Planning for Sustainability Can Be Profitable

Sustainable energy planning is far more than solar panels or compact fluorescent light bulbs. It’s about saving money on fuel costs, so that it can be used for something else, such as services, schools, and economic development. Though most communities face a real challenge to meet its citizens’ needs with finite resources, very few have developed a sustainable energy plan. Yet such a plan could quickly produce extra dollars for a community and its citizens, while simultaneously delivering improved environmental quality, increased sustainability, and enhanced security.

Gas Technology Institute, through its Sustainable Energy Planning Office (SEPO), has prepared the Blueprint for Urban Sustainability: Integrating Sustainable Energy Practices into Metropolitan Planning. This Blueprint provides communities with the tools they need to achieve these benefits.

Why is energy so critical? After employees’ compensation, energy expenditures are the second largest part of most local governments’ annual budgets – approaching $100 million for the largest cities. For individual citizens, fuel costs can also be a significant portion of a household budget. Furthermore, continued growth in energy use has led to an unprecedented increase in energy-related pollution and corresponding impacts on public health and the environment. Urban areas face traffic congestion, ozone alerts, increased energy costs, and concerns about electricity reliability. A massive transmission-grid failure in August 2003 highlighted the vulnerability of U.S. energy systems and raised concerns about the threat of disruptions to other parts of the U.S. energy infrastructure.

Despite the significance of energy to all aspects of society, few cities currently have a formal energy plan or policy. Even fewer have an organizational unit dedicated to city-wide energy management. Instead, most communities address energy only when they have to, and in an isolated, department-by-department manner. Such a fragmented approach can’t solve multi-faceted urban problems, nor can it fully capitalize on the numerous advantages offered by sustainable energy management.

Where should communities begin? The Blueprint is an informative place to start. It contains success stories of some of the most energy-savvy communities in the United States and the tools and techniques that can enable any community to chart a path to a more sustainable future. A Blueprint for Urban Sustainability documents a wide array of innovative energy management programs, policies, technologies, and financing approaches that communities have implemented with tangible results.

“I always tell people, when I first started here we stole everyone else’s ideas,” notes Steve Walter, deputy commissioner of Chicago’s Department of Environment. “We adopted the energy efficient project from Seattle, renewables from Austin, and green building from Boulder. Those were the best practices, and our mayor told us to do all of them.”

Walter was joking, but his strategy reflects the rationale for creating the Blueprint – don’t reinvent the wheel, find a wheel moving in the desired direction and follow it. A Blueprint for Urban Sustainability was inspired by the cities that participated in the first U.S. Competition on Metropolitan Energy Design, sponsored by GTI. The entries submitted by those cities revealed a wealth of knowledge and experience of individual communities, departments, and decision-makers around the country. GTI recognized that disseminating that knowledge could help more communities initiate their own sustainable energy efforts. Adopting other people’s ideas doesn’t have to be overwhelming; programs or projects of diverse scales can be guided by the Blueprint. “Cities should start by doing pilot projects to show that the concept works,” says Scott Anders, director of programs for the San Diego Regional Energy Office.

In addition to proven programs and projects, community leadership is essential. “You’re not going to get resources or support without someone championing it,” says Walter. "I don’t know how you could do it otherwise."

In Denver, mayoral leadership was crucial in transforming the city’s vehicle fleet into a model of sustainability. Mayor Wellington Webb’s 1993 green fleet executive order had two goals: reducing carbon dioxide emissions from the city’s vehicle fleet and reducing fuel expenditures one percent per year over a 10-year period.

According to Steven Foute, Deputy Manager of the City, and County of Denver’s Department of Environmental Health, at that time there was little environmental sensitivity, knowledge, or wisdom about alternative fuel vehicles. “Fast-forward 10 years,” says Foute. “Our mayor just signed a new green fleet executive order. We accomplished what we wanted, our program has been institutionalized, and we’re reaping the benefits. The whole process has moved to the budget office, and fleet managers are following the program themselves.” Foute says that it only worked because the mayor got behind the program. “Once that occurred, we had leverage with our city agencies,” he notes.

Although visionary leadership is essential to sustainable energy planning, successful marketing of the energy plan is equally essential. While payback periods and energy savings may convince city facilities managers to implement a particular project, different factors motivate other potential participants.

Susan Anderson, Director of the Office of Sustainable Development, in Portland, Oregon, points out that mid-size businesses and residents care more about the comfort of their home, indoor air quality and appealing materials, than about energy. “We’ve learned over the years that you have to package and sell programs as lifestyle enhancements,” she says. “Often, even when businesses see something that can give them a huge return on investment, they still don’t do it. But if you can package it with something that will make employees happy, like a nicer space, then they’ll do it. From a marketing point of view, saving money, surprisingly, just doesn’t reach everyone.”

