Energy Newsletter - A note from Natasha Reynolds, LEED AP BD+C, Energy Manager

Energy Newsletter - A note from Natasha Reynolds, LEED AP BD+C, Energy Manager -

The Escambia County Facilities Management Department has been very progressive in implementing energy efficiency and conservation practices in County buildings. I am excited to join this outstanding group and am delighted to serve Escambia County by helping its buildings become even more energy efficient and by raising awareness for energy conservation within our organization. I will be looking for opportunities to increase efficiency in our systems, while maintaining a suitable comfort level for building occupants as we at Facilities Management are here to assist you.

Energy conservation is a joint effort and by working together we can make a significant difference. Ever since I started working in mid February, I was pleased to find that many in our organization have a great deal of interest and understanding for energy efficiency and conservation. While we have limitations as to how our buildings were originally designed and constructed, we have control for how they are utilized and maintained. For this reason we are developing a Sustainability Program.

Energy Efficiency Updates  

      Outstanding Energy Performance – In FY13, energy costs at the M.C. Blanchard Judicial Building and the Government Office Complex were reduced by $478,113 as compared to our baseline year. FY08 was established as our baseline year due to the many energy initiatives we embarked on since then. The energy cost (electric and gas) in FY08 amounted to $1.37 million whereas the cost in FY13 was $892 thousand.              

      Efficient Lighting Retrofits – Since 2010, capital improvement dollars have been spent on numerous lighting retrofit projects in our buildings, parking lots and garages. Inefficient incandescent bulbs and fluorescent tubes have been placed with more than 3,500 LEDs, 166 CFLs, 160 induction lights, 32 metal halide lights and many occupancy sensors. These projects are estimated to have a simple payback of just 2.3 years with an estimated $115 thousand savings in electricity. More efficient lights not only use less energy; they also have a longer lifespan which makes for lower maintenance costs.

      Renewable Energy / Geothermal Systems Capital Improvements – To date, 7 buildings are heating and cooling with high efficiency geothermal closed loop systems. The Road Prison’s geothermal system has attained annual energy savings of 17 percent, or $30,780, in contrast with the conventional HVAC system that was replaced in 2011.

      New Construction and Major Renovations – Our Design and Construction Administration Team aims to incorporate green building features in all of our projects. Some of the Green Building practices applied in our projects include the use of insulated concrete forms (ICF), spray foam insulation, efficient heating and cooling technologies and building management systems. Thus, we have reduced our energy consumption, lessened our environmental impact and attained prestigious building certifications such as LEED, Energy Star and Green Globes for eight County buildings in the last five years.

 Escambia County has made so much progress to save energy - Yet there is still so much work to be done. You can help! Here is how you can start now.

Energy and Water Conservation = Instant Payback

1. Are you aware that you could help the County save approximately $58 on average per year by simply turning off your computer at the end of each work day? If every computer workstation was turned off at the end of the day, then the County could save roughly $69,000 annually.
2. ?For added energy savings, I also recommend :

      Turning off your monitor(s) if you are going to be away from your PC for more than 20 minutes.

      Turning off both your CPU and monitor(s) if you are going to be away from your PC for more than 2 hours.

Saving energy is Easy!

-      At home… You can use power down features to activate power management settings on your computer.

-      At work… Our Information Technology Department is partnering with us to implement energy conservation measures systematically. More information will become available to let users know about upcoming developments.

Join the Sustainability Program

With our Sustainability Program we will have an opportunity to recognize green building advocates within our organization who contribute towards making a difference in saving money, reducing energy and water consumption and decreasing our environmental impact. This program will also help us identify potential opportunities for improvement, promote energy awareness and share information about green initiatives that are taking place within Escambia County buildings.

Green Building Ambassadors:

      Lead by example

      Encourage energy and water conservation and other sustainable practices to others

      Help identify possible efficiency improvement areas in their departments

For more information or if you would like to participate please contact Natasha Reynolds, (850) 595-4998, or via email [email protected]

With energy costs rising, we will need everyone’s support and collaboration to reduce Escambia County’s utility costs. You can make a positive difference.