BUILDING EFFICIENCY/ RENEWABLES
BUILDING EFFICIENCY/ RENEWABLES
Whole Building
Equipment-Specific
ELECTRIC READY
Pre-Wiring
Panel Upgrade
EV-Readiness
EV Charging
ENERGY PLUS WATER
Dual Plumbing
Onsite Water Reuse
Water Neutral Development
INFORMATION DISCLOSURE
Audits
Benchmarking
PROCESS LOADS
Commercial Kitchens
Elevators
Escalators
Controlled Environment Horticulture
One energy performance requirement for mixed fuel and all-electric
“Fuel-neutral” ordinances require buildings to comply with greater energy performance levels regardless of building power source—electricity and natural gas OR electricity only
- Easy to communicate and understand
- No external documents or calculations
- Likely fewer GHG emission reductions
Application Package
Internal Staff Resources
Implementation
One energy performance requirement for mixed-fuel only (no requirement for all-electric designs)
“Electric-preferred” ordinances require mixed-fuel buildings to comply with greater energy performance levels, whereas all-electric buildings must only meet the State energy code
- Encourages all electric designs
- No external documents or calculations
- Retains builder flexibility and choice
- Uncertain impacts
- May be challenging to communicate
Application Package
Internal Staff Resources
Implementation
CALGreen Tier 1: Prerequisite Measures Plus: Residential: Specific EDR score (approx. 50% EDR reduction) Nonresidential: 10% compliance margin for most; Hotel/motel and high-rise res = 5%
Adopt voluntary efficiency measures in the CA Green Building Standards Code, including prerequisite options and/or increased energy performance requirements
- Voluntary option in CALGreen (Part 11 of CBC)
- Adopt energy performance only, or include prerequisites
- Addresses topics beyond energy
- May require additional verification
- Requirement for specific EDR score may result in inconsistent stringency levels
- Some limitations because of cost-effectiveness for RNC
Application Package
Internal Staff Resources
Implementation
Third party green building certification
Require green building certification from accredited programs such as LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) or GreenPoint Rated (GPR)
- Holistic, can meet additional sustainability goals
- External inspection and verification resources
- Likely increased cost to builder for non-energy measures
- Requires additional documentation
- Structure may not align with CA compliance
- May require analysis beyond existing studies
Application Package
Internal Staff Resources
- 2019 NC Staff Report Template (Fuel-Neutral) v1.3
- 2019 NC Staff Report Template (Elec-Preferred) v1.3
- 2019 Staff Report: ResNC Ordinance Impact Charts
- 2019 Staff Report: NRNC Ordinance Impact Charts
- 2019 ModelOrd-NC-FuelNeutral-v30
- 2019 ModelOrd-NC-ElecPref-V30
- 2019 ModelOrd-NC-Appx 2
- 2019 ModelOrd-NC-Appx6
- 2019 ModelOrd-NC-Appx2-Refs
Implementation
Electric Only (Modification to Title 24, Part 6)
Require all-electric new construction projects with no gas appliances or gas plumbing, through amending the energy code.
