Massachusetts Ranked #1 for Energy Efficiency

Thursday, October 22, 2015

GoLocalWorcester News Team

Massachusetts ranks #1 in the United states in new comprehensive review of the energy efficiency.

The analysis conducted by the American Council of Energy-Efficiency Economy reviewed a sweeping array of factors in each of the 50 states.

California ranked #2 Vermont ranked #3.

The poorest ranking states were Colorado #50 and North Dakota #51 (Washington DC was included in the ranking).

"The top 10 states for energy efficiency are Massachusetts, California, Vermont, Rhode Island, Oregon, Connecticut, Maryland, Washington, and New York, with Minnesota and Illinois tied for 10th place. Massachusetts retains the top spot for the fifth consecutive year based on a strong commitment to energy efficiency under its Green Communities Act," according to ACEEE.

"In California, requirements for reductions in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, major efforts to achieve energy efficiency in schools, and implementation of a cap-and-trade program earned the state several more points this year, putting it only a half-point behind Massachusetts in the state rankings."

According to the report, Massachusetts scored well for:

Public Buildings — Massachusetts has several green building programs targeted at state buildings. Executive Order 484 requires a reduction in overall energy consumption in state-owned and leased buildings (at which the state pays directly for energy) by 20% by fiscal year 2012 and 35% by 2020 (based on a fiscal year 2004 baseline). The executive order also states that all state agency new construction and major renovations over 20,000 sq. ft. must meet the MA LEED Plus green building standard and perform 20% better than the state energy code.

The Green Communities Act of 2008 mandates that new buildings owned or operated by the state must minimize their life-cycle costs by using energy efficiency and renewable energy.

Fleets — The Green Communities Act requires the state to purchase hybrid and alternative fuel vehicles in such numbers that 50% of the fleet is hybrid or Alternative Fuel Vehicles by 2017. It also requires development of a fuel efficiency standard for the state fleet, although that has not yet been developed. DOER and the Operational Services Division have developed a final draft fuel efficiency standard for the state's entire light duty fleet of more than 2,800 vehicles and are reviewing the draft with fleet managers before moving ahead with its release. The standard will be accompanied by an innovative calculator that will allow fleet managers to input desired vehicles and immediately see whether or not their acquisitions will meet the standard. Additionally, DOER will issue a detailed guidance document to help fleets understand and comply with the standard.

The current statewide vehicle contract has made an array of fuel efficient, hybrid and alternative fuel vehicles available for purchase by any state agency, campus, or municipality.

R & D — In 2014, the Mass. Clean Energy Center, in collaboration with DOER, launched the Mass. as First Customer Program, which aims to help young, innovative clean energy firms develop market and customers at public entities for their products, technologies and services. Working with DOER and DCAMM, the program has held 2 innovative technology vendor fairs, one targeted at all public agencies and one at public colleges and universities. Additionally, the Program is identifying a small subset of companies that have products ready to go to market and will work closely with state partners to identify potential host sites for both pilots and installations.

The above are verbatim from the report.

“Energy efficiency is the most cost effective, accessible way for Massachusetts to meet our clean energy goals and help ratepayers manage their energy costs. Being recognized for the fifth consecutive year by ACEEE as the nation’s leader in energy efficiency underlines the commitment Massachusetts has made to pursue a diversified energy portfolio and my administration is seeking more, renewable energy sources like hydro power to continue this important effort," said Charlie Baker, Governor of Massachusetts.

Massachusetts Ranked #1 for Energy Efficiency

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