Energy Audit Articles -- March 2009

"Energy Audit Applications Now Being Accepted", (c) Sun Times News, March 13, 2009

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- USDA Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that the department is accepting funding applications from eligible entities for grants to conduct energy audits under the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP).

"For the first time ever, USDA will make grant funding available this year through the Rural Energy for America Program to help agricultural producers and rural small businesses obtain audits to identify ways to improve energy efficiency," Vilsack said. "The assistance provided by this program is in keeping with President Obama's energy conservation goals for our nation." The program is authorized in Section 9007 of the 2008 Farm Bill.

The audits are intended to help rural small businesses and agricultural producers determine where to make changes in their operations to enable them to reduce energy consumption. Audits are required for energy efficiency projects funded through REAP that exceed $50,000. States, tribal and local governments, land grant colleges or universities, other institutions of higher learning, and electric cooperatives and public power entities are eligible to receive funds to conduct the audits. Parties seeking audits from the grantees must pay 25 percent of audit costs. The maximum grant award is $100,000.

Funds can be used for expenses directly related to providing energy audits and renewable energy development assistance including salaries, travel expenses, marketing and/or outreach activities, office supplies and equipment, plus some administrative expenses. Project costs must be related to assistance provided to agricultural producers and small businesses located in rural areas.

Applications for grants must be completed and submitted on paper or electronically no later than June 9, 2009 to the Missouri State Office, 601 Business Loop 70 West, Suite 235, Columbia, Missouri 65203.

For detailed eligibility information, application instructions, and competitive evaluation criteria, please refer to the Notice of Solicitation of Applications (NOSA) published in the Federal Register on Wednesday, March 11, 2009 (vol. 74, no. 46) or visit the link to the NOSA: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/pdf/E9-5154.pdf Questions can be directed to Matt Moore at 573-876-0995 or matt.moore@mo.usda.gov.

USDA Rural Development intends to publish and seek public comment on a proposed regulation for the REAP program later this year.

USDA Rural Development's mission is to increase economic opportunity and improve the quality of life for rural residents. Rural Development fosters growth in homeownership, finances business development, and supports the creation of critical community and technology infrastructure.

"One Year Later, Home Energy Audit Pays Off", (c) Chase Scheinbaum,Recorder.com, March 09, 2009

It was like a shoemaker's child walking around barefoot, Marc Kaufmann says.

A home heating consultant, he was living in a big, drafty post-and-beam house in Buckland -- and paying oil bills that went through the roof.

But things have been different since an energy auditor visited his house last year.

Kaufmann paid $75 to have a representative of Mass Save, a public-private energy-efficiency partnership, diagnose the leaks and inefficiencies in his insulation on behalf of his energy service provider, Western Mass. Electric Co.

The auditor recommended sealing a bunch of cracks with caulk and adding some insulation to his walls -- around $1,200 of work -- as well as a contractor to do it.

And, Mass Save paid for half.

That's right: half. But that was last year.

Now they pay even more. As of Jan. 1, Mass Save now pays 75 percent of the bill for contracts up to $2,000.

Kaufman says he has since used 20 percent less oil and wood to heat his home.

''It's pretty easy from a homeowner's perspective,'' he said. ''I recommend it all the time now because of my own experience.''

Kaufman says he saved enough money in heating costs in just one year to cover the audit and insulation work.

''Given the cost of fuel today, I think most people would find that they would save the money invested the first year,'' he said.

''Even if you have a job that's going to cost $4,000 or $5,000, you should make that money back in less than three years.''

The kind of audit Kaufmann got through WMECO is known as an advanced audit. The $75 fee is refunded to anyone who chooses to go ahead with any of the contractors' major recommendations.

Everyone, owners and renters alike, are entitled to a basic, free energy audit through their energy service provider.

The advanced audit provides homeowners with a more thorough diagnostic test using something called a ''blower door'' that assesses how easily your home loses heat. It also offers a greater scope of efficiency-boosting recommendations.

''When you invest in efficiency, you begin to save immediately,'' said Alan Silverstein, director of Center for Technology, an organization that coordinates the audits.

''The audits are designed for people who really want to improve the efficiency of their homes,'' he said.

He stresses that people who want audits now can get them almost immediately, whereas audit requests were piling up and causing delays in the fall and early winter.

And many contractors are available to do the work right away.

Low-income customers may also be eligible for free services through Community Action.

Zero-interest loans are also available from participating lenders.