On December 20, 2021, the USEPA finalized new national greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions standards for new passenger cars and light trucks (https://www.epa.gov/regulations-emissions-vehicles-and-engines/final-rule-revise-existing-national-ghg-emissions). After the Trump Administration weakened Obama-era standards, these new ones have snapped them back to be even more ambitious, requiring automakers to meet stricter fuel efficiency standards by model year 2026. These new standards will likely result in automakers greatly shifting production to hybrid and/or electric vehicles shortly. While this will have a positive impact on GHG emissions and fuel usage, there is concern about the secondary demands these standards will cause, such as increased demand for batteries and investments in electric chargers and in the grid to maintain stability, along with lighter-weight components.

Beginning with model year 2023, the new rule will increase the stringency of fuel-efficiency requirements each year, by about 5 to 10%. Average fuel economy label values in model year 2026 will be raised from the old rule’s standard of 32 miles per gallon (mpg) to 40 mpg. The rule contains calculations and arguments that these standards will reduce GHG emissions by billions of tons and save the public hundreds of billions in gasoline expenses per year after it is enforce for awhile. The USEPA is beginning to research into the next stage of emission standards, starting with model year 2027 and to cover other vehicles, such as larger-duty trucks.

There is no question that electric vehicles will need to be a part of the way each manufacturer will ensure that they meet the new standards. The USEPA feels that sales of electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles will have to be raised to about 17% by model year 2026 for automakers to achieve compliance, more than doubling the current sales percent. According to the USEPA, the ultimate goal is to achieve “an all-electric, zero-emissions transportation future.”

Many are concerned that the current and predicted short-term infrastructure cannot support such growth, such as the automotive supply chain and convenient electrification for consumers. Electric transmission organizations, power producers, and electricity retailers will need to quickly plan and implement upgrades to transmission infrastructure to meet the anticipated increased demand that will result from a much larger electric fleet nationwide. And this may be a source of lawsuits to stop or reduce the aggressiveness of these new standards.

CCES has the experts to help your entity determine your GHG emissions and reduce it responsibly and economically. Contact us today at 914-584-6720 or at karell@CCESworld.com.

2021 was a rough year because of the COVID pandemic, and 2022 is off to a rough start, as a record number of people have caught the Omicron variant. Fortunately, hospitalizations and deaths have not soared because so many people are fully vaccinated and boosted. This is clearly a time of self-reflection for all of us as people, entrepreneurs, business leaders. We must come through and work together to survive these tough times, grow, and profit.

As we think about long-term ways to deal with the virus, we should think this way about how we act professionally. A key is relationships between you and the people you deal with. It’s not simple. Developing trusting relationships is a skill that that must be learned and improved upon. The problem is many of us work in a world of outcomes. We are judged by how much we do, how much we sell, how profitable our division is in a given month or quarter. We’ve been trained to be transactional in how we treat projects and people. However, if you only think of colleagues and outsiders as customers to meet a short-term goal we create relationships that are shallow. Developing relationships that are deep, where colleagues and clients are part of a bigger world, leads to better, long-term, lower-stress outcomes.

How does one act more relational? I wish I knew. I wish it were simple. Here are 3 ways to be more relational. Don’t expect to master these overnight, but you will see the positive outcomes happen for you as a person and in business.

1. RESPECT.  Like the song, spend some time to say hello and inquire respectfully of clients and colleagues, even outside the project. This nearly always pays you back in respect, more teamwork, better outcomes, and, yes, meeting goals, too.
2. Listen.  Strengthen your listening skills. Pay close attention to what your client or colleague says; don’t “hear” it through your lens. Understand his/her viewpoint, listen with empathy, and understand that the other person has needs, too, and may approach the same project from a different and a refreshing prospective, leading to new opportunities that are mutually beneficial in achieving goals.
3. Be Yourself.  Don’t role play, like being the “tough boss” or the “cool” leader. Don’t be something you’re not. Instead, be authentic. Care for others and include them in the team. Yes, “lay down the law”, if needed, for consistency, but also treat your colleagues and clients as you would like to be treated yourself.

