Pond Ingenuity Winter 2021

National Capital Mall, a Net Zero Energy house Meck Island Net Zero Microgrid. Image Courtesy of Hannah Solar Government Services SOLAR PATRIOT STATS 28,000 Est. Number of Visitors total $13,000 Amount of Solar Energy Savings over 7 Years on investments. For example, LEDs for lighting and improved insulation significantly reduce the heat load in the building while new building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) solar technology will reduce solar heat gain and generate zero emission electricity. This is important, since facility heat load in the building determines the air conditioning size, often at a cost of five times the LED costs and even on parity with the BIPV price such that integrating all the technologies together could reduce the size and the cost of new inverter-driven HVAC equipment. Sometimes the offsetting cost of the reduced HVAC can reduce the overall price of a zero-energy building project. It is no more than 5–10% higher than a non-energy- integrated energy efficient building. Voluntary Leadership The energy integration process served as the basis of the popular voluntary government program called EnergyStar Buildings. This program demonstrated that voluntary leadership programs, generation and the loads they are powering. Although electric storage costs have been steadily declining, their utilization has only barely penetrated the market. Currently, adding electric storage to the typical solar installation nearly doubles the cost. One only needs to see that new time-of-use rates, coupled with energy storage may just as easily double the energy savings balancing back out the cost and return benefit. We should also recognize that adding an electric vehicle to the solar household is a close cousin to adding battery storage and offers similar benefits that batteries add, most of the time for lower cost per kWh than stationary batteries. Energy Efficiency Finally, we must look at the energy efficiency side of the equation. Our experience in buildings here at Pond, tells us that, when we integrate energy technologies together, it often helps reduce the overall cost while increasing the energy savings yielding faster paybacks and higher returns such as EnergyStar, Green Power Partnership, Climate Leaders, etc., are the best way to motivate public companies, private organizations, municipalities and utilities to follow the processes and celebrate those that succeed, especially, if such an organization leading the charge is one that has leverage, like the USEPA. What we now need is a new national voluntary program that ties it all together, promoting net zero energy on the electric grid, and celebrate the companies that use the technologies we’ve mentioned here to achieve it. A challenge of a net zero electric grid requires a symphony of support. In 1988, I heard Dr. Hansen testify to Congress, and ever since, I’ve spent my career promoting integrated energy implementation to achieve larger results for the environment. But like the lone violinist on the stage, I have been seeking a symphony to join where, together, we can make things happen in this global climate emergency. Now, I am most fortunate to join a company like Pond; a leading energy and building technology engineering consulting firm that has the capability to pull it all together in a way that presents the highest actual returns on investment. I have joined the symphony on energy solutions that is Pond. Now that we have our symphony, we are seeking our conductor. Could it be that next voluntary program from the Federal Government – The Net Zero Energy Grid Partnership? Alden Hathaway, PE, CEM Program Director of Power and Renewable Energy Pond Ingenuity | Winter 2021 11