U.S. Department of Energy
Free Resources Available: The 1995 NREL Information Resources Catalogue is intended to inform anyone interested in energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies of NREL's outreach activities, including publications and services. The services section of the catalogue represents many ways in which NREL makes information available to the public, including a visitors' center, electronic networks, and information hotlines. Documents listed were published by NREL in fiscal year 1995 and include general interest publications, technical reports, conference papers, journal articles, and patents.

The EnergyPubs Disk is produced by NREL and the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy's Technical Information Program. It is a compilation of general interest publications produced during fiscal year 1995 on renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies. Files are in an ASCII format that is compatible with any word processing software. Users are encouraged to pull information from these files for use in their own publications. The catalogue and disk are free in limited quantities and can be obtained through the document distribution service at (303) 275-4363 (phone), (303) 275-4053 (fax), or evanss@tcplink.nrel.gov (email). Contact: Anne Jones, (303) 275-3678.

Arizona
Photovoltaic Workshops Offered in Arizona
In conjunction with Solar Energy International (SEI) of Carbondale, Colorado, the Energy Office is participating in two photovoltaic workshops in Northern Arizona this spring. The workshops, offered by SEI, will include a hands-on installation at two sites selected by the Energy Office. Photovoltaic panels, donated to the state by John F. Long Homes, will be installed at Red Rock State Park Environmental Education Center and at Flagstaff Unified School District's Camp Colton outdoor learning center.

The Energy Office has provided financial support and donated PV panels to Camp Cooper Environmental Education Center in Tucson, which was also used by SEI for the hands-on portion of its photovoltaic workshop. More than 100 people, including many international visitors, have attended the week-long workshops offered by SEI in Arizona.

Contact: Jim Arwood, (602) 280-1402

Teachers Receive $10,000 for Energy Education
The Arizona Department of Commerce Energy Office recently awarded 34 teachers representing 14 schools a total of $10,000 in educational mini-grants. More than 75 teachers submitted applications detailing proposed energy education projects/programs. Mini-grants ranging from $140 to $500 were awarded to teachers from the communities of Somerton, Kingman, Mt. Lemon, Phoenix, Chandler, Avondale, Tucson, Yuma, and Cottonwood.

The Energy Education Mini-Grant Program is announced at the beginning of each school year, and awards are made by December 1. The next grant cycle is scheduled for September, 1997.

Contact: Jim Arwood, (602) 280-1402

Iowa
Department of Natural Resources WWW Home Page
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources Energy Bureau announces the development of its World Wide Web home page. The home page offers an introduction to the bureau, the bureau's mission statements, program description, contact list, publications list, current happenings, case studies, success stories, and links to other energy-related home pages. To view the home page point your browser at http://www.state.ia.us/government/dnr/energy/index.htm.

Contact: Dave Evans, (515) 281-6150

Iowa's 1996 Energy Leadership Award Recipients
From students learning to construct houses, to a resource center for engineers and contractors, to an architectural firm that specializes in beautiful and functional designs, Iowa's Energy Leaders are building in efficiency. From a small rural electric cooperative to the state's largest investor-owned utility, Iowa's Energy Leaders are helping communities. Each year the Iowa Department of Natural Resources recognizes Iowa's Energy Leaders for their innovations in efficiency and renewables. This year's winners of the Iowa Energy Leadership Awards are:

• MidAmerican Energy, for the Charles City Be Energy Efficient Project
• The Iowa Energy Center's Energy Resource Station
• EH Associates Inc. Architects/Engineers
• Iowa Central Community College Carpentry Program
• Linn County Rural Electric Cooperative

The awards were presented on October 15 during the annual "Iowa's Pursuit of Energy Efficiency" conference in Des Moines.

Contact: Patti Cale, (515) 281-8665

Kansas
Kansas Adopts New Thermal Standards
In response to the Energy Policy Act of 1992, Kansas has adopted the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers' and Illuminating Engineers' Society Standard 90.1-89 and the Code of American Building Officials' 1993 Model Energy Code as thermal standards in new commercial and residential buildings, respectively. The new standards will be effective beginning January, 1997. To help the building community meet these standards, the Kansas Corporation Commission has contracted with Engineering Extension at Kansas State University to conduct statewide workshops on both ASHRAE/IES Standard 90 and MEC 93 this fall.

