New Initiatives - Making an Impact

Around the Globe, Governments are Embracing New Codes, Standards and Legislation Related to Engineering, Energy, and the Environment. 2008 was a landmark year for codes, standards, and legislative initiatives related to engineering, energy, and the environment. From city to city, from state to state, and from one country to another, the world embraced new initiatives that will surely impact generations to come. Below are a few highlights of the key initiatives:

International initiatives

On the international front, the Alliance for Climate Protection launched a $300 million three-year, multifaceted campaign to engage the American public and ignite a movement to address the global climate crisis. This aggressive and innovative online activation and mobilization campaign is supported by nationwide TV, radio and online advertising.

The European Union was extremely active in advancing several existing and new initiatives, including the Covenant of Mayors. This ambitious initiative will bring together the mayors of Europe's most pioneering cities-London, Helsinki, Berlin, Bonn, and Milan, to name a few. Their goals are to exchange and apply best practices related to sustainable energy and to significantly improve energy efficiency in the urban environment. A kickoff ceremony is being planned for February 2009.

In Canada, the Office of Energy Efficiency expanded its ecoENERGY Efficiency initiative, designed to reduce emissions that harm health and the environment, save money for Canadian small businesses and industries, and to make the most of natural resources. In August,the ecoENERGY Retrofit Incentive was expanded to include larger buildings with 10,000-20,000 square meters of floor space.

In the United States, the U.S. Green Building Council continued to make its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program a cornerstone of its energy efficiency efforts. For example, the LEED Green Building Rating System(tm) is a nationally recognized benchmark for the design, construction, and operation of high-performance green buildings. The USGBC is modifying its LEED standards, reorganizing the commercial rating systems by consolidating, aligning, and updating them into one system. A new version, called LEED 2009, will debut in January.

In California, the Public Utilities Commission adopted the state's first Long-Term Energy Efficiency Strategic Plan. The plan has four main strategies: achieve zero net energy in all new residential construction by 2020; realize zero net energy in all new commercial construction by 2030; reshape the HVAC industry to ensure optimal equipment performance; and attain energy efficiency in all eligible low-income homes by 2020.

The Chicago city government unveiled its climate change plan in September. Under the plan, the city will work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 25 percent below 1990 levels. Other U.S. cities have set similar goals, but Chicago's plan is the first to both research emission sources and anticipated impacts while proposing ideas that specifically respond to that research.

On the legislative front, President Bush signed the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 in early October. The new law contains extensions to both current and expired tax incentives for renewable energy, energy-efficient building upgrades, and appliance and equipment purchases. A key provision is the extension of the Commercial Building Tax Deduction through 2013. This will allow building owners to claim a deduction up to $1.80 per square foot for HVAC, lighting and envelope upgrades resulting in 50 percent energy savings over ANSI/ASHRAE/IENSA Standard 90.1-2001.

"Energy and the environment are, and will continue to be, key focuses for governments around the globe," noted Robert Wilkins, president of Danfoss North America. "The engineering and HVAC&R communities must continue to be open to new ideas and initiatives, and to embrace changes that will make the world a better place to live, work, and play, while creating profitable business opportunities."