5. develop an energy management plan, 6. consider funding options, 7. evaluate progress, and 8. recognize achievements and spread the word

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1 Improving Energy Efficiency in County Buildings Introduction According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency s (EPA) ENERGY STAR program, buildings use $200 billion in electricity and natural gas each year. Energy use in commercial buildings and industrial facilities is responsible for approximately 50 percent of U.S. carbon dioxide emissions. The good news is that the opportunity to reduce these emissions is significant, since as much as 30 percent of the energy consumed in commercial buildings is often used unnecessarily or inefficiently. Any county, regardless of its size or location, can take action to improve its energy use. This guide aims to assist counties looking to improve the energy efficiency of their facilities especially those that may be short of resources and time because the information and tools outlined below are cost-free. It will inform elected county officials and staff how to set and meet energy efficiency goals, which can help save taxpayer dollars and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The National Association of Counties (NACo) encourages every county to use NACo assistance to establish an ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager account. Portfolio Manger is an interactive energy management tool that allows you to track and assess energy and water consumption across your entire portfolio of buildings in a secure online environment. ENERGY STAR partners are committed to improving building energy performance and setting an example for other sectors of their community, including residents. NACo also promotes the ENERGY STAR Challenge, which encourages Americans to improve their energy efficiency by 10 percent or more (more information provided below). This guide for energy efficiency in county facilities, based on EPA s Guidelines for Energy Management, will lead counties through detailed steps and resources to increase energy efficiency of county buildings. Steps include: 1. commit to improving building energy performance, 2. evaluate current performance, 3. assess energy efficiency in new projects, 4. set goals, 5. develop an energy management plan, 6. consider funding options, 7. evaluate progress, and 8. recognize achievements and spread the word Commit to Improving Building Energy Performance No matter the size or composition of a county, the common element of successful energy management is commitment by the elected county officials and the county staff. Sign up for the ENERGY STAR Challenge. The ENERGY STAR Challenge is a national call-to-action to improve the energy efficiency of America s commercial and industrial buildings by 10 percent or more. Challenge participants and their members are encouraged to take as many of these actions as possible: zdesign commercial buildings to be energy efficient, zmeasure and track energy use, zdevelop a plan for energy improvements, zmake energy efficiency upgrades, zhelp spread the energy efficiency word to others, and zbecome an ENERGY STAR partner. Each of the nation s 3,066 counties has the opportunity to play a vital, dual role in the Challenge - leading by example by improving their own buildings, and leveraging their relationships with private sector organizations to motivate them to make energy efficiency improvements as well. Fifty-five counties are currently participating. Contact Kelly Zonderwyk at kzonderwyk@naco.org or to sign up today. Become an ENERGY STAR partner. This partnership demonstrates a commitment by the county to continuous improvement in the energy efficiency of county facilities. ENERGY STAR partners agree to zmeasure, track, and benchmark energy performance, zdevelop and implement a plan to improve energy performance, adopting the ENER- GY STAR strategy, zeducate staff and the public about partnership and achievements with ENERGY STAR, and zsupport the ENERGY STAR Challenge. Go to to receive information about joining and to download the partnership letter. Another benefit of

2 partnership is the ability to use the ENERGY STAR logo on county promotional materials, as well as access to other marketing materials. Spread the word. After making the commitment to energy efficiency, the county can issue a press release to inform others of its goal. This will help the county set an example for businesses and residents. It will also show the county in a positive light, trying to do something that will help the environment and save residents money. NACo can assist counties with local press releases. Contact the NACo media relations department at A sample news release can also be found by going to and clicking on Use the Challenge Toolkit, then scroll down and click Sample News Release. Appoint an energy leader and team. To make the implementation of the energy conservation program go more smoothly, appoint an Energy Team to oversee the process. This team can help develop an energy management plan, track the energy use of county buildings, educate staff, advise county officials on potential energy investments and savings, and carry out energy efficiency projects and upgrades. For more information on forming an energy team, visit Then, click Make a Commitment and Establish an Energy County Case Study: San Miguel County, Colorado Population: 7,213 County Seat: Telluride San Miguel County formed the New Community Coalition with the towns of Telluride and Mountain Village to create an energy initiative, part of which dealt with energy efficiency