Resilience Takeaways from the 2020 Clean Energy EXPO | Article

Resilience was a strong, underlying theme during the 23^rd Annual Congressional Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency EXPO on July 30. Live-streamed this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, the event itself was an exercise in adaptability, with the show going on without the exhibits and browsing crowds. Instead, EESI presented a day-long series of online policy panels with industry leaders who offered their insights on clean-energy technology and policy issues. Members of the bipartisan House and Senate Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucuses, the EXPO’s honorary co-hosts, provided video introductions for the panels.

Speakers discussed a variety of clean-energy technologies and the workforce skills and strategies that make them possible. In doing so, they also addressed the intersection of sustainability, climate resilience, and environmental justice.

Climate and Disaster Resilience

Clean-energy resources play a dual role in climate change mitigation and adaptation and therefore resilience. As carbon-free energy resources, they reduce the rate of climate change and help lessen the severity of future climate impacts such as extreme weather and rising sea levels. Renewable energy and energy efficiency also play a more immediate role in helping communities withstand the existing impacts of climate change and other hazards. On-site or community renewable energy can make homes and businesses less vulnerable to grid power outages, while energy efficiency upgrades can help make homes more resilient to severe weather. Timothy Unruh, who leads the National Association of Energy Service Companies (NAESCO), provided the example of high-performance windows that are both energy-efficient and storm-resistant.

David Nemtzow, of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Building Technologies Office, also noted that energy efficiency makes homes and buildings safer and more comfortable during extreme outdoor temperature swings, a key strategy for climate resilience. (Even with the loss of heating and cooling during a power outage, an energy efficient space will maintain its conditioned air for a longer period of time.) Saving money is another huge benefit of energy efficient buildings. As the largest energy-consuming sector, buildings account for 39 percent of U.S. energy use at an annual cost of $400 billion, and much of this energy is wasted through inefficient construction and operation. Building energy use also accounts for 35 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions; therefore, efficiency is a key strategy for climate change mitigation.

Nemtzow also discussed DOE’s research on grid-interactive efficient buildings (GEB). Advancements in controls, sensors, communications, and other digital technologies are enabling building-grid integration and the potential for buildings to be a 24/7 energy resource. He emphasized that efficient and resilient buildings must be included in any national investment in infrastructure improvement. In turn, better buildings (through technology advancement and a skilled workforce) will improve grid resilience.

To maximize the resilience benefits of clean energy, training and education are essential. During the EXPO's first panel, Training a 21st Century Clean Energy Workforce, Department of Energy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Daniel Simmons discussed new funding to support training programs for first responders and other non-energy professionals who are beginning to interact with distributed energy resources such as on-site solar and energy-storage systems, smart (grid-interactive) building technologies, and electric vehicles. As energy technologies rapidly evolve, many of those on the frontlines of disaster preparedness, emergency management, and resilience planning in their communities are dealing with technologies they have not previously encountered. The new EERE program—Educational Materials for Professional Organizations Working on Efficiency and Renewable Energy Developments (EMPOWERED)—is designed to help them understand the features and functions of new energy technologies. EMPOWERED is a collaborative effort of EERE’s Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO), Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO), and Building Technologies Office (BTO).

One of the EXPO's panels, Macro Benefits of Microgrids, took a deep dive into microgrids, which are often used for multi-building campuses but are getting more attention as a strategy for resilience against severe weather and power outages. Joy Ditto, President and CEO of the American Public Power Association (APPA), noted that a defining feature of today’s microgrids is the ability to “island” or disconnect from the larger grid. Indeed, the Department of Energy defines a microgrid as “a local energy grid with control capability, which means it can disconnect from the traditional grid and operate autonomously.” Such an ability is critical for military facilities, hospitals, and any household or business for which resilience is all about continued functionality even if the main grid goes down.

Doug Vine of Climate and Energy Solutions noted that some institutions with microgrids still had power during and after Super Storm Sandy, which he thinks has been a primary reason for the growing interest in microgrids today. These resilience qualities are especially important for isolated communities. He believes microgrids can serve the important dual purpose of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and strengthening resilience to climate impacts.

Microgrids don't necessarily run on clean power, but they pair extremely well with distributed renewable energy, and provide a more viable clean-energy strategy as the costs of solar panels, wind turbines, and battery storage continue to fall. According to Vine, microgrids can help balance intermittent energy sources (like solar and wind) and dispatchable sources like natural gas. NAESCO’s Unruh noted that advanced controls are improving grid operators’ ability to manage loads and onsite generation, making renewable-energy microgrids ever more viable.

The Electric Power Research Institute's Haresh Kamath noted that the value proposition of microgrids is changing from one of pure economics to a more holistic understanding of the benefits of sustainable energy and resilience. Many customers are willing to pay more for the benefit of maintaining power, especially with the increased threat of natural disasters and ever heavier reliance on electricity. He added that electric vehicles (EVs), which are becoming more widespread, can be integrated into microgrids and thereby become "a huge opportunity for resiliency" by providing energy storage. Kamath predicted the increased adoption of microgrids as costs continue to fall.

Energy storage, and not only in the form of EVs, is certainly a key component of resilience. Stored power can be called on when the grid fails, or when intermittent renewables aren’t generating energy. Kelly Speakes-Backman discussed how the Energy Storage Association is working toward a more resilient, sustainable, and affordable grid by advancing all types of storage technologies and chemistries. She noted that 32 states now require energy-storage planning. “We want to change how we [as a nation] generate and deliver energy, but we haven’t gone far enough to address inequities,” she said.

Social and Economic Resilience

The need to address inequities, and to ensure environmental justice, are often overlooked components of resilience. A resilient nation means that individuals, no matter where they live, are sheltered from pollution and have access to clean water and clean air, and that workers, from all backgrounds, have access to jobs that can provide for their families over the long term. Healthier citizens with adequate financial resources will be better able to withstand challenges, whether they are caused by weather disasters, public health emergencies, or economic crises. These fundamental sources of resilience, along with resilient housing and infrastructure, ensure sustainable and thriving communities.

Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic hasn't spared these jobs. Eric Belair of Natural Resources Canada (Canada's Department of Natural Resources) discussed efforts to assist the Canadian energy sector, which has been “very affected” by the pandemic. For example, while avoiding energy audits that require home visits, his ministry is providing online training for workers so they can be ready to do building retrofits when the time comes. He also discussed Canada’s efforts to increase energy-job opportunities for underrepresented groups such as women and indigenous populations, noting that “inclusivity is critical” to achieving a clean, reliable, and affordable energy economy. Plans also are underway for indigenous populations to own and operate their energy assets.

Hillary Bright of BlueGreen Alliance (BGA) cited “upskilling” training on new technologies and apprenticeship programs as critical to create family-supporting jobs that help reduce building sector energy use. Clean energy provides jobs that in many cases have the added benefit that they cannot be outsourced (e.g., solar panel installers and energy efficiency contractors). A core BGA principle is that environmental protection and quality jobs go hand in hand.

On the last panel of the day—New Frontiers in Clean Energy Research and Development—Shannon M. Bragg-Sitton, National Technical Director for Integrated Energy Systems at the Idaho National Laboratory, noted the importance of setting clear goals before developing any energy resource to help ensure desired outcomes—for example, energy that is clean, resilient, reliable, and affordable. As technologies continue to advance, this is an important reminder that successful projects also require the “soft” strategies of holistic thinking and careful planning.

Author: Ellen Vaughan