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Statewide LG EE Best Practices: Weekly Update
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Upcoming Workshop: Consumer Choice and Clean Power
Make sure to sign up for this weeks workshop on consumer choice energy and how it can benefit your community.
Register Here for Visalia!
Register Here for Fresno!
Have A Great Idea for Transportation in Fresno?
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A Public Market in Downtown Fresno
A Public Market in Fresno…
Imagine a public market in downtown Fresno. A place where your senses come alive, where local foods such as the aroma of fresh ground coffee mingles with Jamaican jerk chicken and spicy greens sizzling in a pot. The scent of artisan baked hot bread fresh from the oven interlaced with sweet potato pie cooling on the counter. The sounds of blues or jazz heard in the distance from a street musician in the public area. Visiting Fresno’s public market would be a feast for all senses, a place to experience familiar taste from the homeland of your ancestors, a place to experiment with new flavors that animate your taste buds with the tang of new and exciting palates.
Imagine a public market in downtown Fresno. A place where your senses come alive, where local foods such as the aroma of fresh ground coffee mingles with Jamaican jerk chicken and spicy greens sizzling in a pot. The scent of artisan baked hot bread fresh from the oven interlaced with sweet potato pie cooling on the counter. The sounds of blues or jazz heard in the distance from a street musician in the public area. Visiting Fresno’s public market would be a feast for all senses, a place to experience familiar taste from the homeland of your ancestors, a place to experiment with new flavors that animate your taste buds with the tang of new and exciting palates.
I close my eyes and envision a fiesta of color, scents and exciting products. I can’t help but to have a smile on my face when I think of this. Well, my wishing may be over soon. On Wednesday January 9th, from 10 – 12 noon, (CA Raisin Marketing Board Room, 2445 Capitol St. in Civic Center Sq) public market expert Ted Spitzer will be in town to talk with the City about public markets and the steps to create one. This visit could be the first step in preparing a feasibility study that will enable the financing and development of the Fresno Public Market. (City of Fresno, Elliott Balch)
I have been dreaming about this for years now and it is
finally in the planning stage. I for one am very excited about the possibility
of having a centralize location to get all my produce, specialty cheese and
meats, and to find those hard to find ethnic items that I love so much.
If we add up the GHG saving from a lesser number of trips to
the various farmers markets and supermarkets around town, otherwise known as
vehicle miles traveled, there is a considerable advantage. With the cost
savings in fuel and energy savings from a centralized location, I for one vote
a earsplitting YES!
Aside from my personal excitement, there are many benefits
from a public market in Fresno. Those benefits include building local
economies, job creation, social mixes, arts and cultures, health and nutrition
and last but not least environmental protection. For this blog I will focus on
the environmental protection aspect of public markets especially one located in
Fresno’s downtown area. We have to consider the fact that a public market will
use existing infrastructure, historic preservation and encourages recycling. It
would also lend to health and nutrition for our local community as the access
to quality fresh, local healthful foods along with organic foods would be
available 7-days a week at a set location without having to wonder, “Oh, its
Tuesday…where is there a farmers market today?” I’m excited thinking that
Fresno could have a place that would house small farmer sales, preserve green
space, while allowing the public to meet the producer.
Fresno is such a diverse, vital and culturally rich
community; ripe to embrace diverse foods and culture ready to reflect its
community’s character and heritage while meeting its everyday shopping needs –
especially for fresh foods. Public market shoppers are not only there for the
fresh foods, they go for the experience. Shoppers go to public markets for
fundamentally social reasons – to meet a friend, to people watch, to enjoy the
street musicians, to mix with people who are different from themselves. They go to immerse themselves in a vibrant,
pulsing, colorful place that is exciting and fun. They go to public markets for
free flu shots or the ethnic festival or to show their kids where food really
comes from. It also gives Fresno a venue for public awareness campaigns such as
energy conservation. Shameless plug…
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/antrover/7868344888/
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/antrover/7868344888/
Wellness Wednesday: Home Energy Tune Up
As a first-time homeowner of an older home I couldn't pass
up the opportunity for an energy audit courtesy of the City
of Fresno’s Home Energy Tune Up program. My parents and the majority of my
coworkers, including Courtney, participated in the program and absolutely loved
it! Essentially it is like a wellness visit to the doctor but for your house -
a little poking and prodding to make sure all is as it should be – and that is
why this post deserves a spot on Wellness Wednesday. Besides, there’s nothing
better than a free educational opportunity that can potentially put money back
in your pocket.
