American states get report card on energy efficiency
Portland, Ore., September 15, 2010 — Energy Resource Management, an energy efficiency finance company, announces the publication of a research report in collaboration with the U.S. Center for American Progress in Washington, D.C.
The report, titled "Efficiency Works: Creating Good Jobs and New Markets Through Energy Efficiency" notes the top 10 U.S. states leading in the creation of energy efficiency-fueled jobs and industries and provides a report card on innovative state energy policies.
The states profiled are leaders in creating energy efficiency programs that work as effective partnerships between regulatory agencies, utilities, commercial and residential building owners, large campus owners and private capital investors.
The top states recognized for promoting energy efficiency are: Connecticut, New York, California, Texas, Maryland, North Carolina, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Ohio.
A near term solution to cutting dependence on foreign oil and coal, the states recognized in this report are aggressively addressing the needs of customers and investors in their markets.
The report argues the need for innovative financial tools that can have a transformational impact on the energy efficiency opportunity while creating jobs immediately. Included in the report are suggestions and highlights to drive new business investment through energy efficiency retrofits and clean energy.
"Energy efficiency is the true stimulus that America's economy needs: good jobs, higher productivity, lower carbon emissions and energy security all rolled into one," notes Curtis Robinhold, CEO of Energy Resource Management. "These states and policies start to make it very attractive for the largest building owners in the commercial and government sectors to implement financially beneficial energy efficiency upgrades to their real estate portfolios — turning their real estate into energy resources."
Bill Campbell, chairman of EnergyRM, and co-author of the report, notes, "Energy efficiency is the lowest cost delivery of the highest quality real energy in the world. Putting efficiency to work will require thousands of new engineering and construction jobs right away. We can create these jobs — and enhance job security and national energy security — starting today."
The report applauds the states that are able to create sustainable energy efficiency models and driving employment by doing the right thing and doing it profitably. The premise is that to be a sustainable nation we must create public-private partnerships between government and non-government entities, private business and public citizens.
· The most progress has been made in California estimated to create nearly 18,000 new jobs in the next two years as a result of energy efficiency-related initiatives), New England (the best at coordinating adjacent states' conservation efforts), the Mid-Atlantic region and New York.
· The unemployment rate in the construction industry remained at nearly 25 percent for three straight months by 2010. The implications of collapsing demand in construction are devastating. A national focus on retrofitting American homes, commercial buildings and campuses will be led by public policy shifts and investment from the private sector to be sustainable and scalable.
· Government policy shapes the overall market and underlying costs of delivering energy to consumers. The report outlines 10 policies that are effectively used in states and can have significant impact in shaping the market for energy efficiency.
· It is imperative that we embrace a national program to retrofit America's homes, offices and factories for energy efficiency. It will likely take public policy leadership to mobilize the private sector investment needed to grow this emerging market.
· Innovative approaches can create new opportunities for unbundled utilities to meet their energy efficiency targets within a structure that assures ratepayers of delivery of permanent demand reduction.
· By all accounts, utilities are not incentivized to make energy efficiency work. A misalignment of priorities, incentives, public policy and consumer demand is often credited for the low levels of commitment to energy efficiency within energy markets.
· There is a real need to educate and engage consumers, policy leaders, utilities and private investors in the solving the energy crisis and defining the consequences for ignoring or misappropriating efforts in this area.
The report identifies the leading states where smart policies are poised to set the stage for clean energy jobs and the businesses that will serve increased energy demands.
By detailing state regulations and incentives critical in determining which markets are best poised for new investment to support their ongoing initiatives, the report supports the need for U.S. competitiveness and reduced dependence on foreign oil.
Researchers examined key market drivers and policies to determine where energy efficiency retrofit programs generate the most value, particularly in the underserved commercial building market segment.
The research looked at 10 policies that catalyze the creation of energy efficiency fueled industries and jobs. These 10 states and these 10 policies are critical enablers for the launch of energy efficiency markets.
EnergyRM is a financial services company focused on providing financial solutions for energy-related investments in large buildings. A part of the Equilibrium Capital Group team of companies, EnergyRM deploys capital through business structures that make existing buildings more energy efficient at no capital cost to the building owner, and keeps the efficiency building operating at design efficiency for the long term.
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Scott's Contracting
scottscontracting@gmail.com
http://www.stlouisrenewableenergy.blogspot.com
http://www.stlouisrenewableenergy.com
scotty@stlouisrenewableenergy.com
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