Anderson also suggests a holistic, consumer-oriented approach to a project. “That’s what the whole green building program is about—energy efficiency integrated with creating a wonderful space to live or work in. We’ve seen the market take off when we’ve done that, compared to focusing on traditional energy pieces, like motors or lighting.”

An example of this is when the City of Portland took the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system, adopted the standard for all city facilities, and required private commercial buildings that had municipal funding to meet it. “It’s taken off as a way to make local builders better builders,” says Anderson. She also notes that these requirements have spurred economic development, by giving local retailers and manufacturers an incentive to build and sell energy-efficient equipment and materials and recycled materials. “It’s showing up as an actual industry sector in the city,” says Anderson.

Which brings us back to the main reason cities should consider a sustainable energy plan. Sustainable energy programs save money, which means more money in the community’s pocket. In addition, energy codes and standards can spur demand for new goods and services, thereby promoting economic development and creating jobs. Cities that tackle energy issues in an integrated fashion are at the forefront of sustainable energy management, and they are seeing quantifiable benefits, both economic and environmental, as a result of the programs and practices they implement. Their approach helps them save money, improve air quality and public health, and decrease the vulnerability of their energy system – today.

In addition to the Blueprint for Urban Sustainability, two other GTI resources are now available:

Energizing Sustainable Cities: The Power of Planning and Design
This 18-minute DVD depicts the form and function of a sustainable city of the future, where energy and all other resources are responsibly managed for long-term community sustainability. In addition to presenting a compelling future vision, the production provides practical actions all communities can take today to move toward a sustainable future. The DVD was produced in conjunction with the Harvard University, LaJolla Group Partners and Kurtis Productions. The DVD is narrated by acclaimed television journalist, Bill Kurtis.

Model for Sustainable Urban Design
This 83-page document describes the nine national entries to the first global competition on sustainable urban systems design. The three-year long competition culminated in a juried presentation of the designs in Tokyo, Japan, this past year and now, for the first time, the common elements of all the designs are described in a document containing a copy of the complete U.S. - Mexico design entry for the combined San Diego-Tijuana binational metropolitan region.

To learn more, contact GTI’s Sustainable Energy Planning Office at: sepo@gastechnology.org or 847-390-7800.