You may not like some clients and colleagues personally, but treating all with respect, listening, and being yourself will lead to better long-term results, be less stressful for all, and make you feel happier in business, all so important. A good way to start 2022!

And for those of you who know me, if I don’t follow these actions, please let me know! CCES has the experts to help you solve your technical problems when it comes to energy and environment to maximize the benefits, avoid the pain, and disrupting operations as little as possible. Contact us with any questions. We want to team with you and help. Contact us today at 914-584-6720 or at karell@CCESworld.com.

I help entities reach sustainability goals. More corporate and municipal leaders realize that sustainability goals are good in and of themselves, but also need to be maintained. Therefore, it is stakeholders or, in other words, people, who determine the success of one’s sustainability initiatives. A leader is great, but success in sustainability is a team effort and you need many people, from middle managers to front-line workers to citizens to contribute to make this a success. Here are some ways to motivate stakeholders whether they be customers, employees, or citizens.

Why?

• Employees implement initiatives and “set the tone” for operations. They can also contribute ideas based on their experience “out in the field” better than many office-bound managers can. Front-line workers can make a program work and be special.
• Customers make a difference, whether it is purchasing the company’s products or use their services or promote the company’s brand and image. Without this feedback, an entity loses its motivation to maintain sustainability goals.
• Citizens are important to support the municipal leaders implementing the sustainability program or for the local company with a social conscience. Rewarding proactive municipal and corporate leaders in a community and punishing those that are less inclined to be sustainable makes citizens a powerful force in success.

How to Motivate People Toward A Sustainable Future

It is hard to motivate people to fight for sustainability. Most people are tired just making do in the world, with longer shifts of work, COVID, and other stresses. How can you motivate people to spend some time and energy toward the environment and sustainability? Researchers have found six ways to motivate greater environmental action. It won’t work on everybody, but, hopefully, enough to result in advancement.

1. Education. Your target audience needs to know not only why sustainability and environmental action are important, but also that it can be done and how to do it. People are often hesitant to expend energy on something unclear. Go slow and have modest goals. Small gains lead to less frustration and motivation to do more.
2. It’s how you tell the story. People – especially in the evening or weekend after a tough day of work – need to be fed necessary information in easy-to-understand doses. Talk less about theories and scientific realities, and tell more stories, particularly those with a positive outcome instead of scary ones (gloom and doom). Don’t show images of flooding and fires. People have had enough of these!
3. Look for diverse leaders. While people will respect you for your views and devotion to make the Earth a better place, people feel better doing things also approved by other local respected leaders. Try to get trusted outsiders on the team, whether it be the local football coach, the minister or other religious leader, the mayor. Another source to consider are peer groups not normally interested in sustainability, such as people from the local Rotary Club or business association. If people in those groups support your goals — even if they do not devote a lot of time to them — that will show that sustainability is acceptable and keep interest up.
4. Make public actions easy. “Everybody” says they are for the environment. But will people go out of their way to do something? In many cases, even many who are “pro-Earth” will not walk many extra steps to put recyclable materials in the right bin. So make actions easy to achieve. Make the extra effort to install an extra recycle bin or two more than you think is necessary to make actions as convenient as possible. In time, as people begin to do these actions, they will be motivated to want to do them and travel the extra little distance to do so. And, of course, make it bright, positive, and fun.
5. Take it slow. This may depend on the community, but in general, people are overwhelmed or uncomfortable with major change, even when they agree with its premise. Introduce a new initiative slowly and connect it to ideas people are already familiar with, such as a cleanup effort in local parks which people frequent is a good thing. Remember, take the long view.
6. Be careful with rewards. It is tempting to offer big rewards to those who work toward implementing programs. But don’t overdo it. Unconsciously, people may come to expect a reward every time they do something and when it doesn’t come may become discouraged and perhaps even sub-consciously upset at the program. Thank yous are very important. But make them less material and more internally pleasing.