and green building. The county assigned a working group to each area and these group meetings are left open to the public in order to allow input and suggestions. The county has also set goals and written a detailed plan for each area, outlining how the county intends to reach each goal. For example, the county set an objective to decrease climate change by reducing carbon emissions. It then outlined Team. Also view NACo s Green Government Initiative fact sheet Creating a County Green Team by visiting and clicking on Green Government Publications and Presentations. Evaluate Current Performance After making the commitment for improvement, evaluate current energy use to see where changes are needed most. Benchmark county buildings. Benchmarking explains the process by which a county can compare the energy performance of its facilities to each other, to similar building types across the country, and to the same facility over a period of time. NACo offers free assistance in creating an ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager account to benchmark these buildings. Portfolio Manager is a cost-free interactive energy management tool that allows counties to track and assess energy and water consumption across an entire portfolio of buildings in a secure online environment. It can help set investment priorities, identify under-performing buildings, and verify efficiency improvements. Buildings that receive a 75 or better in Portfolio Manager are eligible to earn the ENERGY STAR for superior energy performance. In addition to financial savings, Portfolio Manager also allows counties to track reductions in carbon dioxide emissions. For more information about Portfolio Manager, several strategies to achieve this, including educational programs, monitoring systems, partnerships with businesses and local governments to set energy use reduction goals as well. The county then summarized their accomplishments, creating a list to show progress. Using this, it created goals and a plan of action for both the immediate future (end of 2007 through 2008) and for a few years in advance ( ). Examples of short term goals included compiling information on lighting upgrades for public buildings and installing a public-access bio-diesel fuel pump. Longer-term goals included holding training sessions for architects and builders and completing two renewable energy projects in the region. visit New users can click Register to open a new account and existing users can log in using the fields on the right hand side. This area of the website also offers a tour of Portfolio Manager. Additionally, contact NACo to learn how to collect electronic energy data from utility bills and submit them. For more information, Kelly Zonderwyk at kzonderwyk@naco.org. Research. The ENERGY STAR website offers tips for improving energy efficiency and cutting costs. Visit for more information on the different ENERGY STAR qualified products and practices that can help improve energy performance. Through NACo s Green Government Initiative, counties can search the Green Government Database to find policies, plans, resolutions, staff descriptions, and more that other counties across the nation have implemented. The search can be customized to certain areas ranging from green building, energy efficiency and renewable energy, land use, and staff resources, among several others. This information is available at NACo also offers several Green Government fact sheets with information on saving energy and money. These can be viewed by going to org and clicking on the Green Government Publications and Presentations link. Some Green Government fact sheets relevant to implementing energy efficiency in county facilities include: zgeothermal Energy in County Facilities, zcreating a County Green Team, and zenergy Efficiency Lighting in County Facilities.

3 Assess Energy Efficiency in New Projects In addition to increasing the energy efficiency of existing buildings, it is also important for counties to assess these factors in proposed new projects. Set an energy performance target for new buildings. Choose an energy use intensity goal for new projects. This can mean building with the intention of earning the ENERGY STAR or simply deciding on desired energy use intensity for the facility. Use EPA s Target Finder to set aggressive, realistic energy targets for new county facilities. For more information on setting an energy performance target, visit and click on Integrated Design Guidance. Evaluate potential projects. Target Finder can also be used to rate a building design s estimated energy use, based on the same energy performance rating used in Portfolio Manager. To use this tool, visit and click Set Energy Targets and Rate Design Energy: Target Finder. County Case Study: Blue Earth County, Minnesota Population: 58,030 County Seat: Mankato Blue Earth County has worked hard to incorporate energy efficient building practices into both its new and existing facilities. The Blue Earth County Courthouse and Government Center was awarded the ENERGY STAR in both 2006 and 2007, labeling it as among top 25 percent of energy efficient buildings in the U.S. In order to achieve this recognition, Blue Earth County made a number of changes in its facilities: zswitched to compact fluorescent light bulbs and energy efficient flat-screen monitors, zpurchased a properly-sized cooling tower with drift eliminator, zbought a diesel generators to reduce electrical costs, Set Goals After assessing the energy efficiency of all county facilities, set goals to reduce energy use. Assess savings ideas. The Energy Management Assessment Matrix is an excellent