Club Calls for Robust Energy Efficiency Plan to Accompany Transition Off Gas

Dear Director Wells,

The Sierra Club wrote to you on July 31 asking that as the District begins to transition off fossil fuels, the DC government end utility ratepayer subsidies for burning gas. Fuel switching from gas to electricity is key to ending emissions from methane, and it must be paired with an aggressive effort to make buildings in the District highly energy efficient.  

The Sierra Club requests that electrification efforts begin with buildings that are most energy efficient, which will cause the least increase in electricity demand, and thus the least increase in greenhouse gas emissions from the electricity sector. Though the Clean Energy DC Omnibus Act signed by Mayor Bowser earlier this year puts the District on a path for all of DC’s electricity to be covered by renewable energy credits by 2032, our regional grid still relies on coal and gas for electricity, so reducing electricity demand is key to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

For buildings that are less energy efficient, electrification should be combined with aggressive energy efficiency measures, such as insulation and building envelope enhancements as well as installation of efficient appliances. Prioritizing electrification of the most efficient buildings first and electrifying older, more poorly insulated buildings after efficiency measures have been instituted is the most cost effective method to transition DC off its reliance on methane gas.

In load-congested areas where electrification will increase peak demand, non-wires alternatives should be implemented so the increased demand can be met with distributed energy resources. Additionally, electricity is not the only energy source that can replace gas. Where possible, geothermal energy and sewer heat should be pursued to replace heating currently provided by methane combustion.

The Sustainable DC 2.0 plan recognizes the importance of energy efficiency measures for existing buildings. The plan calls for the District to launch a program to accelerate deep energy retrofits in at least 20 percent of all buildings. A deep energy retrofit reduces energy use by at least 40 percent, which will move the District significantly closer to Mayor Bowser’s commitment of carbon neutrality by 2050. Sustainable DC states the retrofit program will “provide financial incentives to help all building owners, including residential and commercial, embark on deep energy retrofits that will make buildings less expensive to operate and cut greenhouse gases.”

The Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS) program focuses on larger buildings. The Sierra Club strongly supports the BEPS program. We ask that DOEE establish the deep energy retrofit program described in Sustainable DC 2.0 to focus on smaller buildings not covered by BEPS, such as single-family and attached homes as well as smaller commercial and institutional buildings. In many older buildings, energy efficiency measures need to be undertaken before or at the same time as electrification measures so that fuel switching from gas to electricity can proceed cost effectively.

The Clean Energy DC plan calls for DOEE to work with the DC Sustainable Energy Utility and the Green Finance Authority to develop a package of incentives by 2020 to target deep energy use reductions in existing buildings. We ask that DOEE implement this action quickly and that specifics on the retrofit program are discussed with stakeholders in the near term.

The Sierra Club applauds DOEE’s work to develop a roadmap for resilient, innovative and affordable electrification. The roadmap will allow DOEE to identify areas that can be removed from the gas grid entirely, because of factors such as the age and leakiness of the gas infrastructure.  We ask that DOEE move expeditiously to complete the plan so that DC can accelerate thermal decarbonization and meet Mayor Bowser’s commitment of carbon neutrality by 2050.

Sincerely,

Mark Rodeffer
Chair, Sierra Club DC Chapter           

Matthias Paustian
Co-Chair, Beyond Gas Subcommittee, Sierra Club DC

CC:
Ted Trabue, Managing Director, District of Columbia Sustainable Energy Utility
Mary Cheh, Chair, DC Council Committee on Transportation and Environment