	Sustainable Energy Planning Can Be Profitable Sustainable energy planning is far more than solar panels or compact fluorescent light bulbs. It’s about saving money on fuel costs, so that it can be used for something else, such as services, schools, and economic development. Though most communities face a real challenge to meet its citizens’ needs with finite resources, very few have developed a sustainable energy plan. Yet such a plan could quickly produce extra dollars for a community and its citizens, while simultaneously delivering improved environmental quality, increased sustainability, and enhanced security. Gas Technology Institute, through its Sustainable Energy Planning Office (SEPO), has prepared the Blueprint for Urban Sustainability: Integrating Sustainable Energy Practices into Metropolitan Planning. This Blueprint provides communities with the tools they need to achieve these benefits. Why is energy so critical? After employees’ compensation, energy expenditures are the second largest part of most local governments’ annual budgets – approaching $100 million for the largest cities. For individual citizens, fuel costs can also be a significant portion of a household budget. Furthermore, continued growth in energy use has led to an unprecedented increase in energy-related pollution and corresponding impacts on public health and the environment. Urban areas face traffic congestion, ozone alerts, increased energy costs, and concerns about electricity reliability. A massive transmission-grid failure in August 2003 highlighted the vulnerability of U.S. energy systems and raised concerns about the threat of disruptions to other parts of the U.S. energy infrastructure. Despite the significance of energy to all aspects of society, few cities currently have a formal energy plan or policy. Even fewer have an organizational unit dedicated to city-wide energy management. Instead, most communities address energy only when they have to, and in an isolated, department-by-department manner. Such a fragmented approach can’t solve multi-faceted urban problems, nor can it fully capitalize on the numerous advantages offered by sustainable energy management. Where should communities begin? The Blueprint is an informative place to start. It contains success stories of some of the most energy-savvy communities in the United States and the tools and techniques that can enable any community to chart a path to a more sustainable future. A Blueprint for Urban Sustainability documents a wide array of innovative energy management programs, policies, technologies, and financing approaches that communities have implemented with tangible results. “I always tell people, when I first started here we stole everyone else’s ideas,” notes Steve Walter, deputy commissioner of Chicago’s Department of Environment. “We adopted the energy efficient project from Seattle, renewables from Austin, and green building from Boulder. Those were the best practices, and our mayor told us to do all of them.” Walter was joking, but his strategy reflects the rationale for creating the Blueprint – don’t reinvent the wheel, find a wheel moving in the desired direction and follow it. A Blueprint for Urban Sustainability was inspired by the cities that participated in the first U.S. Competition on Metropolitan Energy Design, sponsored by GTI. The entries submitted by those cities revealed a wealth of knowledge and experience of individual communities, departments, and decision-makers around the country. GTI recognized that disseminating that knowledge could help more communities initiate their own sustainable energy efforts. Adopting other people’s ideas doesn’t have to be overwhelming; programs or projects of diverse scales can be guided by the Blueprint. “Cities should start by doing pilot projects to show that the concept works,” says Scott Anders, director of programs for the San Diego Regional Energy Office. In addition to proven programs and projects, community leadership is essential. “You’re not going to get resources or support without someone championing it,” says Walter. "I don’t know how you could do it otherwise." In Denver, mayoral leadership was crucial in transforming the city’s vehicle fleet into a model of sustainability. Mayor Wellington Webb’s 1993 green fleet executive order had two goals: reducing carbon dioxide emissions from the city’s vehicle fleet and reducing fuel expenditures one percent per year over a 10-year period. According to Steven Foute, Deputy Manager of the City, and County of Denver’s Department of Environmental Health, at that time there was little environmental sensitivity, knowledge, or wisdom about alternative fuel vehicles. “Fast-forward 10 years,” says Foute. “Our mayor just signed a new green fleet executive order. We accomplished what we wanted, our program has been institutionalized, and we’re reaping the benefits. The whole process has moved to the budget office, and fleet managers are following the program themselves.” Foute says that it only worked because the mayor got behind the program. “Once that occurred, we had leverage with our city agencies,” he notes. Although visionary leadership is essential to sustainable energy planning, successful marketing of the energy plan is equally essential. While payback periods and energy savings may convince city facilities managers to implement a particular project, different factors motivate other potential participants. Susan Anderson, Director of the Office of Sustainable Development, in Portland, Oregon, points out that mid-size businesses and residents care more about the comfort of their home, indoor air quality and appealing materials, than about energy. “We’ve learned over the years that you have to package and sell programs as lifestyle enhancements,” she says. “Often, even when businesses see something that can give them a huge return on investment, they still don’t do it. But if you can package it with something that will make employees happy, like a nicer space, then they’ll do it. From a marketing point of view, saving money, surprisingly, just doesn’t reach everyone.” Anderson also suggests a holistic, consumer-oriented approach to a project. “That’s what the whole green building program is about—energy efficiency integrated with creating a wonderful space to live or work in. We’ve seen the market take off when we’ve done that, compared to focusing on traditional energy pieces, like motors or lighting.” An example of this is when the City of Portland took the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system, adopted the standard for all city facilities, and required private commercial buildings that had municipal funding to meet it. “It’s taken off as a way to make local builders better builders,” says Anderson. She also notes that these requirements have spurred economic development, by giving local retailers and manufacturers an incentive to build and sell energy-efficient equipment and materials and recycled materials. “It’s showing up as an actual industry sector in the city,” says Anderson. Which brings us back to the main reason cities should consider a sustainable energy plan. Sustainable energy programs save money, which means more money in the community’s pocket. In addition, energy codes and standards can spur demand for new goods and services, thereby promoting economic development and creating jobs. Cities that tackle energy issues in an integrated fashion are at the forefront of sustainable energy management, and they are seeing quantifiable benefits, both economic and environmental, as a result of the programs and practices they implement. Their approach helps them save money, improve air quality and public health, and decrease the vulnerability of their energy system – today. In addition to the Blueprint for Urban Sustainability, two other GTI resources are now available: Energizing Sustainable Cities: The Power of Planning and Design This 18-minute DVD depicts the form and function of a sustainable city of the future, where energy and all other resources are responsibly managed for long-term community sustainability. In addition to presenting a compelling future vision, the production provides practical actions all communities can take today to move toward a sustainable future. The DVD was produced in conjunction with the Harvard University, LaJolla Group Partners and Kurtis Productions. The DVD is narrated by acclaimed television journalist, Bill Kurtis. Model for Sustainable Urban Design This 83-page document describes the nine national entries to the first global competition on sustainable urban systems design. The three-year long competition culminated in a juried presentation of the designs in Tokyo, Japan, this past year and now, for the first time, the common elements of all the designs are described in a document containing a copy of the complete U.S. - Mexico design entry for the combined San Diego-Tijuana binational metropolitan region. To learn more, contact GTI’s Sustainable Energy Planning Office at: sepo@gastechnology.org or 847-390-7800.
	For more information about GTI's Distributed Energy Applications Center, contact distributedenergy@gastechnology.org

Sustainable Energy Planning Can Be Profitable