The Home Energy Tune Up program once tested the duct work within a home, but due to low program funds that has been eliminated from the
inspection. (Readers, please note that a little birdie told me additional
funding will be pumped into the program in the new year so you may want to wait
to sign up for your audit until after January.) I was looking forward to that
part, but the gentlemen ensured me for the age of the house and from the
initial readings that the duct work was likely in tip top shape – phew! They did
inspect our appliances, including the rooftop HVAC unit; took a peek in the
attic and below the house; checked out the PG&E meter; performed a blower door
test; and took thermography
images using an infrared camera. The blower test and thermography both serve to
figure out where there is heat loss and air leakage. We should receive the
thorough results within 2-3 weeks.
My home is on the smaller side so I could sit with our
kitties in their carriers* and watch as the men went to work. I spent a long
time chatting with them (the workers not the cats) about where one begins when
wanting to do energy efficiency projects on an older home like ours. Even
though I already know most of the information it was good reinforcement to keep
me on track instead of jumping on the bandwagon of purchasing the latest and
greatest EE gadgets (repeat: must resist Nest
for time being). Low and no cost solutions, such as weatherization and turning
off/unplugging appliances when not in use, are the first steps in becoming more
energy efficient. If you are a visual person, check out this video from Southern
California Edison’s Carl and Eddy. Once these steps have been conquered you can
move on to insulation, windows, appliances, and maybe even solar.
Unfortunately, these more expensive EE options are not
always financially feasible at the moment you may need/want to buy. Case in
point: our home did not come with a washer or dryer and while my mom’s folding
skills are pretty incredible, I didn't think it was fair or fun to haul our
dirty clothes to my parents’ house every weekend. It was totally against my original
plan, but we bit the bullet and made our first (non energy efficient) appliance
purchase. While I would have loved to purchase an Energy Star model, it was
absolutely out of our budget! Yes, it would have been an investment and I would
have reaped the rewards later; however, I could barely afford the pretty stands
for the units let alone the actual washer and dryer! We opted for a pair that
was rated high by customers and my wallet. The good news is we can still be
energy efficient when doing our laundry by following a few simple
tips from the EPA: utilize the cold setting on the washing machine; only
wash and dry full loads (and not too
full loads), remember to clean the lint trap after every load; and opt for air
drying when possible.
Moral of the story?
‘Life is what happens
to you while you’re busy making other plans.’ – John Lennon
Get to know the in’s and out’s of your home; educate and arm
yourself with energy efficiency knowledge; and do what you can, when you can. Having
a plan is great, but I am learning that having patience and flexibility is key!
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| Kitten Translation: this is BS. |
*If you have pets and
can take them outside or elsewhere during your audit I would highly recommend
it for your own sanity! Although Fig and Olive did okay for the most part and
enjoyed the company of the two men, the blower test sent them over the edge –
maybe due to noise or pressure changes. They are young and spry so the 45
minute disruption in their day wasn't too stressful in the end and they resumed
their roles as Prince and Princess of the kingdom.
Wellness Wednesday: Indoor Air Quality and Energy Efficiency
It’s official: escrow closed and the fiancé, two kitties,
and I are now in our new house. Phew! There was a gap of about a week and a
half from when we vacated our apartment and moved into the house. (Note to
readers: when you tell your apartment complex you plan to be out on a certain
day they will take you seriously!
Shout out to the U-haul of Mid City in Fresno for having a truck available last
minute.) My über generous parents took all four of us in and we took the
opportunity to make a few repairs and clean every nook and cranny before
settling in.
Low-VOC Paint: So long
stench!