CCES has the experts to help your entity move toward a more sustainable future in 2022. Contact us today and we can help move your program toward a better chance for success.  karell@CCESworld.com  or at 914-584-6720.

While the focus of Climate Change rules has been the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions by being more energy efficient or promoting the use of cleaner fuels, it is also important to remember that greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are more than CO2. Other GHGs, in fact, have much larger effects on heat retention in the atmosphere than CO2 and regulators are beginning to focus on them. Last month, this newsletter had an article on the Biden Administration attempt to reduce methane emissions.

The American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act was enacted by Congress in December 2020 to provide authority to the US EPA to address emissions of hydrofluorocarbon emissions (HFCs). In October 2021, the US EPA published standards to phase down production and consumption of HFCs to 15% of their baseline levels in a stepwise manner by 2036 through an allowance allocation and trading program. Reducing HFC production and usage are effective in addressing Climate Change, as HFCs are tens and hundreds of thousands of times more potent as a heat-trapping gas in the atmosphere than CO2. AIM also reversed the HFC deregulation implemented by the Trump Administration that canceled requirements to fix HFC leaks. According to the US EPA phasing out of HFCs could save the economy about $280 billion over the next three decades. At the same time, consumers will likely see little or no change in home appliances as newer appliances will use safer refrigerants, which are readily available and perform as well as HFCs. One estimate stated that this rule will result in the equivalent of a decrease in CO2 emissions of 2 billion metric tons. A global phaseout of HFCs would avoid adding 1⁰F to the world.

The proposed standard for HFC phaseout determines allowance allocation by the US EPA, which will issue allowances on a calendar year basis. Such an allowance cannot be carried over to a subsequent year. There would be three types of allowances: production, consumption, and “application-specific allowances” for six specified uses.

To determine the total number of allowances needed, producers and importers must multiply the quantity of the HFC they seek to produce or import by its exchange value. HFCs that are destroyed in an approved manner within 120 days of production do not count toward its production total.

The US EPA has proposed to issue allowances to companies that produced or imported HFCs in 2017, 2018, and/or 2019 and that the company remain active in 2020 to be eligible to receive an allowance allocation. A mechanism is planned to be created under which new market entrants can apply for consumption allowances to allow a smooth market transition while not creating barriers for potential new participants. The US EPA proposed that the amount of allowances issued to each producer and importer be based on its highest year of production or consumption in 2017-2019. Under the proposal, the US EPA would sum together every company’s highest year amount(s), determine a percentage share for each company, and multiply each company’s percentage by the total amount of available calendar-year allowances.

The proposed rule is out for public comment and changes may be made before finalized. The US EPA hopes to finalize and implement the program in the fall of 2022 to begin in calendar year 2023.

CCES has the experts to help you keep up with the HFC Phase Out Rule, along with all other climate change, air quality, and energy regulations. Contact us today at karell@CCESworld.com or at 914-584-6720.

…to do it all alone. But then I realized: It is not a sign of weakness to ask for help.

It hurts to see people struggling, fending for themselves, especially in these COVID times. Life and business are harsh enough.

Yes, life – and even business – can be beautiful when you’re focused on your purpose and have the right team with you, the right mentors, the right partners. You are now confident in your work, someone’s got your back, you can rely on support.

We are all experts on what we do (engineer, attorney, salesperson, etc.). But so much of business is the “other things” that must go smoothly (different expertise, like marketing, IT, fixing the copier!). There is not enough time in the day to figure them all out alone; plus, life is too short.

Understand one thing:

You are excellent and have passion for what you do. You can serve your company or clients with quality work and be unstoppable with the right help. You need the right team to help put together your product and enable you to help the people you help!

So here’s to opportunities, to mentors, to your team around you. The way to reach your goals. I have sought help. I hope I am the right person to help you with your needs.

