Transcript Document

Renewable Energy 101: How Schools
Can Make the Grade with Green Power
What is Green Power?
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Electricity generated from
natural resources that
replenish themselves over
short periods of time,
including the sun, wind,
moving water, organic
plant and waste material
(biomass), and the Earth’s
heat (geothermal).
Biogas
Geothermal
Solar
Biomass
Small-Hydro
Wind
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K-12 School Fast Facts
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Educational buildings* consume 109 billion kWh of
electricity annually (2003 data)
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75 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions
Equiv. to GHG emissions of nearly 15 million cars
17,000+ K-12 schools in the U.S.
31 Green Power Partner K-12 schools:
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831 million kWh of electricity annually
181 million kWh of green power annually (~22%)
Avoiding more than 125,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions annually
Equiv. to removing the GHG emissions of more than 24,000 cars/year
*Includes colleges & universities
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Green Power Procurement Options
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Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs)
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Green Power Electricity Products
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The environmental “attributes” of electricity generated from
renewable resources (1 REC = 1 MWh)
Attributes are based on the generation technology type and age,
geographic location, and time of generation
Does not include the underlying electrons – “unbundled”
a.k.a. Green Tags, Renewable Energy Credits, and Tradeable
Renewable Energy Certificates
Green power offered by utility suppliers that is all, or partially,
generated from renewable sources
Is often a “bundled” product that includes both the RECs as well as
the underlying electrons
On-site Generation
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Install a renewable energy system on-site (e.g. solar panels, wind
turbine)
Produces both electricity and RECs from the on-site source
Self-financed installation or via a third-party PPA
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REC Transaction Process
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Solar Power Purchase Agreements
(SPPA)
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SPPA is a financial arrangement in which a third-party
developer owns, operates, and maintains the photovoltaic (PV)
system, and a host customer agrees to site the system on its
property and purchases the system’s electric output for a
predetermined period
Addresses many of the traditional barriers to adoption for
organizations looking to install solar systems:
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high up-front capital costs
system performance risk
complex design and permitting processes
Learn more at:
www.epa.gov/greenpower/buygp/solarpower.htm
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SPPA Process & Participants
Adapted from Rahus Institute’s “The Customer’s Guide to Solar Power Purchase Agreements” (2008)
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Are SPPAs Right for K-12 Districts?
Ideal SPPA Host Characteristics
Typical District
Large electricity loads (>200,000 kWh/yr)
Load profiles that match peak demand
10,000 sq ft of unshaded space available
Investment-grade credit
Rooftops less than 10 years old
(for roof mount systems)
Located in area with high electricity costs as
well as pro-solar polices and incentives
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Benefits & Challenges for Host
Benefits
 No
upfront capital cost
 Predictable energy pricing
 No operating risk
 Projects can be cash flow positive
from day one
 Demonstrable environmental
commitment
 Potential to make claims about being
solar powered
 Potential reduction in carbon footprint
 Potential increase in property value
 Support
for local job market
Challenges
 More
complex negotiations and higher
transaction costs than buying PV
system
 Administrative cost of paying two
separate electricity bills if system
does not meet 100 percent of
demand
 Site lease that may limit ability to
make changes to property that would
affect PV system performance or
access to the system
 Understand trade offs related to REC
ownership/sale.
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Solar RECs & Environmental Claims
If Host own RECs,
appropriate claims include:
 We
are using solar power
 We are solar powered
 We are reducing our carbon footprint
If Host does NOT own RECs,
appropriate claims include:
 We
are hosting a solar power system
 We are producing solar power
 We are producing emissions-free
power
 Our utility pays us to generate solar
(if utility buying RECs)
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EPA’s Green Power Partnership
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Voluntary EPA program that seeks to reduce GHG
emissions by increasing the use of green power among
leading U.S. organizations.
Partners purchase green power in an amount that must
meet or exceed the EPA benchmarks and in return
receive EPA technical assistance and recognition.
Currently more than 1,300 Partners, including Fortune
500® companies, small and medium sized businesses,
states, local governments, and colleges and universities.
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How Much Green Power to Join?
If your annual
electricity use is…
Over 100,000,000 kWh
100,000,000 10,000,000 kWh
10,000,000 - 1,000,000
kWh
Under 1,000,000 kWh
Partnership
Benchmark
Leadership
Benchmark
You should, at
minimum, use this
much green power
3%
You should, at
minimum, use this
much green power
30%
5%
50%
10%
20%
100%
N/A
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Partnership Offerings & Benefits
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Credible Benchmarks
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Planning & Implementation Resources
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Metric for “How much green power is enough?”
Definition of eligible renewables
Green power locator
Procurement guidance
Marketing and communications support
Environmental benefits calculator
Recognition
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Top Partner Lists (inc. Top 20 K-12)
Green Power Leadership Awards 
Promotional opportunities
Use of the Partner logo 
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K-12 Green Power Partners
Dec. 2011
K-12 Schools in the News
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Case Study: The Athenian School
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Located in Danville, CA
On-site solar array supplies ~55% of campus energy needs
SRECS are sold
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Replacement RECs purchased to support renewable energy claims
Solar panels on the roof of the Dase Center supply the building's
electricity
Solar thermal panels on the roof of the gym heat the swimming pool
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Case Study: Chicago Public
Schools
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Third-largest school district in the United States (675
schools)
Largest K-12 purchaser in Green Power Partnership
Green power purchasing is one of 24 specific strategies in
CPS’ Environmental Action Plan:
http://www.cps.edu/GoGreen/Documents/CPS_Environme
ntal_Action_Plan.pdf
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Other energy-specific strategies: ENERGY STAR
equipment procurement, retrofits & commissioning,
LEED Silver building standards, and energy
management systems
Purchasing more than 100 million kWh of RECs annually
Generating more than 160,000 kWh a year from a 65 KW
solar array
Received 2010 Green Power Leadership Award
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Green Power Locator
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Click on your state to find
green power options available
to you
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RECS
Green power products
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Want to Know More?
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Basic Information
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An overview of Green Power Partnership is available on EPA’s Web site
www.epa.gov/greenpower
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To see full details of program requirements, please see:
www.epa.gov/greenpower/documents/gpp_partnership_reqs.pdf
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To see EPA’s Green Power Purchasing Guide, please visit:
www.epa.gov/greenpower/documents/purchasing_guide_for_web.pdf
To see EPA’s Green Power Locator, please visit:
http://www.epa.gov/greenpower/pubs/gplocator.htm
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More Questions?
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Jake Sneeden, ERG (Contractor to GPP), 617.357.4628,
[email protected]
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