Benchmark Study on Green Buildings - Royal Architectural Institute ...

the rest of the SAI program is set to commence in 2007. It is anticipated that by 2015,
American solar power will provide 5-10 GW of new electric capacity (equivalent to the
amount of electricity needed to power 1-2 million homes) to the U.S. grid, avoid 10
million metric tons per year of CO 2 emissions, and employ 30,000 new workers in the PV
industry.
Incentive example for water conservation:
Various incentives also exist across the United States for conservation efforts concerning
other resources. The East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) of eastern San
Francisco offers a set of rebate programs to help and reward consumers for their water
efficiency and conservation efforts. These programs include rebates of between $50 and
$125 for the purchase and installation of certain efficient clothes washing machines, $125
for high-efficiency toilets (HETs), free water-saving showerheads and faucet aerators,
and rebates for any hardware change that will result in predictable water savings. The
‘hardware change’ rebate covers up to half the cost of the equipment leading to the
increased water efficiency. Any hardware change leading to water savings is eligible for
this rebate. The EBMUD water-conservation effort also provides free technical assistance
through informative workshops, on-site water surveys, water conservation studies, and
waterwise self-survey toolkits.
Clean Energy States Alliance (CESA):
Additionally, 14 states across the U.S. with established clean energy funds or programs
have banded together to promote clean energy technologies. The 14 states involved in
this initiative are Arizona, California, Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota,
New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Washington and
Wisconsin. These states are considered to be the most advanced in the country in terms of
green building and resource conservation initiatives, and make up The Clean Energy
States Alliance (CESA). CESA is a nonprofit organization comprised of members from
the aforementioned 14 states, 16 clean energy funds and two state agencies. It provides
information and technical services to its members and works with them to build and
expand clean energy markets in the United States. The CESA also collects and
disseminates information and analysis, conducts original research, and helps to
coordinate activities of the state funds. In the process of assisting the state funds, they
also hope to help other state officials, clean energy developers, and environmentalists
who share an interest in developing cleaner energy markets. In addition, the CESA hosts
a listserve for official representatives of state funds, issues a periodic e-newsletter about
state funds, writes case studies on actual projects funded by the states, and hosts
conferences to help the state fund officials develop their renewable energy programs. The
main objective of the CESA is to increase the quality and quantity of clean energy deals
to greatly expand the clean energy market in the United States. For a detailed listing of
American federal and state incentives for increased energy efficiency, look in the
Database of State Incentives for Renewable Energy (DSIRE) at http://www.dsireusa.org/.
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL):
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is the nation’s primary laboratory
for renewable energy and energy efficiency R&D. NREL is the principal research
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