Do Building Energy Codes Have a Lasting Effect on Energy Consumption? PDF Download

Author: Matthew J. Kotchen
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Buildings
Languages : en
Pages : 19

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Book Description
This paper provides an ex post evaluation of how changes to a building energy code affect energy consumption. Using residential billing data for electricity and natural gas over 11 years, the analysis is based on comparisons between residences constructed just before and just after a building code change in Florida. While an earlier study using 3 years of data for the same residences showed savings for both electricity an natural gas, new results show an enduring savings for natural gas only. These findings underscore the importance of accounting for age versus vintage effects and all sources of energy consumption when conducting evaluations of building codes. More broadly, the results provide a counterpoint to the growing literature casting doubt on whether ex ante forecasts of energy efficiency policies and investments can provide useful information about actual energy savings. Indeed, more than a decade after Florida's energy code change, the measured energy savings still meets or exceeds the forecasted amount.

Author: Arik Levinson
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Buildings
Languages : en
Pages : 40

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Book Description
Construction codes that regulate the energy efficiency of new buildings have been a centerpiece of US environmental policy for 40 years. California enacted the nation's first energy building codes in 1978, and they were projected to reduce residential energy use -- and associated pollution -- by 80 percent. How effective have the building codes been? I take three approaches to answering that question. First, I compare current electricity use by California homes of different vintages constructed under different standards, controlling for home size, local weather, and tenant characteristics. Second, I examine how electricity in California homes varies with outdoor temperatures for buildings of different vintages. And third, I compare electricity use for buildings of different vintages in California, which has stringent building energy codes, to electricity use for buildings of different vintages in other states. All three approaches yield the same answer: there is no evidence that homes constructed since California instituted its building energy codes use less electricity today than homes built before the codes came into effect.

Author: Jieyi Lu
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Political planning
Languages : en
Pages : 86

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Book Description
In light of the pressing impacts of climate change and rising demand for electricity, many state governments have adopted International Energy Conservation Codes (IECC) and the Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings (ASHRAE 90.1) for new commercial buildings. This paper investigates the relationship between commercial building energy codes and electricity consumption on the state level. Using state-level data on commercial building code adoption and electricity use from 2004 to 2015 in OLS and fixed-effects models, I found a negative relationship between building energy code adoption and electricity consumption. States adopting the building energy codes between 2004 and 2015 are associated with a 1,968.974 million kilowatthours less electricity consumption in the commercial sector, enough to power about 18,300 households per year. However, using a fixed-effects model with a one-year lagged effect, I found a positive relationship between building code adoption and electricity consumption. In this model specification, states adopting building energy codes in the previous year are associated with a 606.918 million kilowatthours increase in annual average electricity consumption in the commercial sector, which indicates the importance of compliance with codes. The inconsistent results indicate a need for future study, which could include additional data, such as compliance with codes, number of new commercial buildings, and building activities.

Author: Umberto Desideri
Publisher: Butterworth-Heinemann
ISBN: 0128128186
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 860

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Book Description
Handbook of Energy Efficiency in Buildings: A Life Cycle Approach offers a comprehensive and in-depth coverage of the subject with a further focus on the Life Cycle. The editors, renowned academics, invited a diverse group of researchers to develop original chapters for the book and managed to well integrate all contributions in a consistent volume. Sections cover the role of the building sector on energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, international technical standards, laws and regulations, building energy efficiency and zero energy consumption buildings, the life cycle assessment of buildings, from construction to decommissioning, and other timely topics. The multidisciplinary approach to the subject makes it valuable for researchers and industry based Civil, Construction, and Architectural Engineers. Researchers in related fields as built environment, energy and sustainability at an urban scale will also benefit from the books integrated perspective. Presents a complete and thorough coverage of energy efficiency in buildings Provides an integrated approach to all the different elements that impact energy efficiency Contains coverage of worldwide regulation

Author: International Code Council
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781609839611
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
The 2021 IECC addresses energy efficiency on several fronts including cost, energy usage, use of natural resources and the impact of energy usage on the environment.

Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309156866
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 349

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Book Description
America's economy and lifestyles have been shaped by the low prices and availability of energy. In the last decade, however, the prices of oil, natural gas, and coal have increased dramatically, leaving consumers and the industrial and service sectors looking for ways to reduce energy use. To achieve greater energy efficiency, we need technology, more informed consumers and producers, and investments in more energy-efficient industrial processes, businesses, residences, and transportation. As part of the America's Energy Future project, Real Prospects for Energy Efficiency in the United States examines the potential for reducing energy demand through improving efficiency by using existing technologies, technologies developed but not yet utilized widely, and prospective technologies. The book evaluates technologies based on their estimated times to initial commercial deployment, and provides an analysis of costs, barriers, and research needs. This quantitative characterization of technologies will guide policy makers toward planning the future of energy use in America. This book will also have much to offer to industry leaders, investors, environmentalists, and others looking for a practical diagnosis of energy efficiency possibilities.

Author: International Code Council
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781580018692
Category : Buildings
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
The Study Companion is a comprehensive self-study guide for the 2009 International Energy Conservation Code. Ten study sessions cover administration and enforcement as well as energy efficiency in residential and commercial structures. A 20-question quiz is provided at the end of each study session.

Author: Christopher Daniel Bruegge
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
State-level building energy codes have been around for over 40 years, but recent empirical research has cast doubt on their effectiveness. A potential virtue of standards-based policies is that they may be less regressive than explicit taxes on energy consumption. However, this conjecture has not been tested empirically in the case of building energy codes. Using spatial variation in California's code strictness created by building climate zones, combined with information on over 350,000 homes located within 3 kilometers of climate zone borders, we evaluate the effect of building energy codes on home characteristics, energy use, and home value. We also study building energy codes' distributional burdens. Our key findings are that stricter codes create a non-trivial reduction in homes' square footage and the number of bedrooms at the lower end of the income distribution. On a per-dwelling basis, we observe energy use reductions only in the second lowest income quintile, and energy use per square foot actually increases in the bottom quintile. Home values of lower-income households fall, while those of high-income households rise. We interpret these results as evidence that building energy codes result in more distortions for lower-income households and that decreases in square footage are responsible for much of the code-induced energy savings.

Author: Matthew J. Holian
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030642623
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 213

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Book Description
This book paints a portrait of social life in America by providing an accessible discussion of empirical economics research on issues such as illegal immigration, health care and climate change. All the studies in this book use the same data source: individual responses to the American Community Survey (ACS), the nation's largest household survey. The author identifies studies that clearly illustrate core econometric methods (such as regression control and difference-in-differences), replicates key statistics from the studies, and helps the reader to carefully interpret the statistics. This book has a companion website with replication files in R and Stata format. The Appendix to this book contains a guide to using the free R software, downloading the ACS and other public-use microdata, and running the replication files, which assumes no background knowledge on the part of the reader beyond introductory statistics. By opening up the hood on how top scholars use core econometric methods to analyze large data sets, a motivated reader with a decent computer and Internet connection can use this book to learn not only how to replicate published research, but also to extend the analysis to create new knowledge about important social phenomena. A more casual reader can skip the online supplements and still gain data-driven insights into social and economic behavior. The book concludes by describing how careful empirical estimates can guide decision making, through cost-benefit analysis, to find public policies that lead to greater happiness while accounting for environmental, public health and other impacts. With its accessible discussion, glossary, detailed learning goals, end of chapter review questions and companion resources, this book is ideal for use as a supplementary volume in introductory econometrics or research methods courses.

Author: Grant Jacobsen
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 37

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Book Description
In response to the 1973 oil embargo, many states began passing building energy codes in order to promote energy efficiency. While the vast majority of states have energy codes in place, policymakers are now attempting to legislate energy codes at the federal level to help address more recent concerns about energy efficiency and climate change. Nevertheless, surprisingly little is known about whether energy codes are an effective way to reduce energy consumption in practice. This paper provides the first evaluation of an energy-code change that uses residential billing data on both electricity and natural gas, combined with data on observable characteristics of each residence. The study takes place in Gainesville, Florida, and the empirical strategy is based on comparisons between residences constructed just before and just after Florida increased the stringency of its energy code in 2002. We find that the increased stringency of the energy code is associated with a 4-percent decrease in electricity consumption and a 6-percent decrease in natural-gas consumption. The pattern of savings is consistent with reduced consumption of electricity for air-conditioning and reduced consumption of natural gas for heating. We also estimate economic costs and benefits and find that the private payback period for the average residence is 6.4 years. The social payback period, which accounts for the avoided costs of air-pollution emissions, ranges between 3.5 and 5.3 years.