wind turbine research: A newly constructed research station into wind-turbine efficiency is now operating at the University of Minnesota thanks to stimulus funding.