Energy Conservation Program - Annual Report
Per Executive Order W-83-94, Caltrans submits an annual status report that highlights the Department's efforts to implement cost effective energy conservation projects. The document's table of contents has been modified from the paper version to allow the reader to live link to each element of the report.
Link to 2004 Annual Report in Acrobat
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Report Structure Overview
The 2004 Energy Conservation Plan Status Report is an annual report prepared by the Department to highlight completed, in-progress and “under study” energy conservation opportunities available as the Department conducts the State’s transportation business. This report reviews the Department’s energy activities for the calendar year of 2003.
The report is divided into three parts:
- Executive Summary: Short overview of the Department's Energy Conservation Program.
- The Energy Conservation Plan Status Reports: Reports on how and where the Department uses energy, highlights of current conservation activities, and the impact of implemented and future conservation activities.
- Energy Conservation Opportunities: Compilation of implemented and “under study” solutions that are the core of the Department’s Energy Conservation Program.
Energy Facts:
- By the mid-1990s, the Department was spending over $32 million in energy resources every year for its day-to-day operations.
- The Department's major energy consuming activities include:
- Lighting the State's highway system.
- Powering facility lighting, heating/cooling/ventilation systems, computer-related operations.
- Lighting and ventilating State maintained tunnels.
- Fueling the Department’s maintenance fleet.
- In 1994, Department of General Services (DGS) was directed by Executive Order W-83-94 to set savings goals for the top 10 energy-consuming departments and educational institutions. The Department’s 10-year goal is $51.06 million in net savings or about $5.1 million per year. These goals only include non-vehicular energy consumption by the Department.
- Value of energy savings during 2003 for projects implemented or being implemented nets out to $16.2 million.
- This report describes the Department’s activities and identifies those areas of energy conservation.
- The Department has aggressively implemented energy conservation projects since the mid-1970's. Conversion of highway lighting systems to high-pressure sodium fixtures allowed improved lighting conditions while reducing energy costs by 50 percent. These savings continue to this day.
- Most of the Department’s low cost energy retrofits were implemented during the 1980’s and early 1990’s.
- During the 1990’s, the Department set national standards, and was a national leader, with the private sector, to develop the Light Emitting Diode (LED) traffic signal module.
- The LED traffic signal field test in District 6 won both the California Energy Commission’s 1995 Award of Merit for Industrial Technology and the Department of Energy’s 1995 National Energy Award.
- LED signals can reduce connected grid load up to 92 percent and last over six times longer than the incandescent signal fixture it replaces.
- The Department statewide full-color LED signal upgrade project expects to be completed during 2002/2003 fiscal year.
- In 2002, the National Association of State Facilities Administrators recognized the Department with two energy awards based upon the Departments total approach to energy conservation. One award was for Best Innovations in the field of “Design/Operations” and the final award was for “Overall Best Innovations” and was awarded by the Council of State Government of America.
- In 2003, the Department continued its work with other governmental agencies and interested private sector partners in developing hydrogen power generation options for both the transportation and “Green” power productions. The “Hydrogen Highway” project is supported by both the previous and current administration. The department identified a number of its facilities that would be initial test sites for both the production/storage of hydrogen for use as a transportation fuel, as well as an energy source for the onsite production of electricity. On site hydrogen production would be supplied through the use of photovoltaic (PV) panels integrated into the facility roof and covered parking structures.
- In 2003, the Department made a commitment to the California Power Authority (CPA) to participate in their efforts to establish government/private sector PV electricity generation partnerships. Whereby the participating government agencies would provide on-site solar access to the private sector PV power generation suppliers. The government agencies would agree to purchase all the generated power at a discounted price from the local utility. Implementation is expected to start in 2004, once CPA lets the Department of Finance (DOF)/Department of General Services (DGS) approved contracts. The Department’s first candidate site is the District 10 HQ complex.
- 2003 saw three replacement district HQ projects (D-11 in San Diego; D-7 in Los Angeles; D-3 in Marysville) incorporate sustainable design features, including energy systems which improves upon Title 24 standards, improved air and water quality projects, use of recycled materials, natural lighting, and improved site prep and construction methods. Working with DGS and DOF, the Department expects to receive the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED Certified Award for the D-11 complex, a Silver award for the D-7 complex, and hopes to qualify for “Silver” or maybe “Gold” award for its D-3 project.
- In 2003, the Department continued its implementation of induction lighting upgrades on roadway sign lighting systems, and started a human factors testing program for the possible application of induction lighting systems for roadway lighting. The California Energy Commission’s 2005 Title 24 standards set new exterior lighting standards for the State, and the Department is very interested in finding ways to reduce wasted nighttime lighting, improve the quality of lighting and reduce light glare impacts.
