City of Albuquerque Celebrates Energy Efficiency Day 2022
October 5, 2022
In recognition of the 7th annual national Energy Efficiency Day on Wednesday, October 5, 2022, the City of Albuquerque is joining regional and national organizations, businesses, utilities, universities, and individuals in promoting energy efficiency – the most cost efficient, quickest way to meet our energy needs, cut utility bills, and reduce pollution.
Reducing the energy used by manufacturers, homes, and businesses benefits everyone – especially energy bill-payers. The average household saves almost $500 yearly thanks to efficiency standards that apply to new appliances such as dishwashers, refrigerators and water heaters, alone.
“Albuquerque is paving the way for an energy efficient future through multiple high-impact strategies,” said City Sustainability Officer, Kelsey Rader. “The result of these strategies includes cost savings to taxpayers and families experiencing high energy burdens, as well as keeping our carbon footprint low.”
“Energy efficiency is the best way to bring the benefits of our fight against climate change to Albuquerque residents, especially our frontline community members. Energy efficiency helps reduce utility bills, makes our buildings healthier, and reduces emissions. It’s a win-win-win. The City of Albuquerque is committed to bringing these benefits to more and more residents as we begin implementation of our Climate Action Plan and continue to expand services like the Community Energy Efficiency Program,” says Albuquerque City Councilor Tammy Fiebelkorn.
“Energy efficiency retrofits installed in low income homes is a literal lifeline - reducing costs and carbon emissions on one hand while improving the health safety and comfort of residents on the other. It also preserves aging housing stock the loss of which adds stress to our already short supply of homes,” said Prosperity Works Founder Emeritus and Clean Energy Leader Ona Porter.
Smarter energy use means making improvements to use less energy overall. The Keller Administration has already made significant, forward-thinking investments in energy savings including:
- Developing the Balanced Resource Acquisition and Information Network (B.R.A.I.N). BRAIN will enable real-time visibility, flexibility and responsiveness with the City’s existing and future energy storage, generation and building controls resources. This tool is also the first of its kind in the nation.
- Adopting the 2018 International Energy Conservation Code to require improved energy efficiency in new construction.
- Partnering with Yearout Energy to perform an Investment Grade Audit of 50 facilities. This will help the City to significantly reduce energy and water consumption.
- Supporting the Community Energy Efficiency (CEE) project which received an additional $100,000 appropriated from City Council to continue sustainable home improvements in underserved communities.
- Launching the Mayor’s Energy Challenge in 2019 support local businesses in reducing their energy use.
- Supporting the implementation of the 3% for energy conservation fund which has resulted in deep energy efficiency retrofits projects in 123 government buildings. These improvements have generated an estimated yearly savings of 236.5 GWh (236,500 MWh) and a combined energy and operations savings of nearly $53 million yearly.
To learn more about The City of Albuquerque’s energy efficiency efforts, visit http://www.cabq.gov/sustainabilityor join the Twitter conversation using #EEDay2022.