And one more thing: always show gratitude. So much of your success is due to you, of course, but so much is also due not only to that team around you but also to the people who made you the expert in your area. So take time this holiday season and beyond to say a sincere thank you to your team, whether they be employees, mentors, friends, subs, consultants. And also say thank you to your teachers, professors, earlier mentors and bosses, old buddies, religious leaders, and family who shaped you into the force you are.  

Remember in these tough times that you have value. You are good. People have made you this way and you have had and can have a good influence on many people and companies, positive for dozens or hundreds of lives, as well.

CCES has the experts to help you do good things with your business, reducing your energy usage and air emissions, saving costs and being better to the planet. Contact us today at 914-584-6720 or at karell@CCESworld.com.

By Deirdre Lord, The Megawatt Hour

Let’s just start by saying that energy markets have gotten more interesting over the past 4 to 6 months. After approximately 7 years of relatively low prices and low volatility, energy prices have spiked and markets have grown increasingly volatile. How volatile, you ask? According to the NY Independent System Operator, as of late September, natural gas prices in New York were up over 241% from the prior year. Year-to-date index power prices were up 84% compared to the prior year.

These are significant increases. Keep in mind that the starting points for these increases was extremely low. For example, the year-to-date index power price in NY State was $24.69/MWh as of September 2020. Demand destruction from the economic shutdown during the pandemic drove demand and, consequently, prices, down. Natural gas prices were so low that it wasn’t even worthwhile for some gas companies to produce. So, what do you need to know and how should you respond?

Volatility and higher prices have returned to energy markets (Source: MWh software)

First, make sure you have good information.

In order to communicate properly, you need to get information that is useful and actionable. In this market environment, historical information is useless. We’re just emerging from a period of significant usage changes (mostly declines due to pandemic shutdowns). We’ve also landed in an entirely unfamiliar market environment in which gas and power prices are higher than they’ve been in many years. Get as much intelligence and insight as you can about both your projected costs and your usage. Don’t rely on last year’s numbers. 

Second, communicate.

No one really likes surprises. Since energy markets have been low and uninteresting for so long, finance and accounting have grown accustomed to getting good news from energy managers. The result is that energy managers and purchasers have not felt compelled to communicate with finance about what to expect from energy markets. The news was always good, energy markets were consistently in decline, budgets were low. Financial decision makers came to expect and anticipate lower costs year-over-year. All market signals indicate a return to higher energy costs and volatility. So, make sure that you are communicating regularly with finance and accounting. Help them set realistic expectations for energy budgets. It will only help you in the end.

Detailed cost data can provide valuable insights.

Third, process, process, process.

Energy buyers who plan ahead benefit the most. Think of it this way. You, the business energy consumer, will always be buying power and gas for as long as you are in business. That means that you should always be planning–not a few weeks or months in advance, but quarters and even years in advance. Understand the current and future market prices and how they move. Volatility can work for you if you have access to good information. If you need information, ask your supplier, your consultant, a trusted advisor or ask us for forecasts and information. No matter where you get information, make sure it is current and updated at least quarterly. Make this forecasting exercise part of your work process. 

Bottom line for energy buyers and financial decision makers. Don’t panic. Use data and analytics to navigate complexity. Communicate well and frequently. Use volatility to your advantage. 

Deirdre Lord is a Partner with The Megawatt Hour, which assists finance professionals, energy and facilities managers, and consultants obtain better energy outcomes. Deirdre can be reached at 917-750-3771 or at dlord@themwh.com

The Biden Administration got the trillion-dollar infrastructure deal passed in November, which earmarks money for energy efficiency and clean energy projects. Getting less publicity, the Administration also outlined how the US will reach net zero GHG emissions by 2050 by releasing a strategic plan and launching the President’s Emergency Plan for Adaptation and Resilience (PREPARE) See: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/US-Long-Term-Strategy.pdf and https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Full-PREPARE-Plan.pdf.

According to the plans, the US’s goal is to reach 100% clean energy by 2035 and net zero by 2050 by prioritizing clean fuels like hydrogen and biofuels, cutting energy waste, reducing methane and non-carbon emissions and encourage carbon removal.