- Maximum reduction in emissions
- Flexibility to adopt outside Title 24, Part 6
- No external documents or calculations required
- Uncertainty regarding existing legal challenges
- Requires cost-effectiveness study and CEC approval
- Requires more community outreach and education than other structures
- Technical feasibility for some occupancies
Application Package
Internal Staff Resources
Implementation
Electric Only (No modification to Title 24, Part 6)
Require all-electric new construction projects with no gas appliances or gas plumbing, through amending the zoning, health and safety, or other municipal code
- May be effective at time of use permit (prior to building permit)
- Maximum reduction in emissions
- No need for cost-effectiveness study or CEC approval
- Uncertainty regarding existing legal challenges
- Technical feasibility for some occupancies
- Requires more community outreach and education than other structures
Application Package
Internal Staff Resources
Implementation
Photovoltaic (PV) System on major high-rise multifamily or nonresidential projects: Small minimum system capacity
Examples include: Minimum capacity: 3 kW if < 10,000 sf and 5 kW if > 10,000 sf. Minimum capacity: fill required solar zone on rooftop (~15% of area)
- Stand-alone or combine with energy efficiency measures for greater savings
- Small minimum system size allows flexibility to size appropriately for project
- PV is cost-effective under most major project scenarios
- Tax Credit
- Requires external documents and/or calculations
- If install minimum only, offsets small percentage of total usage
Application Package
Internal Staff Resources
Implementation
Photovoltaic (PV) System on major high-rise multifamily or nonresidential projects: Large minimum system capacity
Examples include: Minimum capacity: fill 50% of rooftop area Minimum capacity 2W per sf of rooftop area
- Stand-alone or combine with energy efficiency measures for greater savings
- PV is cost-effective under most major project scenarios
- Tax credit
- Can be a considerable incremental cost
- Highly variable investment requirements
- Physical constraints on rooftop
- Sizing may not be optimal for occupancies with different load profiles
Application Package
Internal Staff Resources
Implementation
Require photovoltaic (PV) System on all low-rise residential additions (Santa Monica and Piedmont only)
Examples include: install a solar PV system according to Title 24, Part 6 requirements for new construction, or based on floor area or projected annual electrical usage
- Minimum PV system capacity depending on feasibility
- Min size requirement may encourage installation of more capacity to meet entire load
- Tax credit
- Requires external documents and/or calculations
- Can be a significant incremental cost
- Challenges regarding compatibility with existing systems
Application Package
Install specified measures in existing home if not included in project scope
Require efficiency upgrades beyond work triggered by Title 24 code. Examples include: add attic insulation to vented attic spaces, or apply air sealing to accessible areas
- Impact on existing homes with greatest savings potential
- Flexibility to limit maximum incremental cost
- Often politically challenging to adopt requirements for existing homes
Application Package
Install either heat pump water heater (HPWH) or solar thermal with 0.6 SSF
Decrease water heating-related carbon emissions due to natural gas or propane fueled water heaters by requiring electric heat pumps or increasing the solar thermal contribution
- Single measure may be more palatable
- Significantly reduces or eliminates emissions from significant source
- No savings from avoided gas infrastructure
- Some projects will not exceed state code
Application Package
Require cool roof materials for new and at re-roofing
Improve roofing product performance with increased requirements for reflectance and emittance values to reduce solar heat gain through the building envelope into the conditioned space
- Near-zero cost measure
- Easy to understand and enforce
- Reduces urban heat island effect
- Potentially consumer color preference, but materials are widely available
- Limited impact
Application Package
Sustainable roofs (PV, solar thermal or vegetative roof) for projects 10,000 sf or larger
Require solar PV to offset min. percentage of usage, solar collectors for hot water with min. solar savings fraction, or vegetation to cover min. rooftop area
- Flexibility for builders
- If vegetative, is aesthetically pleasing and can become usable space
- Singular focus
- Maintenance challenges for vegetative roofs
- Does not address other features or end-uses
Application Package
New Pools: Require either heat pump or solar thermal pool heating (Santa Monica)
Applies to new pools.
- Significant reduction in GHG emissions
- Analysis limited to mild climate (Santa Monica)
Application Package
Prescriptive/Performance Requirements for Additions/Alterations
Piedmont , Chula Vista
There are no resources for this requirement.
Contact us for more information.
Learn more about the Reach Code Process.
Require upgrade by “Date-Certain”, a single date or phased schedule) specified in the policy OR at tenant change, or other specified interval
Establish defined dates or events to trigger requirements for energy efficiency improvements that would otherwise not be undertaken unless existing buildings are altered or undergo tenant improvement
- Likely to cover all properties within scope
- No impact on unrelated real estate or financial transactions
- Distribution of benefits to more renters
- Rental properties often have significant potential
- Requires internal jurisdiction resources to implement policy and maintain records
- Potential for owner resistance to investment when tenant reaps utility benefits
Application Package