Conservation Opportunities Summary:
The Department is currently in the study or implementation phase of 26 energy conservation projects. The Energy Conservation Opportunities (ECOs) discussed in this report are separated into seven categories:
- Traffic Signals - Lighting modules to control the flow of traffic at intersections and “on ramp” metering (a sub-set of signals are beacons and status indicators).
- Roadway Lighting - “Points of Conflict” on State owned roadways (Federal interstate highways, State highways and roads) are lighted at intersections, on/off ramps, and points of merging and separation.
- Roadway Sign Lighting - Illumination of informational signage located over the roadway.
- Bridges and Tunnels - Lighting systems used on bridges and tunnels.
- Facility Operations - Energy consumed in the operation of office and other buildings occupied by departmental staff.
- Procedures - Operation procedures that reduce energy consumption.
- Bulk Energy Procurement - Energy dollar savings as a direct result of buying energy in large discount blocks.
The conservation projects listed in the report have been installed, are “in-process” of being installed, or are in study phase of development. Completed and in-process project savings data sets are easy to calculate, since the consumption baseline and current usage data is directly measurable. Projects in the under study phase may or may not have forecasted savings assigned to the ECO, depending upon the current level of data being collected. Individual ECOs are discussed at the end of this report. Refer to the table of contents for page number of each ECO. Costs of project implementation and maintenance costs over time (if greater than current levels of operations and maintenance costs) have been included in the ECO’s cost analysis calculations, where data is available. Net dollar savings are discounted into 1995 dollars to determine if 1994 DGS goals are being met. If all cost effective ECOs were fully implemented, the Department would:
- Reduce daytime and/or nighttime electrical grid loads by about 37.8 Megawatts.
- Save over 205 million kilowatt-hours in annual energy consumption.
- Save some maintenance costs for selected projects.
- Pay back project costs through savings in energy and maintenance costs.
- Save a combination of $162 million in anticipated 10-year net present value (NPV) savings from implemented project elements.
- Potentially save $87 million in NPV savings over ten years of operation from project elements yet to be implemented.
- There is a potential total ten-year net savings (avoided costs) for the Department of about $248 million to apply against a ten-year goal of $51.06 million.
ECO Funding:
It is anticipated that any necessary expenditures discussed in this plan will be made through shifting the internal allocation of funds, the use of Energy Efficiency Bonds, SB1-5x funding resources, California Power Authority loans, State Highway Account Budget Augmentations and/or private sector funding resources should they become available. The Department will be coordinating its funding and implementation efforts with the Department of General Services and the Department of Finance to insure optimum investments.
Program Measurement and Monitoring Efforts:
To monitor the effectiveness of the program, the Department will track energy savings at the project level as discussed within this report. Individual facility managers, districts, and program management will compile ECO data, noting changes in energy use and report those changes to the Division of Business, Facilities and Security's (DBFS) Energy Conservation Program staff on an as needed basis. DBFS’ Energy Conservation staff will collect energy data from various departmental sources to be used to coordinate and update the Department’s overall energy program and related requests for data from any internal or external source.
Stewards and State Resources:
The Department’s proactive efforts to reduce its cost to do business, through cost-effective energy conservation infrastructure investments, are consistent with its current efforts to meet the challenges of the twenty-first century.
Link to 2004 Annual Report in Acrobat
Link to Department Energy Primer 2006
An educational document that discusses the how, when, where, and why's of energy consumption within the Department of Transportation.
| Additional Information | |
|---|---|
| Building Better Buildings | Link to Blueprint 2001 (Acrobat) |
| Link to Blueprint 2003 (Acrobat) | |
| Governor's Environmental Goals and Policy Report | Link to EGPR November 2003 (Acrobat) |
| Cost and Financial Benefits of Green Buildings | Link to Cost Benefits Green Bldg (Acrobat) |
| The Cost-Effectiveness of Commercial Buildings Commissioning | Link to Berkeley National Labs Report(Acrobat) |
| CIWMB Web Link | http://www.ciwmb.ca.gov/GreenBuilding/ |
| California Energy Commission Policy Documents | |
| Energy Action Plan by CEC/CPUC/CPA 2003 | Link to 2003-05-08 Action Plan (Acrobat) |
| CEC Energy Report 2004 Update | Link to CEC 2004 Energy Report (Acrobat) |
| Title 24, Rev. 2005 (Energy Codes) | Link to Title 24, 2005 (Acrobat) |
| Draft Reference Documents | |
| Example of Draft Boilerplate Turnkey ESCO contract | Link to Draft Basic ESCO Contract (Word Doc) |
Stephen C. Prey, Coordinator
Caltrans Enegry Conservation Program
Phone: (916) 324-9467
Email: steve.prey@dot.ca.gov
OTHER LINKS
Resource Conservation Home Page
LED Procurement Contract Data
Caltrans Recycling Program
Caltrans LED Performance Specifications
Last Update: August 08, 2007