The 1949 home had been vacant for a few years because the
previous owners (the one and only owners before us) had passed away and left
their five children in charge. The place is in pretty good condition for its
age and while it was empty for a few years, it was kept up nicely; however, one
thing I couldn't get past was the smell of ‘old’ – that would be the technical
term. Throwing out the frilly curtains definitely helped but I knew fresh paint
would make the place feel clean and personalized to fit our style. We used Valspar
Signature interior paint and primer which is one of the options on the
market for a low odor, low-VOC paint. I was absolutely adamant that our paint
choice be low or no VOC – like I have said before, control the controllables! Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)
are released from solids or liquids, such as paint, and can result in both
short-term and long-term adverse health effects including dizziness, fatigue,
headache, nausea, damage to internal organs and the central nervous system, and
possibly even cancer. These toxins are often a more significant factor in
indoor air pollution than outdoor air pollution! It is a frightening thought
that the comfort of our own homes may not be any better than the hazy Central
Valley skyline.
Other products that contain VOCs include paint thinners,
cleaning supplies, permanent markers, and glues and adhesives, to name a few. While
you might not always be able to completely avoid these and other products, I try
to search for the low and no VOC varieties and more natural alternatives. Side
note: I recently have started to make my own natural cleaning supplies (like
these here) with
basic pantry supplies to save money and to save the health of myself, my family
(including pets), and our environment. This also allows me to reuse containers
to help save energy that would have been used in the production of the plastic.
A word of caution when painting no matter what level VOC:
ventilate, ventilate, ventilate! Even the greener and more natural products can
be hazardous to your health if you trap yourself indoors with them. Lucky for
us our home needs some serious weatherization so while we froze painting at all hours of the night, the large one and two inch gaps around our
doors (check out the one in the pic on the right) kept the stench at bay and allowed for decent airflow. Who would have
thought a serious flaw would be so beneficial?
Home Energy Tune Up
In all seriousness and now that most of the painting is
complete we will definitely be taking care of those gaps to ensure an energy
efficient home. While I enjoy being very hands-on with my home improvement
projects it is important to have qualified professionals assess and work on
your home because, as I read in a 2011
online article, ‘Energy-Tight is Chemical-Tight’. It’s important not to go
overboard with the way you caulk and seal up your home because you could be
doing more harm than good. In order to avoid testing each bowl of porridge I
decided to go straight for the professional opinion so I could get it just right.
I recently signed up for the FREE
Home Energy Tune Up program offered through the City of Fresno. FREE: music
to my ears! The program offers Fresno and Madera county residents a professional,
whole house energy audit to help identify where homeowners can make
improvements and save on their energy bills. The audit includes a detailed
report, low and no cost solutions for saving energy and helps point a homeowner
in the right direction if and when he or she chooses to make improvements to
their home. Did I mention this is FREE? My parents not too long along had this
done on their home and discovered they had duct work that was completely
detached! No wonder they had such sky high utility bills! Our very own CourtneyKalashian went through the program as well and I
too look forward to sharing my own experience.
Here’s to a happy, healthy, energy-efficient home!
--Maureen
photo credit: Maureen Hoff
photo credit: http://www.fresno.gov/Government/DepartmentDirectory/DARM/HomeTuneUp/Default.htm
City of Fresno Buttons Me Up
*Editors Note: this post ran on a personal blog in October 2011. The Home Energy Tune Up program is in a ramp down period for the remainder of 2012 but will return in full-force in 2013 through funding from Pacific Gas & Electric Company, the California Public Utilities Commission and California Rate Payers. To track the status of this program you can check in here on our blog and at the City of Fresno website. Now, on to the home-shaming.
I carry an albatross of inefficiency.
My home was built in 1977 and for 33 years sat untouched by the hands of my husband's grandmother. To her credit, she did install shutters on the eastern facing windows, but I'm fairly certain that was more aesthetic than for cooling purposes.
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| Looking pretty and leaking $ |
Now, as one who is compensated for evangelizing energy efficiency you would expect that my own home's efficiency was a top priority. Especially given that our monthly electric and gas bill exceeded our mortgage costs six months out of the year. It wasn't until this spring that we even started thinking about "buttoning up the house".
California, despite the boondoggle of a PACE program, has introduced some rather enticing mechanisms to incentivize homeowners to make efficiency upgrades to their home. After sitting through no less than 17 presentations on Energy Upgrade California/Residential Retrofit/Weatherization I decided that our home was ready for a makeover!
My husband immediately wanted solar. However, I knew we would be paying an arm and a leg for an over-sized solar array if we didn't get the house tuned up first. And, like we say to every city manager and public works director up and down the Valley--solar isn't worth a penny until you address your inefficiency first.