Contact: Mike Dorcey, (913) 532-4996

Kentucky
SWAT Jr. Meeting
The Kentucky Division of Energy scheduled a one-day meeting for December 2 for teachers and students participating in its Students Weatherization/Audit Training (SWAT Jr.) Program. One teacher and two students from each of 16 schools that took part in the three-day training in late September were expected to attend. Under the SWAT Jr. program, the teacher/student teams learn how to conduct a simple energy audit of their schools' buildings. They then return to their schools and assemble a "SWAT Team" of students who perform the actual energy audit. The SWAT Team is expected to evaluate no-cost/low-cost operational and maintenance changes, rank (according to simple payback) energy efficiency opportunities requiring capital investment, and conduct a public awareness campaign, either in the school, in the community, or both. A detailed "how-to" manual (the Atlanta Student Audit Program) outlining how states can set up a similar program has been developed under a contract with US DOE's Atlanta Support Office.

Contact: Greg Guess, (502) 564-7192

Louisiana
Energy Rated Homes of Louisiana (ERHL)
The goal of this program is to increase residential energy efficiency and provide more affordable housing. Through a system that rates a home's relative energy efficiency and predicts total energy costs, ERHL recommends ways homeowners can improve energy consumption and increase a home's potential to use energy more efficiently.

The plan uses a five-star rating system with five stars being the most efficient. A house upgraded to a four-star home, one having more efficient heating and cooling with little fugitive air loss, can reap annual savings of $302.60 and 20.9 million BTUs. These savings can be applied to an Energy Efficient Mortgage (EEM) where lenders are allowed to stretch a buyer's debt-to-income ratio in order to qualify for more financing.

This program will enable people to buy more home for their money while conserving energy, protecting the environment, and saving money.

Contact: A. Dane Cross, (504) 342-1399

Mississippi
Southern States Energy Board
The Honorable Kirk Fordice, Governor of Mississippi, has been elected chairman of the Southern States Energy Board (SSEB). The SSEB, a regional organization created in 1960, serves 16 states and two territories on energy and environmental issues and their economic impact on Southern states.

Fordice has commended the state's energy efficiency in economic development activities and recognized the state's energy director, Chester Smith, for promoting use of Mississippi energy resources, among them a multi-million dollar project tapping the state's lignite reserves.

In a recent news release, Fordice said, "We are really in exciting times, particularly with the transition taking place in the electric power industry. We are witnessing competition in an industry that has been a regulated monopoly."

Contact: Dot Lambert, (601) 359-6600

The 1996 NASEO Annual Meeting
The Energy Division of the Mississippi Department of Economic and Community Development hosted the 10th annual meeting for the National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO). Approximately 150 representatives of state energy offices and territories and affiliated associations and industries attended the September 15-18, 1996, meeting in Biloxi, Mississippi.

The agenda addressed a variety of topics, including utility deregulation, alternative fuels, energy supplies, and other state and federal issues. During the meeting, NASEO members elected a new board of directors, and Chester B. Smith, Director of the Energy Division of the Mississippi Department of Economic and Community Development, was elected Chairman.

Contact: Rebecca Myers, (601) 359-6600

North Carolina
Energy Division Forges Alliance With Public Housing Authorities, CAAs
In the fall of 1997, the North Carolina Energy Division will kick off a push to create a new partnership between community action agencies and public housing communities. The new project, under the aegis of the U.S. Department of Energy's Rebuild America program, will bring together representatives from the Energy Division, public housing, local government, industry, and community action agencies to identify areas where conservation improvements will significantly reduce energy consumption.

The Division received $100,000 from US DOE to initiate a far-reaching program that coordinates energy efficiency efforts among community action agencies, housing authorities, and the Energy Division, including about 168 housing authorities in the state, 31 community action agencies, and numerous local government and industry representatives. The proposed partnerships will not affect performance contracting.

The Rebuild America demonstration project will emphasize energy audits, long-term tracking, and analyses of actual energy savings obtained from work performed. The Division's Energy Training and Technology Center will provide the partnerships with training and technical assistance. Training is expected to begin with a series of workshops and seminars at different sites-including public housing and community action designated sites-throughout the state. The Training and Technology Center also will provide basic training on energy audits and analysis, air infiltration reduction techniques, heating and boiler systems analysis, and analyses of cost savings benefits derived from energy efficiency renovations.

Contact: Rick Benton, (919) 733-1902

Oregon
Study Highlights Need for Low-Income Weatherization
Two out of three low-income households in Oregon-nearly 150,000-live in unweatherized homes, according to a report by the Oregon Office of Energy. Some 37,000 low-income homes in Oregon have been weatherized since the mid-1980s, according to the report-the vast majority by Oregon's community action agencies. They have been weatherizing about 3,000 homes each year.

But future funding for low-income weatherization is in jeopardy, according to the report. Funds have come mainly from the federal government. In 1996, funding for its major weatherization program was cut by nearly one half. As Congress continues its federal budget cutting efforts, weatherization funds could decline even more, or be cut entirely.

The state's energy suppliers, particularly the electric utilities, also fund weatherization. But as they move toward a more competitive market, utilities have little incentive to fund low-income weatherization.

