Closing the Gap on Building Energy Codes to Achieve Carbon Reductions

Panel: Energy and Environmental Policy: Planning for Greater Impacts

Authors:
Aleisha Khan, Building Codes Assistance Project
Kym Willock, Building Codes Assistance Project
Alecia Ward, Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance
Greg Ehrendreich, Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance

Abstract

Building energy codes are effective policy tools capable of producing a significant and widespread impact on US carbon emissions, and are consequently identified in almost every local climate initiative currently underway. Unfortunately, critical breakdowns at multiple levels have severely limited the ability of codes to deliver their expected impact. To realize the full extent of climate-related benefits, energy codes should 1) affect all new construction, 2) be applied to buildings during major renovations to improve energy performance, and 3) be updated every few years to keep up with advancing technology and energy efficiency goals. However, a very different set of events is occurring. Although, federal, state, local governments and utilities all have necessary and critical roles in adopting, administering, and enforcing energy codes, as well as reaping the benefits, their activities have not been sufficiently comprehensive or robust. This paper will discuss how climate issues are driving codes forward and how this new focus has generated fresh urgency to revamp the code development and implementation processes to achieve potential energy savings. It will further report on existing and possible enhanced policy roles for federal, state, and local levels - highlighting both best practices and pitfalls encountered across the country. The paper includes the potential energy, environmental and economic impacts, drawing upon ongoing research and over a decade of experience in advocating for action on codes, and provides recommendations for using codes as an effective tool to address our nation's current climate concerns.