Press Coverage

May 2019

• Reaction to state legislature’s work on energy runs gamut
  Denver Post - May 19, 2019
  Howard Geller of SWEEP quoted: “Energy efficiency has helped us to eliminate the growth in electricity use in the state even though our population is growing and our economy is growing,” said Howard Geller, executive director of the Southwest Energy Efficiency Project. “Leveling off our overall energy use makes it much easier to transition away from fossil fuels.” And it’s not just a matter of phasing out coal and natural gas power plants with wind farms and solar arrays. The number of vehicles and the miles driven are on the rise, Geller said. “There’s more work to do there.” See the full article by Judith Kohler at the Denver Post.
• SWEEP Promotes Electric Vehicles
  Denver Post - May 15, 2019
  Travis Madsen of SWEEP quoted in this article: “We hope Xcel will do something similar for commercial EV charging in Colorado, to help RTD and transit fleets all across the state capture the benefits of electrification and deliver better service at lower cost for their constituents,” said Travis Madsen, transportation project director for the Southwest Energy Efficiency Project. See the Denver Post for the full article.
• Marijuana Prices Have Collapsed, Forcing Growers to Focus on Energy Efficiency
  Utility Dive - May 1, 2019
  Efficiency experts say the biggest opportunities to reduce energy use in the cannabis sector are in the design phase of a new grow operation. As marijuana becomes more mainstream, an increasing number of utilities are seeing growers set up shop in their service territories — at times creating distribution system issues, and in general bringing significant new demand.

April 2019

• New law boosts energy-efficiency mandates
  Albuquerque Journal - April 18, 2019
  New Mexico’s electric consumption could drop markedly over the next decade thanks to new energy-efficiency mandates approved by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. House Bill 291, which the Legislature passed this year and the governor signed into law on April 3, requires the state’s three public utilities to achieve 5 percent savings off 2020 retail sales by 2025, followed by higher savings targets that the state Public Regulation Commission will set through 2030. It also authorizes up to a 66 percent increase in utility spending on energy-efficiency programs.
• The 2018 IECC is Fair to the Solar Industry
  ICC - Building Safety Journal - April 11, 2019
  As state and local officials tackle building energy code issues in 2019, they likely will hear discussions about how solar photovoltaic (PV) power should fit into the energy code, and if solar energy can “trade off” for energy efficiency. Some interest groups want policymakers to weaken the efficiency requirements for new homes if the houses also have solar energy, but those requests fail to understand three things. Read the full article.
• New Mexico Efficiency Bill Ensures Utilities Don't Take Hit From Lower Energy Use
  Utility Dive - April 10, 2019
  New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, D, signed a bill on Thursday to establish decoupling, which aims to remove the disincentive for utilities to conserve energy, as well as boost energy efficiency funding 67%. The New Mexico law is another addition to the state's growing clean energy programming.

March 2019

• Legislation Amended To Help Consumers Save Energy and Money?
  ThisisReno - March 22, 2019
  The Nevada Governor’s Office of Energy (NGOE) has introduced an important amendment to Assembly Bill 54, to ensure that the Silver State maintains a high level of energy efficiency for light bulbs sold in Nevada.
• The IECC Is a Life Safety Code: Make It the Law
  CodeWatcher - March 12, 2019
  This first blog in a series on the IECC explains why America’s Model Energy Code may be getting a bad rap and what the industry needs to do to see it adopted as law in more municipalities around the nation.
• 7 Tips to Reduce Your Energy costs
  Cannabis Business Times - March 11, 2019
  The total energy costs for average indoor cannabis grow operations account for 20 percent to 40 percent of total operating costs. By comparison, for a typical medium-size or larger brewery, energy use accounts for about 6 percent to 12 percent of total operating costs. Because energy makes up a large portion of cannabis operating costs, efforts to reduce energy consumption can have a significant effect on a grow operation’s profit margin, as well as the business’s overall competitiveness. Many states with legalized cannabis markets also have their own energy-efficiency goals, making those state governments interested in working with the cannabis industry to reduce energy consumption. Also, many utilities have programs to help cannabis cultivators reduce their energy consumption. This article outlines pointers to gain control over your energy costs and pad your bottom line.

February 2019

• New Study Finds Electric Vehicles Could Help Nevada Economy in Multiple Ways
  Channel 2 News Reno, Nevada - February 1, 2019
  The station ran this story covering electric cars and the Nevada economy interviewing Matt Frommer, Senior Transportation Associate at SWEEP, about the growing popularity of EVs and the gas and maintenance cost savings realized by EV owners. Also noted is the increasing affordability given available tax credits and the lower cost of lithium ion batteries. This broadcast preceded today’s Nevada Electric Transportation Forum being held in Reno from 8:00 am 1:30 pm PST. To watch the livestream event go to the SWEEP Events page and follow the link.

January 2019

• The 2018 IECC is Fair to the Solar Industry
  Code Watcher - January 16, 2019
  The online publication picked up the blog from SWEEP's Jim Meyers. "Solar energy and efficiency are not the same thing, and cannot be traded off one-for-one. There are technical reasons why a house with solar PV needs different insulation levels than a house without it. The latest model energy code, the 2018 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), was widely developed, agreed to, and supported by the homebuilders, the solar industry, and local building officials in a lengthy and inclusive process. The IECC works as a kind of clean energy ecosystem, where changing just one small item can unbalance the rest of the system."
• Environmentalists are demanding aggressive action on climate change. How far will Colorado Democrats go?
  Colorado Sun - January 2, 2019
  Climate change is emerging as the top legislative priority on the political left, where environmental advocates and Democratic lawmakers are hoping to turn Colorado’s blue wave into a green one. So while low prices of clean energy have gotten most of the credit for reducing Colorado’s electrical emissions, gains in energy efficiency have been the bigger driver of emission reductions since 2008, according to SWEEP’s analysis of energy usage data.