{"id":13794,"date":"2013-06-19T04:23:21","date_gmt":"2013-06-19T04:23:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/leedpoints.com\/?guid=377c9102fc070c1f333d69d3fe0f3746"},"modified":"2013-06-19T04:23:21","modified_gmt":"2013-06-19T04:23:21","slug":"obamas-better-building-challenge-on-track-for-2020-goal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/leedpoints.com\/green-building-blog\/obamas-better-building-challenge-on-track-for-2020-goal\/","title":{"rendered":"Obama’s Better Building Challenge on track for 2020 goal"},"content":{"rendered":null,"protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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\n President Barack Obama and former President Bill Clinton tour upgrades of the Transwestern Building in 2011. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson) <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

New numbers released by President Obama’s Better Buildings Challenge show challenge partners have improved facility energy efficiency by more than 2.5 percent per year on average compared to their baseline years – equal to roughly $58 million in annual energy savings. The new data<\/a>, released in late May, track progress toward a goal of making U.S. commercial and industrial buildings 20 percent more energy efficient by 2020.<\/p>\n

The announcement built upon U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz’s first speech (below) as secretary at the 2013 Energy Efficiency Global Forum. In that speech, Moniz said he would make energy efficiency a major focal point during his tenure. Such a focus support Obama’s broader goal of doubling U.S. energy productivity by 2030 by pushing for efficiency improvements across multiple sectors of the economy and strengthening partnerships with states and regions, he added.
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Said Moniz: “I just don’t see solutions to our biggest energy and environmental problems without a very strong demand-side response, and that’s why it’s logical to focus on energy efficiency.”<\/p>\n

The United States spends about $200 billion annually to power commercial buildings, and another $200 billion to power industrial facilities. Together, commercial and industrial buildings account for roughly half of the nation’s energy use and more than 40 percent of carbon emissions. In 2011, President Obama launched the Better Buildings Challenge<\/a> to catalyze change in energy use and achieve record-breaking savings. More than 110 organizations – including public and private sector partners ranging from local governments and universities to commercial real estate, healthcare and manufacturing companies – are partnering with the Energy Department to achieve portfolio-wide savings and share strategies. The program also includes a network of financial firms and utility companies to assist in overcoming financial and data-access barriers.<\/p>\n

[pagebreak]Better Buildings Challenge partners are actively deploying energy-efficiency projects across more than 7,700 facilities and updating data on energy use and energy savings. More than 1,300 facilities have reduced energy intensity by 20 percent or more, according to the new data, while another 2,100 have reduced energy intensity by at least 10 percent since their baseline years. In the first year of the challenge, the partners have also completed more than 50 showcase projects that highlight innovative, cost-effective energy saving strategies. Financial allies in the network have also extended more than $1.1 billion in private financing for energy efficiency improvements.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/span><\/strong>“Game-changer for energy-efficiency financing?”<\/span><\/a> Sustainable Industries, June 12, 2013<\/span><\/p>\n

Some examples of successes in the Better Buildings Challenge include:<\/p>\n