ABAG Energy Watch

Free Assistance Available for Energy Efficiency Projects and Policies

Is your agency looking for ways to reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions — and save money at the same time? Do you want to employ policy strategies that affect not only municipal buildings, but your entire community? Do you know there is a publicly-funded (read: FREE!) program that is designed precisely to help local government agencies accomplish these aims?

ABAG Energy Watch is a joint program of the Association of Bay Area Governments and Pacific Gas and Electric Company that helps local governments implement cost-effective, energy-saving projects in public facilities and provides energy- efficiency policy assistance. All assistance is free to eligible, enrolled local governments and includes:

• Implementation assistance ranging from equipment retrofits to retro-commissioning
• Dedicated incentives to help pay for energy-efficiency projects
• Facility energy-use analyses including greenhouse gas emissions quantification
• Assistance obtaining contractor services, rebates, and project financing
• Local energy policies and programs (e.g., energy element of General Plans)
• Energy-efficiency ordinances and code revision
• Green building guidelines
• Community education initiatives
• Green procurement policy assistance

Energy-efficiency policy actions can be geared toward reducing energy use in government facilities, businesses or households. This article highlights one policy strategy in which there is growing interest: the procurement of energy-efficient products. Potential services include, but are not limited to, the following examples of assistance that ABAG Energy Watch can offer:

• Recommendations of energy-efficiency provisions that local governments can integrate into their existing environmentally preferable purchasing policy;


• Development of a new purchasing policy that promotes the procurement of energy-efficient lighting supplies, appliances, heating and cooling equipment, computers, copiers and other types of office equipment by referencing and exceeding current standards such as Energy Star and EPEAT;


• Creation of procurement guidelines that set efficiency standards for energy-using fixtures, lamps and ballasts that can be used in all new construction, renovation and equipment retrofit projects (including those to be certified under the US Green Building Council's LEED standards) as well as for replacement lighting supplies used on a daily basis by maintenance staff;


• Development of bid specifications for energy-using equipment that direct vendors to supply high efficiency products to local governments as well as technical support on bid evaluation and contract development;


• Training for government employees about energy-efficiency policies, procurement guidelines, and programs currently in effect and about why and how to purchase and utilize energy-efficient technologies; and


• Tracking the usage of new energy-efficient technologies added to local government contracts and reporting the resulting energy and greenhouse gas reductions, cost-savings and other ancillary benefits.

Whether you are ready to adopt a new energy efficiency policy — or implement one that is already on the books — the ABAG Energy Watch team is here to help. If your agency would like assistance developing a new procurement policy or any other service described in this article, please contact Erika Walther at (510) 482-4420 x224.

ABAG Energy Watch serves Alameda, Contra Costa, Napa, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, and Sonoma Counties and is currently accepting new enrollees. The program will operate through December 31, 2008 or until program funding is depleted, whichever occurs first.

California consumers are not obligated to purchase any full fee service or other service not funded by this program. This program is funded by California utility ratepayers under the auspices of the California Public Utilities Commission.

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