news
For more information and to register, visit 3C-REN’s website.
Session 1 (May 23): Targeting Zero Net Carbon Design
Session 2 (June 20): Energy Performance for Zero Net Carbon Operations
Session 3 (July 18): Addressing the Energy-Water Nexus
Session 4 (August 31): Reducing Embodied Carbon
Session 5 (September 19): Regenerative Design in Practice
With historic rainfall — over 200% of average in both SLO and Santa Barbara Counties — and more than full local reservoirs, water is feeling relatively free and easy. But getting clean water to your tap is anything but free. At a variety of scales, energy is used to pump, clean, distribute, and heat our water. And it’s more energy than you might think!
Most of California’s energy consumption associated with water use comes from heating water for industrial processes (35%) and residential uses (42%), but about 12% is associated just with water operations — conveyance, groundwater pumping, treatment and distribution.
Conveyance is the process of channeling water from its source, which mostly relies on gravity. However, places like Southern California where water is delivered from the north or from the Colorado river have considerable pump energy embedded in conveyance when water needs to traverse mountain passes.
When surface water isn’t available (e.g. drought years) our state relies much more on groundwater pumping. That pumping accounts for up to 46% of the statewide water supply during dry years. In addition to being energy intensive, it can also have additional unwanted effects, such as subsidence, or the gradual sinking of land. And while groundwater is renewable, that process is lengthy, requiring sufficient rain and time to percolate down through soil to underwater “basins”. This year’s rain may be next year’s groundwater, but depending on the depth of the basin it can take years or decades to recharge.
Capturing stormwater and recycled water are popular alternatives to avoid groundwater pumping and allow the groundwater more time to recharge. They both need energy-intensive treatment to get rid of pollutants before becoming usable in landscape settings. For a less energy-intensive option, rainwater capture and reuse or laundry-landscape reuse of water for irrigation are ways that individuals can reduce their draw on state- and city-wide water – and energy! – resources.
As the climate continues to change, periods of drought and periods of rain are anticipated to become more extreme, and we’ll need additional energy for pumping in drier conditions and treatment of stormwater when there are larger storms. So, conserving water isn’t just about shortages during droughts but also about reducing overall energy consumption.
We’ve got more to come on this topic: Check the 3C-REN website soon for our upcoming online Zero Net Carbon Design Series, which will focus on the Energy-Water Nexus as one of five main topics.
For those who follow the solar industry, you may be hearing a lot about the upcoming switch from NEM 2.0 to NEM 3.0 and its potential impacts on renewable energy installations in California. The impacts are substantial and reflect a shifting strategy by the State in its pursuit of zero net carbon.
With over 32,000 MW of solar power installed in California – representing almost 25% of the state’s electricity and enough to power roughly 8.4 million homes – the issue of when we generate and use electricity is increasingly more urgent to focus on than simply adding more renewable energy to the grid.
To explain in more detail, Net Energy Metering (NEM) is the system by which investor-owned utilities like PG&E and So Cal Edison account for the 2-directional supply of electricity to homes and businesses that have photovoltaic (PV) panels. If you have PV panels at home, you likely generate more energy during the day than you're using, so the utility company buys the 'extra' electricity and feeds it into the grid.
Under the current NEM 2.0 and older NEM 1.0, you get paid pretty well for that electricity, so PVs have had a nice return on investment. Under NEM 3.0, which takes effect April 14, the 'buy back' rate for electricity generated in the middle of the day plummets by nearly 75%, because the utility companies have an oversupply when the sun is shining. The situation reverses in the evening and at night, when the sun is down and we're home charging our cars, turning on lights, and running our appliances. This swing in demand from the grid is often referred to as the “duck curve”.
You can see that in the time period 9am – 3pm, the net draw on the system is relatively low (and lower every year), compared to the evening hours. That's why our electric rates are most expensive from 4:00 PM - 9:00 PM. And this is where batteries come in.
If your project won’t make the mid-April deadline to get grandfathered into NEM 2.0, your best bet under NEM 3.0 will be to go ahead and install PVs, but also include battery storage. The 'extra' electricity generated during the day will be sent to your battery and reserved for your own use in the evening when rates are most expensive, which is how you'll optimize a return on the investment. A bonus is you'll have resiliency if and when the power goes out!
One significant change in the new CALGreen 2022 update is for Electric Vehicle Charging. With a higher expectation for providing Electric Vehicle infrastructure and equipment, you’ll want to plan early for incorporating these requirements. In this article, we will cover the updates for residential projects, then address non-residential projects in a follow-up article.
Throughout the 2022 CALGreen Code, there are varying requirements for the quantity and type of spots for Electric Vehicles. You will find these three terms used to describe them:
Spots are EV Capable when you provide the electrical panel space, conduit (no wire), and a termination box for a future 208/240--volt, 40-amp circuit. This allows for the opportunity to install a Level 1 or Level 2 electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) charger.
Spots are EV Ready when you provide a space that is fully wired and ready for the installation of a 208/240-volt, 40-amp receptacle, or charge station.
Spots are EV Charging Station with the installation of Level 2 EVSE chargers. These should be stand-alone chargers in common-use parking areas so that building occupants can have access to it.
EVSE – Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment: Chargers that are specified based on input voltage. Level 1 EVSE are simple portable cables at 120 V (left). Level 2 EVSE are more permanently installed charger at 208/240 V that can be wall mounted receptacle or a charging station (right).
In 2022, we see no change in one- and two-family dwellings, but Multifamily (which includes hotels and motels) now has requirements based on the number of dwelling units. The new updates are described below with an example to illustrate the application.
Electric Vehicle (EV) Parking Updates for Residential
New one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses with attached private garages (4.106.4.1) are currently still required to install raceways (conduit) that can accommodate the set up for a Level 2 EVSE. They do not yet have to be installed, but the conduit should be available for future installation.
Multifamily development projects with fewer than 20 dwelling units (4.106.4.2.1): Of the total provided parking spaces, 10% must be EV Capable and 25% must be EV Ready.
Multifamily development projects 20 dwelling units or more (4.106.4.2.2): Of the total provided parking spaces, 10% of spaces must be EV Capable, 25% of spaces must be EV Ready, 5% of spaces must be EV Charging Stations (EVCS).
In terms of accessibility, one in every 25 charging spaces, but not less than one, shall also have an 8-foot wide minimum aisle, to accommodate a van. Although that space should be on the accessible path of travel and may use the 8-foot aisle of an adjacent accessible spot, it does not count as one of the van-accessible spaces per CBC Chapter 11A. For hotels, motels and public housing, reference the requirements of Chapter 11B.
Stay tuned for our update on CALGreen EV Charging requirements in the Non-Residential chapter.
Note: this article provides an overview of the EV Charging requirements; additional details and exceptions may apply to your project. Review the code sections directly, connect with the free 3C-REN Energy Code Coach service, or reach out to us.