Now, here is where I profess I have a work-crush on Steven Chu. Yup, that's right Secretary of Energy Steven Chu. Mostly because he isn't afraid to speak out about gas prices, touts efficiency as a saving grace, and because he can tie-in energy storage with the latest Harry Potter release. I also really respect his personal efforts to make his home a pinnacle of energy savings. Secretary Chu has insulated, sealed and gone tankless; resulting in big time savings. So, I figured if the Secretary of Energy of the United States can take the time to insulate his pipes, the least I can do is pay someone to do it for me!
And so it began. I made my own list of "to-do's":
- insulate the attic and lee walls
- duct inspection and sealing
- AC tune-up
Insulate hot water heaterReplace hot water heater with tankless hot water heater- solar shade on transom windows
In a chicken/egg scenario I can't say whether I made my list because I wanted to be more efficient or because the City of Fresno was launching a "Home Energy Tune-Up" program, free to homeowners (disclaimer: my Organization is was a sub-sub-contractor to the City on this project. We assist in outreach to local governments.). Likely, a little of both.
Regardless of professional involvement, the steps of the program are so incredibly simple!
- Schedule a free home energy survey by calling (855) 621-3733 or filling out an online form
- Be home during a 3-4 hour walk-thru survey to determine where energy is wasted
- Receive a detailed report from your inspector with no-cost and low-cost ideas to improvement
There is even assistance for accessing rebates and incentives, as well as financing option for advanced upgrades.
Our survey was completed on a Friday morning by Nathaniel Zayas of AmeriSpec, and took a little longer than four hours, but mostly because I asked him a zillion questions at every step, and because he was being assisted by this guy:
To my great surprise, our house wasn't in as bad shape as I thought it was. The average home inspected has a 20% duct leakage. After the blower test, it turned out that ours were leaking less than 10%. Our AC, as it turns out, is functioning better than expected given that it is original to the home. We're pretty diligent about having it checked, but who's to say what Grandma did all those years so that was indeed a nice surprise. The unit is way too big, but in all honesty that's something that I'm willing to pay extra because come July and that 20 day streak above 100 degrees I'll be glad for the chill.
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| Dutch, our St. Bernard and Assistant Inspector |
The real offenders are the furnace, the hot water heater, and the windows.
Because we're not opting into the Energy Upgrade California program (although EUCA is awesome and if you're considering major efficiency improvements I strongly recommend you look into it) we'll be paying for each improvement upfront, in full. With those financial realities I set up something SJVCEO recommended to local governments as gospel--a revolving energy loan fund. Here's how it works:
- you have an upfront amount of money that you decide you're willing to spend on upgrades. In our case that was $1,000.
- Next, you determine your project, and what your rebate is and what you can expect for a payback on the investment. For us, we wanted to do insulation first. One, the whole house and lee walls could be insulted within our budget. Two, we had Z-E-R-O insulation in our home and it gets cold...and hot. PG&E was offering a $300 rebate on the work, so in the end our cost was $900. Pre-insulation our combined electric and gas bill on an average month was $400. The insulation saves approximately 10% each month, so the payback would be about 18 months. We liked that.
- Once you know your project, do it. In our case we went with Masterguard Insulation and Windows and they were fantastic. Quick, clean, and considerate. I'm not sure Dutch got to help out, but he seems pretty happy with the end product. In the months of post-insulation bills the project is actually saving an average of 18% per month! That means the project paid itself off in five and a half months!
- Finally, take your rebate and the money you've saved on utility bills and reinvest in your next project! Ours is probably going to be a tankless hot water heater. I expect it will be another $1,000 project with the product and installation
- Repeat as necessary until you've got your home buttoned up and running smooth!
Have I loosened that albatross? Not quite; I still have a ways to go before I can feel like our home is pinnacle of efficiency, but at least I no longer feel like there's a dirty secret I'm hiding! The truth is, energy upgrading your home is no different than any other DIY/home improvement project: it just takes time and commitment to making a better quality of living for you and your family...our your Saint Bernard.
photo credits: all photos property of Courtney Kalashian
What is Localism? Can it really work in Fresno?
lo·cal·ism [loh-kuh-liz-uhm] : a philosophy that puts a priority on local economics.
