The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced $13 million in funding for 17 projects to implement energy and water efficiency, renewable energy, and climate resilience technologies at federal facilities across the country.
According to the DOE, the projects will use energy performance contracts at no additional up-front cost to the government and will lower energy and water utility bills by more than $30 million annually while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by over 200,000 metric tons. As the single-largest energy consumer in the nation, reducing the carbon footprint of the federal government is critical to achieving President Joe Biden’s goal of a net zero-emission economy by 2050, the DOE adds.
“By outfitting federal buildings with technologies to reduce water and energy consumption and shrink carbon emissions, the federal government is leading by example and saving taxpayers money by lowering energy bills,” says Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “The investments of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Build Back Better Agenda will supercharge the deployment of these technologies and grasp a substantial opportunity to strengthen America’s economic, energy, and environmental security while fighting climate change.”
Funding provided through the Assisting Federal Facilities with Energy Conservation Technologies (AFFECT) 2021 Federal Agency Call will assist selected agencies in maximizing external funds to increase their energy resilience, support the deployment of integrated energy systems, and improve the safety, health, and operations of federal facilities. The AFFECT program is managed by the DOE’s Federal Energy Management Program.
In recent years, the federal government has prioritized the energy efficiency of federal property. In 2018, it spent $16.6 billion for energy used in more than 350,000 buildings and 600,000 over-the-road vehicles, as well as aircraft, ships, and other equipment. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law includes $250 million for federal building energy efficiency improvements.
To increase the impact of these projects, federal agencies will leverage over $724 million by using alternative financing mechanisms, including energy savings performance contracts (ESPCs) and utility energy service contracts. The participating agencies will install both traditional energy-efficiency measures and renewable energy technologies, such as solar photovoltaics, while deploying innovative energy-conservation measures like battery energy storage systems with microgrid controls, pumped water storage, lighting efficiency, electric vehicle supply equipment, combined heat and power using biofuels with carbon capture and storage, and other novel technologies. Project locations include:
- U.S. Coast Guard (USCG)
- Naval Information Warfare Center (NIWC) Atlantic
- Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
- General Services Administration (GSA) Region 4, Atlanta
- Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst (JBMDL)
- Department of Energy, Office of Science (OS)
- Naval Air Station Whidbey Island (NASWI)
- U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), Washington Headquarters Service (HQS)
- Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall (JBMHH)
- Eglin Air Force Base (AFB)
- Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Southwest
- General Services Administration (GSA) Region 4, Valdosta and Brunswick
- General Services Administration (GSA) Region 7
- Joint Base Langley-Eustis (JBLE)
- Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
- General Services Administration (GSA) Region 4, Raleigh
The full list of projects funded under the 2021 AFFECT Federal Agency Call is available here.