Vermont public power utility Burlington Electric Department in partnership with the Burlington 2030 District has helped to reduce building energy consumption through a project funded by a grant from the American Public Power Association’s Demonstration of Energy & Efficiency Developments program.
The DEED program funds research, pilot projects, and education to improve the operations and services of public power utilities.
BED submitted a report with DEED detailing its work with the Burlington 2030 District to reduce building energy consumption in the City of Burlington’s residential sector via development and implementation of Property Energy Plans (PEP).
The DEED grant project activities were carried out starting September 1, 2021 through the delivery of the final DEED report on December 31, 2024. The grant award was $47,000.
Property Energy Plans developed and delivered during the scope of this grant provided an energy benchmark for each property, a summary of findings, and a roadmap addressing opportunities for property owners/managers to meet building energy reduction performance goals, BED noted in the report.
“Building on the success of a previous DEED grant focused on PEP development in the commercial sector, this project has allowed BED (in partnership with the Burlington 2030 District) to hone the PEP model for multi-unit and residential sector properties, including the creation of portfolio assessments and a streamlined residential PEP-inspired report utilizing the PEP template,” the report noted.
By engaging the residential sector on a broader level and prioritizing properties that emphasize affordability and equity, BED said that it has begun to see bolstered engagement with the multi-unit residential sector to reduce building energy consumption.
The public power utility said that the majority of the project goals were successfully achieved during the duration of this DEED grant project.
This has included, among other things:
• The development of PEPs for 22 unique buildings
• The honing of the PEP portfolio assessment tool
• Creation of a new streamlined PEP-inspired report geared towards smaller residential buildings
• Continued engagement and follow-up with property owners, managers and customers who have received PEPs
• The hosting and facilitation of a successful energy benchmarking training geared towards multi-family properties, and
• The creation of a case study featuring a multi-family customer that has successfully taken action to reduce building energy consumption through the PEP program.
While many of the property owners are in the process of taking action to reduce building energy consumption, some customers who have received PEPs face financial and capacity obstacles that limit immediate action, the report said.
Burlington’s Net Zero Energy by 2030 Goal
The City’s Net Zero Energy by 2030 goal is to reduce and eventually eliminate fossil fuel use from the heating and ground transportation sectors.
Achieving this goal will require substantial reductions in energy use, and BED has been working in partnership with the Burlington 2030 District to reduce building energy consumption, water use and transportation emissions in the commercial sectors since 2017 as a means to address this goal, the report noted.
While commercial accounts for about 75% of BED’s annual kWh sales, the City’s Net Zero Energy vision and Burlington 2030 District performance goals include the entire
City of Burlington, including the residential and multi-unit sector properties.
“With 17,200 residential customers accounting for about 25% of BED’s annual kWh sales, this sector cannot be overlooked in BED’s pursuit of its important Net Zero Energy vision and goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and energy use City-wide,” BED said. “Ultimately, the City of Burlington and BED will need to reach and engage all of its residents.”
BED noted that 60% of Burlington residents reside in rental units. Because many residents rent their homes, property owners may be less likely to invest in building efficiency when the renters are the ones who pay the energy bills and receive the energy and bill savings.
In addition, in light of the local student population, a significant portion of residents relocate annually, posing a challenge that Burlington will need to address to achieve its goal.
Prior to the start of this DEED grant project, BED and the Burlington 2030 District had developed PEPs for over 35 buildings, with a focus on larger commercial customers and Burlington 2030 District property owner/manager members. Additional creation of PEPs for the residential sector was needed, including the development of best practices for engaging this important sector.
With the DEED grant funding received, BED and the Burlington 2030 District team have been able to provide additional support to ensure the energy efficiency recommendations outlined in the PEP and provided by BED become realized. This has included routine PEP follow-up meetings with the property owner/manager (utility customers), BED, the Burlington 2030 District staff and engineering team and other local utility Vermont Gas, the report noted.
The DEED program funds research, pilot projects, and education to improve the operations and services of public power utilities.