resource for comparing current energy management practices with suggested energy management guidelines. By clicking on characteristics best matching a county s current energy management style, counties can see a comparison to the energy management guidelines established by ENERGY STAR. Completing this matrix will help counties prioritize activities as they develop plans. It can be found by visiting Scroll down and click on Assessment Matrix. Decide where to focus improvements. The county needs to decide whether to focus on increasing energy efficiency in all buildings, only those close to receiving the ENERGY STAR, or buildings with relatively lower energy performance levels. Refer to energy performance indicators in Portfolio Manager to identify best opportunities for zinstalled insulating ductwork and patched leaks, zcleaned the heating and cooling coils, and zimplemented an aggressive recycling program. Blue Earth County has proven itself to be a leader in energy efficiency. It is home to the first courthouse in Minnesota that has received an ENERGY STAR, and the county is in the process of building the Blue Earth County Justice Center, which is designed to meet the U.S. Green Building Council s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED ) standards. The county is also extremely proactive in sharing ideas with residents and other counties. In celebration of its ENERGY STAR rating, Blue Earth County sponsored an ENERGY STAR Concert on the Courthouse Lawn and distributed information through presentations, displays, and its website. improvement and prioritize your resources where they are needed most. Consider building upgrade options. The ENERGY STAR Building Upgrade Manual is a guide for planning and implementing cost-effective upgrades that will improve the energy performance of your facilities. The Manual provides information on developing an integrated approach to upgrading existing buildings and includes guidance on recommissioning, lighting upgrades, supplemental load reductions, fan system upgrades, and heating and cooling system upgrades. The Manual can be accessed at Listen to a complementary online recording entitled Improving Your Energy Efficiency Rating, which can be found by visiting www. energystar.gov/buildingstraining. Click on Self-guided presentations and scroll down to Improving Your Energy Efficiency Rating. EPA also provides other live and selfguided training sessions to help you learn more about ENERGY STAR tools and resources for county facilities. Develop an Energy Management Plan After setting goals for the reduction of energy use, create a plan that will help the county meet those objectives. Decide on a timeline. Establishing appropriate and realistic target dates for goals ensures that they are meaningful and promote change. A combination of short and long term goals can be effective. zshort-term goals: Annual goals provide the necessary markers for tracking and reporting progress on a regular and ongoing basis. zlong-term goals: Long-term goals are usually organization-specific and may be shaped by internal rates of return and manpower. Create a plan of action. Unlike the energy policy, the action plan is regularly updated, most often on an annual basis, to reflect recent achievements, changes in performance, and shifting priorities.

4 Ensure that the plan is detailed enough to cover daily operations. This can include tasks that are as simple as turning off lights when leaving a room, unplugging unused appliances, or turning off the air conditioning when the building is unoccupied. Educate employees. Successful energy management plans have not only the support of supervisors, but also the support of those who will directly implement the activities. Therefore, it is vital to educate your county s department heads and staff on the energy management plan and motivate them to carry out their important roles in that plan. As new employees are hired, make energy efficiency education part of orientation. Design and post energy efficiency posters on bulletins, doors, and in break rooms. As part of the ENERGY STAR Toolkit, EPA offers pre-made posters that can be used to help spread the word about the benefits of energy efficiency, which are available at cfm?c=spread_word.posters. Quick payback projects like installing ENERGY STAR PC Power Management software on county computers can help demonstrate the benefits of energy efficiency to county employees. Learn more by visiting powermanagement. Motivate. Create competition to motivate employees to save energy. Track energy use across similar facilities in the county and award those with the greatest reduction. Offer prizes to the winning buildings. 6) Consider Funding Options Energy efficient facilities will save the county money in the long run; however, there may be some upfront costs. For many counties this money may not be readily available. Nevertheless, there are many opportunities for financing an energy efficiency program. Look into energy performance contracts. Performance contracting offers counties the opportunity to make timely facility improvements with minimal up-front costs and equipment performance risks while reducing energy bills. They can address some of the common problems faced by counties such as budget constraints, aging buildings and equipment in need of modernization, and lack of in-house technical expertise. Generally, an energy performance contract will guarantee that the savings targets will be met as a result of improvements in energy and maintenance efficiencies, or the company pays the difference. Integrate the use of Porfolio Manager into your energy performance