Sustainable Energy Alternatives for the Southwest - Design with the Desert: Conservation and Sustainable Development - page 515

certification whenever project resources and conditions permit (see Chapter 28). 25 Projects
include a new fire house and a senior center. The New Buildings Institute found that, on
average, energy use in LEED buildings was about 25%-30% lower per square foot than
national average energy use for similar buildings. 26 Another analysis found that, on aver-
age, LEED buildings used 18%-39% less energy per square foot than similar conventional
buildings, but that 28%-35% of LEED buildings used more energy per square foot than
similar conventional buildings. 27
A landscape design solution for new or existing homes is shade trees. 28 The tree canopy
in Southwestern cities is often meager—in Las Vegas it is about 10%, and in Phoenix about
13% of the land area has plant cover. 29 In the low desert regions of Arizona and California,
a mature tree casting shade on the west, east, or south side of a house can reduce electric-
ity use for air conditioning by about 200 kWh/year; more trees would lower electricity use
even more.* Shade tree programs are often carried out by community organizations as
described in the next section.
29.6.3 Role of Community Organizations
Community organizations may lead the effort to deliver or install energy efficiency mea-
sures or to inform community members about those measures. † A common approach is for
a community organization—a neighborhood association or environmental organization, for
example—to educate the public about the benefits of energy efficiency and about how to
obtain energy efficient measures. Participants are often recruited through social networks
and personal contacts, and trained volunteers might conduct workshops or go door-to-door
to provide information. The organization may obtain shade trees or other measures for distri-
bution to participants or may give away or install low cost energy efficiency measures. Some
community organizations have delivered hundreds of thousands of shade trees or compact
fluorescent lamps (CFLs), for example. ‡ Often, these programs are funded by utilities.
Thus, energy efficiency and, to a lesser extent, distributed energy present opportunities
for civic engagement to promote sustainable cities. A community organization may serve
as a catalyst for civic engagement, encouraging public participation in program design and
implementation, often through volunteers. The community organization would typically
build up trust in the community, serve as a conduit for expertise on technical matters, and
engage in outreach to the community through social networks.
29.6.4 Utility Capabilities
Utilities in the Southwest are commonly the principal means of implementing state clean
energy policies. Some utilities have become experts in designing and implementing large
scale renewable energy and energy efficiency programs. They are learning how to use
market processes to acquire large renewable energy facilities and how to stimulate mar-
kets for distributed energy and energy efficiency through incentives and education pro-
grams. As a result, they are able to achieve far more aggressive renewable energy and
energy efficiency goals than was thought possible in 1990 or 2000.
An evolving regulatory process has helped foster utility capabilities. Regulators have
established processes for preparing clean energy plans, reporting on progress, and
* For the desert, drought tolerant trees, especially those native to the Southwest, are most appropriate. 28,30
† For a review of examples, see Berry. 31
‡ For a review of shade tree programs, see Western Resource Advocates. 28