The Plans call for billions of dollars of annual federal funding for development of clean fuels and batteries (including charging infrastructure). In doing so, the federal govern-ment wants to make clean sources of energy cheap and the financially beneficial choice of companies and municipalities over fossil fuels and to foster the industries so that firms can buy equipment made in the USA, resulting in US economic growth and jobs.

The report projects that electricity could provide up to 42% of the country’s electricity by 2035. To ensure electricity generation is clean, the US DOE will encourage development of solar and wind power, stating that solar could provide up to half of the nation’s electricity by 2050.

The current Build Back Better rule budgets $555 billion toward climate change and clean energy initiatives, including investments in the manufacturing of “green” steel and cement. It also wants to nurture the development of wind and solar sources in the US.

CCES has the experts to help you assess the technical and financial benefits of a variety of clean energy options for your facility or firm to save you energy costs and have reliable sources of energy. Contact us today at 914-584-6720 or at karell@CCESworld.com.

COP26, the international climate change summit in Glasgow, Scotland is over. There was much political maneuvering over clean energy, energy efficiency, and CO₂ emissions. However, Climate Change is more than CO₂ emissions and CO₂ sinks. President Joe Biden announced several new policies with the goal of reducing US emissions of methane, a greenhouse gas that – depending on the averaging time – is 21 to 86 times more potent than CO₂. Methane accounts for only 16% of global GHG emissions but is responsible for almost one-third of human-caused warming.

On November 2, the US EPA proposed new NSPS standards to reduce methane emissions from the oil & gas industry (https://www.epa.gov/controlling-air-pollution-oil-and-natural-gas-industry/epa-proposes-new-source-performance), aiming to cut their methane emissions to one-quarter of 2005 levels by the end of this decade. Here is background information about the rule.  https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/11/02/fact-sheet-president-biden-tackles-methane-emissions-spurs-innovations-and-supports-sustainable-agriculture-to-build-a-clean-energy-economy-and-create-jobs/

The new methane rule is groundbreaking because, if approved, it will apply to hundreds of thousands of previously unregulated emission sources, like isolated wells, storage tanks, and compressor stations. This rule is different from most other US EPA rules of its over five decades of existence because this rule would apply to existing and new sources alike. Historically, the vast majority of federal rules regulated only new facilities, while grandfathering existing ones from new emission limits. This is different.

Back when the US EPA was formed and began passing regulations, grandfathering was acceptable as a compromise between environmentalists and industries regulated. Companies did not have to upgrade huge numbers of equipment at once, while the thought was that in time, old equipment will age and be replaced by modern, lower-emitting units. However, being exempt from stringent emission limits gave companies the incentive to keep old, dirty equipment in place, even in some cases, past their useful lives. As a result, grandfathering not only discouraged US industry from modernizing, but also kept emission rates artificially high for some time impacting Clean Air Act goals.

Removing grandfathering is particularly important in the oil & gas industry as oil and gas wells continue to emit pollutants after they stop operating. Requiring old wells to meet new, stringent limits will reduce pollution many years and decades in the future.

In addition, the US EPA just approved a new rule reducing total HFC emissions, involving credits. HFCs, a class of refrigerants, are tens of thousand to hundreds of thousands of times more potent for global warming than CO₂. We will have an article about the new rule and its implications next month.

CCES has the experts to help you understand and comply with GHG emission limits and regulations, for CO₂, for methane, and for other compounds. We can do so without impacting operations and in an economically-beneficial way. Contact us today for more information at karell@CCESworld.com or at 914-584-6720.

Many clients I come across want to implement a smart energy efficiency project. They understand they have excellent ROIs, will reduce O&M costs, raise asset values, and improve comfort. So why isn’t everybody implementing every potential energy efficiency project? Most good energy efficiency projects require a large upfront investment, which many building owners do not have available.

Therefore, building owners can borrow funds to implement a good energy efficiency project. Most energy efficiency projects are so profitable to make up for interest payments, based on current conditions.