contract to screen for projects and verify results. To view NACo s Energy Efficiency and Performance Contracting fact sheet, visit www. greencounties.org and click on Green Government Publications and Presentations. Use the Cash Flow Opportunity Calculator. The Cash Flow Opportunity Calculator is an interactive financial calculator available on-line that helps counties quantify the cost of delaying investment in upgrades by addressing three critical questions: zhow much new energy-efficiency equipment can be purchased from the anticipated savings? zshould this equipment purchase be financed now, or is it better to wait and use cash from a future budget? zis money being lost by waiting for a lower interest rate? The calculator can be found by going to and clicking on Buildings and Plants. To the right of the screen, click on Tools & Resources, then scroll down to Financial Evaluation and click on Cash Flow Opportunity Calculator. Find discounted products. Counties are eligible to participate in the U.S. Communities Government Purchasing Alliance a program co-sponsored by NACo which was established to provide a national structure for local government agencies to make use of their collective purchasing power and to improve the overall effectiveness of their purchasing processes. Some of these products meet environmental certification standards, such as ENERGY STAR. To learn more, visit org. EPA also offers resources designed to help make smart purchasing decisions for ENERGY STAR qualified products, such as savings calculators and sample procurement language for many product categories. Apply for grants. The Catalogue of Federal Domestic Assistance and Grants.gov both offer opportunities to receive money to help counties start their energy efficiency programs. Most grants are competitive, and can be found at and Work with an energy efficiency service provider. ENERGY STAR service and product providers can help identify, prioritize and implement quality projects that will improve energy management. EPA s directory can be used to locate the companies that can provide the services and products that will help lower operating costs and improve energy efficiency. Find a provider near you by visiting, www. energystar.gov/spp. Evaluate Progress Counties can ensure they remain focused on achieving their targeted improvement goals by continually tracking and assessing their building energy use. Assess progress at two stages. Monitor the project throughout its implementation to make necessary adjustments and ensure your county is on target, and then continue monitoring after the project is completed to ensure that the improvements are working properly. Track progress using your Portfolio Manager account.

5 Review the plan of action. Evaluate what was successful and what was not. Where has the county made progress? Where does it still need to do more work? Update the plan to reflect this information. Recognize Achievements and Spread the Word Recognition of achievements is an important step towards acknowledging the county s progress and evaluating next steps for improvement. Achieve Designed to Earn the ENERGY STAR. Design projects for county courthouses, office buildings, and other building types are eligible for Designed to Earn the ENERGY STAR if the design achieves a 75 or better in Target Finder. Apply for the ENERGY STAR. Buildings such as county courthouses and office buildings are eligible to achieve the ENERGY STAR if their energy performance rating in Portfolio Manager is 75 or higher. The ENERGY STAR is a plaque that may be affixed to the county building in celebration of its superior energy efficiency performance. Receive recognition from NACo. Counties can submit information about energy efficient changes and achievements to NACo. This information may be published in County News, online newsletters, fact sheets, and other educational materials. Energy efficient plans and progress can also be submitted to NACo s Green Government Database, allowing other counties to view the programs and implement them in their own counties. Submissions should be ed to Kelly Zonderwyk, kzonderwyk@naco.org. Provide internal recognition. Recognize those in the county who have worked hard and achieved energy efficiency. These awards can go to those who suggested effective ideas to save energy, reduced energy the most, or increased savings by a certain amount. Educate Residents. Educate the community about the benefits of reducing energy use through county-run venues such as community college websites or newspapers, cable access TV stations, public billboards, and advertising on county vehicles. County announcements, publications, and events all provide a platform for promoting a county s successes and recognizing community leaders who have adopted ENERGY STAR. Additional Resources zdatabase of State Incentives for Renewable Energy (DSIRE) This database lists state, federal, local, and utility incentives for renewable energy and energy efficiency. zenergy STAR ENERGY STAR is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy helping us all save money and protect the environment through energy efficiency products and practices. EPA provides strategies, tools, professional assistance, and recognition opportunities to help meet county goals and contribute to ENERGY STAR s nationwide challenge to improve the energy efficiency of facilities by 10 percent or more. U.S. Department of z Energy, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy This site offers information on new options for energy efficient practices in county facilities.

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