Report on NOx Emissions Reduction from Voluntary Energy Efficiency Projects within the Alamo Area Council of Governments to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, August 2003

ESL used the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s (TCEQ) Guide for Incorporating Energy Efficiency/Renewable Energy (EE/RE) Projects into the SIP for local entities dated February 6, 2004 to survey potential projects in the AACOG area that occurred after the State’s base period, September 1, 2001, for their local Clean Air Plan. Engineers from the Texas Engineering Experiment Station surveyed major building owners for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects within the AACOG’s jurisdiction. A detailed description of the larger efficiency projects that occurred after the base period was obtained including size, type of energy improvements, location of documents, source of savings estimates, and if the projects were mandatory (i.e., required by federal, state or local ordnance). The documented savings were then converted to NOx emissions reductions on a tons/year and tons/peak-day basis using TCEQ/ESL’s emissions reduction methodology and EPA’s eGRID emissions data base. Annual project savings from monthly utility bills compared to a weather-normalized base period were obtained whenever possible. When utility bills were not available, engineering estimates were used for the project savings.The Energy Systems Laboratory (ESL) at the Texas Engineering Experiment Station, Texas A&M University System was contacted by Mr. Peter Bella of the Alamo Area Council of Governments (AACOG) to help document large-scale, energy efficiency projects for credit within their 2004 Clean Air Plan. The purpose of this study is two-fold: 1) estimate the creditable emissions reductions from energy efficiency actions in AACOG regions, and 2) serve as a pilot project for documenting and calculating emissions reductions for TCEQ. The survey was conducted from February through March 2004