Here are ways to make an energy efficiency upgrade easier on the pocketbook.

Lease, Don’t Buy Equipment.  Just like it is common practice to lease a copier for the office, a building owner can lease new equipment. Lease payments become a standard operating expense. At the end of the lease term, the lessee may purchase the equipment, return it, or renew the lease. The building owner keeps more cash on hand for other business needs and preserves their corporate line of credit. A capital lease is a lease where while the building owner is a lessee, it may take advantage of any tax and depreciation benefits that the equipment may have. The equipment is listed as a capital asset while the lease payments would be recorded as a liability. At the end of the lease, the equipment transfers ownership to the building owner for a nominal price, usually $1.

Financing Equipment.  A finance agreement is similar to a capital lease in length of loan term and in lending to the credit of the building owner. However, a major difference is that the building owner gets credit for owning the equipment outright, is not considered a lessee, and gets all of the tax and depreciation benefits of the equipment.

A good financing program is structured such that monthly payments are lower than the estimated energy savings. In other words, a net positive. The building owner gets the benefits of energy savings while making payments over time without the need to dip into capital reserves to fund this project. The building owner’s net is not worse than if they did not implement the project. The building owner can preserve its cash and credit for other operations while getting the financial benefits. This differs from many projects which have no or a poor payback; the owner must spend money and not necessarily get a payback. Here, the project is net positive and allows the owner to look into additional energy efficiency projects.

With interest at record lows, this is a time when borrowing to successfully implement a good energy efficiency project may makes sense. Given the good payback of many energy efficiency projects and, therefore, the presence of capital to pay back a loan, institutions like making loans for energy efficiency projects. Therefore, there is competition to lend for a good energy efficiency project, reducing interest rates and other costs. Now is the time to move forward and upgrade equipment smartly for energy efficiency, knowing of the availability to easily borrow in order to succeed.

Please speak to a financial professional (i.e., an accountant) when seriously considering a lease or financing program. CCES has the experts to help assess the viability and payback of energy efficiency projects to allow you to select which ones to implement and how best to pay for them. Contact us today at 914-584-6720 or at karell@CCESworld.com.

There’s little that is more relaxing than snuggling up by a fireplace. But as cozy as it makes your house feel, a fireplace can also be very dangerous if precautions are not taken. Fireplaces combust wood in a non-professional and very inefficient manner, compared to a boiler or generator. Therefore, there is the risk of embers and sparks causing fires or excess heat, carbon, and particulates damaging the fireplace, nearby walls, and the chimney. In addition, combustion in fireplaces – with no temperature or air controls – potentially causes very high emissions of products of incomplete combustion, such as particulates, VOCs, and CO.

It’s important to properly take care of your fireplace and chimney to prevent unwanted fire hazards. Perform these maintenance tips for your safety:

• Ensure that smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are installed throughout your home and batteries are changed regularly.
• Have your chimney regularly cleaned to reduce buildup of creosote (condensed carbon and particulate compounds), which can restrict air flow into the fireplace, affecting combustion quality, and is itself a fire hazard within the chimney.
• Have a flue liner in place to reduce the possibility of creosote buildup and replace damaged liners to allow heat to escape properly.
• Keep the fireplace clear of debris and flammable items.
• Start fires slowly and safely. Never burn charcoal or use lighter fluids to start a fire in your fireplace (or anywhere else inside your home).
• Don’t overload the fire. Putting more wood or other items than necessary into the fire can overheat your chimney, walls and roof.
• Kids want to see Santa Claus, but keep them away from the fireplace, even when not on. Install a gate around the fireplace to prevent kids from getting too close.
• Always be sure the fire is completely put out before leaving the room.

Be aware that even with proper safety precautions, fires can take place. Be sure to map out escape routes if fires break out near or around your fireplace.

CCES has the experts to help with the combustion of your professional equipment (boilers, engine generators, etc.). Contact us today at 914-584-6720 or at karell@CCESworld.com.