The EPA and Energy Star's New National Building Competition

The U.S Environmental Protection Agency and Energy Star have announced their 14 selections for their National Building Competition.

How the Contest Works:

Chosen out of 200 applicants, the 14 contestants will measure and track their building’s monthly energy consumption using EPA’s online energy tracking tool, Portfolio Manager.

From there, they will make improvements to their building’s energy performance (see Fact vs. Fiction: How Do Buildings Reduce Energy Use? [.doc] and share their progress.

The building that demonstrates the greatest percentage-based reduction over the contest energy performance period will be recognized as the winner.

What Are EUI's?

Each contestant is ascribed an energy use intensity (EUI) number--a unit of measurement that describes a building’s energy use. EUI represents the energy consumed by a building relative to its size.

A building’s EUI is calculated by taking the total energy consumed in one year (measured in kBtu) and dividing it by the total floorspace of the building. Typically, a low EUI signifies good energy performance.

How EUI's Are Measured:

Certain building types will always use more energy than others. An elementary school uses relatively little energy compared to a 5th Avenue office building or a convention center in Virginia Beach (inset photo).

To maintain fairness, each building will be judged on the percentage of reduction they achieve in their EUI.

A building that reduces its EUI by 15% will do better in the competition rankings than a building that reduces its EUI by 6%, even if that building’s EUI was lower to begin with.

EPA will also adjust this percentage to account for changes in weather to ensure that no building is credited or penalized due to changes in weather over the course of the competition.

Good?

Sure, why not? The competition ends October 26th, with a mid-point "weigh-in" July 21st. If anything, it will be interesting to see what game plans buildings come up with to reduce high percentages of waste.

The real question, once the competition is over, is whether or not such methods can be universally applied over time.

Learn more about Energy Efficiency on eBoom's Emerging Energy Learning Page.