New Energy Star program promotes commercial building energy efficiency

By Bruce Gruenewald

Director, Sustainability Operations

A new Energy Star pilot program designed to further improve commercial building energy efficiency offers state and local governments another way to meet their greenhouse gas reduction (GHG) targets..

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, in partnership with several states and utilities, introduced the Building Performance with Energy Star program last month. It will link eight Energy Star partner utilities and state energy efficiency programs throughout the country in a pilot designed to strategically pursue whole-building energy improvements with commercial customers, according to a Department of Energy newsletter.

Modeled after the successful Home Performance with Energy Star program, Building Performance with Energy Star will provide a framework for regional energy efficiency programs to align their financial incentives and technical assistance with a comprehensive approach to building upgrades, according to the EPA press release.

The new program includes several key elements to help states and utilities promote an inclusive strategy for improving energy efficiency, including measuring energy use, approaching energy efficiency opportunities based on building assessments, and creating a delivery network for whole building efficiency services. It will also reinforce the Obama Administration’s clean energy investment effort by helping to reduce energy use in commercial buildings, which accounts for 17 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions at a cost of over $100 billion per year.

NSI will certainly look to this program as a tool for clients capable of assisting state and local governments in ways that meet their energy efficiency objectives.

Bruce Gruenewald is the Director, Sustainability Operations for NSI. He runs the day-to-day operations of the sector and works with the vice president to help clients develop sustainable energy and environmental solutions for state and local governments. Prior to joining NSI, Mr. Gruenewald served as a program manager on several US EPA contracts. He provided technical leadership for the contracts, supervised multi-disciplinary consulting staffs, and managed the business and contractual relationships with the government. He also positioned his employers for new business opportunities in federal, state, and local markets, evaluated potential teaming partners, and wrote proposals and developed pricing and cost strategies in response to RFPs. Prior to working in the federal contracting field, Mr. Gruenewald worked for the US EPA for 8 years, the last two as the Lead Economist on the Superfund reauthorization task force where he advised legislative negotiators and political appointees on the economic, budgetary, and programmatic impacts of various legislative proposals to reauthorize the Superfund program. Mr. Gruenewald graduated with honors from Saint Louis University with a BA in Economics. He also holds an MPA from George Washington University and is an associate member of the American Bar Association’s Section on Environment, Energy, and Resources.