The issue of future funding for low-income weatherization is being deliberated regionwide. In January, Governor John Kitzhaber and the governors of Washington, Idaho, and Montana named a committee to look at how restructuring the electric utility industry would affect the region. One of the concerns is how to ensure utility funding for low-income weatherization.

The committee's draft report calls for a 10-year commitment by the region's electric utilities to fund weatherization for low-income households through a 0.4 percent assessment on utility sales. Regionwide, that represents roughly $30 million a year, based on 1995 figures. The committee will present its final recommendations to the governors in December.

In Oregon, legislation concerning electric utility restructuring may be taken up in the next legislative session. Funding for low-income weatherization may be one of the issues it considers.

In its report, the Energy Office makes the following recommendations:

Develop long-term funding that ideally speeds up the number of homes that are weatherized each year but that, at a minimum, is adequate to maintain the current pace.

Continue to weatherize homes to a level that makes heating significantly more affordable. The cost of weatherizing a low-income home is averaging about $3,000.

Weatherize homes no matter what the heat source. Unweatherized homes pose a burden to low-income households whether they heat with electricity, gas, oil, or wood.

Set annual goals for the number of homes to be weatherized and report progress to the funders.

For a copy of the report, call the Oregon Office of Energy: 1-800-221-8035 (toll-free in Oregon) or (503) 378-4040 (Salem/out-of-state).

Contact: Steve Sautter, (503) 378-8278

South Carolina
South Carolina Leads South in Special Project Grants
The South Carolina Energy Office has been awarded $250,000 by US DOE to develop and implement a Rebuild America State Action Plan and a $50,000 Motor Challenge grant to increase statewide market penetration on energy-efficient industrial electric motor driven systems. South Carolina ranks 11th in the nation in competitive special project grants.

The Energy Office will use Rebuild America grant funds over a two-year period to expand its Energy Bank Partnership program into local government and commercial sectors in eight communities throughout the state. The Energy Bank Partnership is an on-going program that provides comprehensive energy efficiency assistance to state agencies and public school districts. The program involves energy needs analysis and planning, and project selection, implementation, financing, and measurement.

With the new funding, the Energy Office will partner with local governments, Enterprise Communities, housing authorities, non-profit community service providers, and a variety of business and professional organizations to market and implement energy efficiency throughout the state. Grant funds will be used to conduct energy audits and engineering analyses of targeted facilities and to verify, monitor, and report energy savings. Additionally, funds will be used to train community-based individuals to conduct energy audits, determine and implement energy savings measures, as well as verify, monitor, and report.

Wherever possible, the Energy Office will assist Rebuild American clients in obtaining project financing from pre-qualified private lenders, energy service companies, and other resources. Projects eligible for financing will typically have payback periods of eight years or less.

The Motor Challenge grant will be used to partner with utilities, trade associations, industry representatives, and existing industrial technologies programs to promote awareness of the economic benefits of energy-efficient drives and motors, provide energy-efficient drives and motors workshops for industry technicians, and provide follow-up technical assistance to industrial consumers.

The major focus of this program will be in the pulp and paper industry and in the state's 450 rural and small municipal water and wastewater operations. Project partners will include electric utilities, the Southeastern Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry (TAPPI), and the South Carolina Rural Water Association. Other partners will include the Southeastern Environmental Resources Alliance, the University of South Carolina, Clemson University, the South Carolina Department of Commerce, and the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control Office of Waste Minimization.

Potential motor-related savings to South Carolina industries are enormous. Industries in the state spend over $700 million annually to power electric motor systems. Studies show that in many situations, energy cost savings of more than 40 percent can be achieved by using a systems approach to electric motor management.

Contact: Rene Daggerhart, (803) 737-8030

Wisconsin
Energy Efficiency Plays a Part in Community's Recovery
When a train carrying several tanker cars of liquid propane derailed and began to burn in downtown Weyauwega last March, the entire city had to be evacuated on a moment's notice. Most residents in a two-mile radius were not allowed to return to their homes for three weeks. When they did, many people found that water pipes had frozen and burst and other damage had occurred to their heating systems and major appliances. While recovery funds came from the railroad and others, Governor Thompson and the legislature saw this as an opportunity to help the city improve energy efficiency and save money. They directed the Wisconsin Energy Bureau to allocate $100,000 in oil overcharge funds to support energy-efficiency improvements in the community. Most of the funds were used to replace and improve lighting in the water treatment plant, the elementary school, and on several sports fields in the city. In addition, some municipal buildings will have new, energy-efficient windows, furnaces, and water heaters. With the remaining funds the Energy Bureau developed an appliance replacement program for homes and businesses affected by the evacuation. Residents may apply for cost sharing funds to help purchase new energy-efficient furnaces, boilers, water heaters, and refrigerators.

Contact: Jim Amp, (608) 2668020

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