Simply put, it is the idea of buying local, local control of
government and the promotion of local history, culture and identity. I ask why have we not embraced
the idea years ago? With the eclectic population we host in the area there is
an endless supply of culture and diversity that the mainstream
public doesn't even know about or have the opportunity to enjoy. Now,
throw in the reduced carbon footprint and cost savings that localism promotes
and Fresno has the ideal mix for a successful localism movement!
We can promote this idea more.
We must promote this idea more.
I do realize Fresno has a “buy
local” campaign, (I don’t live in a cave all the time) but we as a public need
to start thinking differently. It is time to change the status quo and start
acting (not just thinking) outside the box. We need a more walk-able livable and climate
friendly community to leave as a legacy for our children and grandchildren.
In theory, localism sounds great and
it’s something Craig Scharton, from the City of Fresno, has been preaching from
the day I met him on a brisk morning back in 2009. Craig gave me my first tour
of the Fulton Mall and invited me into a discussion about where the downtown
area should be heading. I for one am very excited that the City of Fresno
gets it! Fresno seems to understand where to start researching our past
mistakes and how far back to look in an effort to make right the mistakes of
our predecessors in planning to best move downtown revitalization forward.
I have often wondered why, when we live in one of the most
productive areas in the country, we don’t have a co-op of growers, craftsmen,
winemakers, artist, bakeries and such; much like Seattle’s’ PIKES PLACE market.
California’s agricultural abundance includes more than 400 commodities,
the state produces nearly half of the U.S. – grown fruits, nuts and vegetables
and Fresno County is the
nations’ leading agricultural county with nearly 5 billion a year in farm
product sales.
When I began looking at this issue
it sounded wonderful, almost silver bullet wonderful. Oh, what I would give to
have a resource like this in the downtown area. It just seems to logical not to
already be in place. Fresno has the agriculture, artisans, craftsman,
restaurants, bakers and winemakers; Fresno has the space on the Fulton Mall;
The City of Fresno is looking for more anchors for the downtown area.
Will somebody just do this, (not so small project) and give our community a
venue to show off all Fresno County has to be proud of?
“Changing a local economic
system starts by changing its most basic industries: agriculture, energy,
manufacturing, retail, building and transportation and capital. When these
sectors are transformed into localized, sustainable, green- and
community-focused industries, the entire economy is transformed.”
The greening of America push-button style
The second was this blog by K. Kaufmann of my old employer, The Desert Sun in Palm Springs, who correctly opined that creating nifty green technology is one thing, but persuading people to change their behavior enough to use it is entirely different. Hence the Green Button campaign, designed to forge a more personal connection with power bills.
The third was this GreenBiz.com post about businesses having trouble keeping up with the demand for green products.
It is apparent that a green tint is spreading, albeit unevenly. Businesses, universities, governments and more individuals are heeding the message of clean energy and efficiency. This blog links to statistics confirming the increasing awareness that stems from a desire to either save money or to do the right thing environmentally.
But the transformation won't occur overnight. The benefits of new lights, air conditioners and weatherization are tough to sell, especially when there is an upfront cost.
I calculated a 9% return on an investment of $1,700 in energy-related upgrades at my 1,500-square-foot house near Fresno, but I've been putting off the work: A $1,700 expenditure is hard to justify with a kid in college, even with a payback of only a few years. Tuition payments sure aren't going down.
Energy efficiency is like an economic stimulus. Our nonprofit is wrapping up a grant project involving about three dozen local governments from Stanislaus to Kern counties in Central California. The cities and counties, using federal stimulus money, replaced energy-guzzling lights, pump motors, air conditioner components and other equipment, saving thousands of dollars and reducing their carbon footprints.
Most of those governments have shredded budgets and deep cuts in staffing, so saving money through energy efficiency is a boost. In some cases, it likely prevented additional layoffs.
In another measure, Fresno city officials crunched utility data to calculate that a successful comprehensive energy conservation and retrofit program equates to an economic boost of $260 million. Talk about stimulus! More on that here.
Energy conservation is the easiest and perhaps most cost-effective way to save money, improve the economy and start down the green path. That's why it is commonly referred to as the "low-hanging fruit" of the green-energy movement. Maybe that description isn't accurate: As the head of the federal Department of Energy says here, "It is fruit on the ground."