Doing so negates any relative cost advantages between utilities. So, even though
installing coal unit heaters in an actual
building is not practical, you must assume
this in your baseline model in order to
determine the relative efficiency of your
proposed building.
As a followup, I asked this reviewer
what you should do when your system’s
energy input is municipal solid waste. The
cost of the input fuel for the proposed
case is actually a negative number since
tipping fees are paid to the district energy
system. How, I wanted to know, would
you find published efficiencies for solid
waste combusting unit heaters to use
in a baseline model? The reviewer was
stumped.
The story, however, for our Alaska
friend did end well. Turns out that
although they could not achieve the
points they had counted on when they
changed the model to incorporate the
reviewer’s comments, I was able to show
them how to properly account for the
combined heat and power portion of their
district energy system. As a result, more
points were achieved than lost. I met this
friend, Chris Miller with Design Alaska,
for the first time in person at the Campus
Conference in Arlington. According to
Chris, the building just received its LEED
certification. Chris went from being a
potential scapegoat to a hero!
Focus Is on Energy Use
Confused yet? The requirements for
applying LEED to a proposed building
served by a district energy system can
certainly be confusing. Your organization
is continuing to work with the USGBC to
help clarify these guidelines in the future
and ensure they put district energy on a
level playing field versus alternatives. It
helps to understand that while the cost
of energy is a part of the equation in
determining how efficiently a building
uses energy, the USGBC is not concerned
with reducing an owner’s energy cost.
Its concern is reducing an owner’s total
energy use.
Tim Griffin, PE, LEED,
AP, is IDEA’s liaison with
the U.S. Green Building
Council and serves on
IDEA’s board of directors.
He is a principal and
branch manager with
RMF Engineering Inc., a firm specializing in
district energy system planning, design and
commissioning. A registered engineer and a
LEED Accredited Professional, Griffin has a
Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical
engineering from North Carolina State
University and a Master of Business
Administration degree from Colorado State
University. He authored the book Winning
With Millennials: How to Attract, Retain,
and Empower Today’s Generation of Design
Professionals. He may be reached at
tgriffin@rmf.com.
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