Local Michigan Chamber Plans Energy Audit Day

Demonstrating strong leadership, the all-volunteer Sandusky Chamber of Commerce in Michigan organized an “energy audit day” to help its member businesses save money by unlocking rebates, low-cost financing and other cost-saving measures available for implementing energy efficiency.

In a news release, Chamber President Sandy Miller said the chamber recognizes that energy is one of the largest costs for Michigan businesses. “Cutting energy expenses will help our member businesses be even more successful,” she said.

Miller said that the businesses that participated learned that they could receive 20 percent to 50 percent back on installation and supply costs for energy retrofit services by using approved contractors.

Incentives for adopting energy efficiency upgrades vary extensively by state and utility provider. The U.S. Department of Energy offers a web site portal called DSIRE that provides summaries of renewable energy and energy efficiency incentives. The site offers summary maps and tables and a search tool to help businesses determine which incentives and policies might apply to a specific project.

The Sandusky chamber can be found online here. The DSIRE web portal can be found here.

Chambers Explore Savings for Building Owners Through Energy Leasing

The financial interests of building owners and tenants can sometimes seem completely at odds. But, according to a recent telebriefing hosted by Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy, local chambers of commerce can help bridge the gap by opening a conversation about “high performance leases” that can align interests of building owners and tenants so they can work together to save money while saving energy.

According to the participants of the telebriefing, leases are typically not structured in a way that promotes energy savings. Under most gross leases, for example, tenants have no incentive to save energy in their leased premises because energy costs are based on tenant square footage. Under most net leases, building owners have no incentive to invest in efficiency for their building systems because the operating expenses are passed through to tenants, who would therefore receive all of the energy cost savings.

High performance leases, however, create structures that can equitably align the costs and benefits of efficiency investments between building owners and tenants and save both money.

During the telebriefing, Nicole Stika, Senior Director, Energy Service at the Greater Cleveland Partnership’s Council of Smaller Enterprises, described her chamber’s partnership with the Cleveland 2030 District to identify opportunities for high performance leases across 73 million square feet of downtown office buildings. “Our ultimate goal is to transform our downtown and offer both landlords and tenants a positive return on investment,” Stika said.

“This is a critically important conversation between landlords and tenants,” Stika said. “It needs to start somewhere. Why not the chamber?”

Other speakers included Adam Sledd, Program Director, Commercial Real Estate Engagment, at the Institute for Market Transformation, and Jodi Mansbach, Vice President at Jamestown Properties. One of Sledd’s target audiences is chamber of commerce executives; he has also presented to the New England Association of Chambers of Commerce Executives and the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce in Maryland.

The Institute for Market Transformation has an online library here about high performance leases. Information about the Cleveland’s engagement can be found here.

Local NC Chamber Showcases Clean Energy Solutions with Members

When Marc Pons joined the board of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce in North Carolina, he volunteered his company to serve as a beta tester for a new program the chamber developed to help area businesses save money through renewable energy and other sustainability practices. He was, however, deeply skeptical: “I felt that whatever the test was, we would fail because we’re in the auto repair and tire industry.”

Aaron Nelson, President and CEO of the Chapel Hill chamber, was more optimistic. “Chambers are always looking for ways to help our business members make and save money,” Nelson said. “We envisioned Green Plus as a chamber-created tool to help smaller employers enjoy the same savings from renewables, energy efficiency, and advanced technology that large employers enjoy.”

Pons quickly and happily discovered that his business, the Chapel Hill Tire Car Care Center, flourished through exploring sustainable energy solutions through the chamber’s Green Plus program. He installed a solar array, replaced lighting with more efficient lamps and replaced old toilets with modern dual flush models.

“We started saving money by becoming more efficient but we also really engaged our customer base and employees,” Pons said. “Our mechanics are skeptical salty dogs, but they saw the press and it made them proud. They started asking for more hybrid training and they are now at the top of their game.”

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro chamber can be found here. The Green Plus program is here. The Chapel Hill Tire Care Center can be found here.

Local MI Chamber Creates Solar Manufacturing Hub

The Saginaw County Chamber of Commerce in Michigan prides itself on supporting its member companies. Several years ago, chamber leaders saw Hemlock Semiconductor, one of its largest members, ramp up investment in polycrystalline, a critical component of solar panels. Other chamber members such as Dow Corning Research and Dow Chemical were investing in solar as well.

“We reflected on how we could grow the solar business in Michigan,” said Veronica Horn, Executive Vice President, Government Affairs, at the Saginaw Chamber. “But then we learned that there’s more solar potential in Michigan then there is in Germany, one of the largest producers and consumers of solar power in the world.”

Working hand-in-hand with Saginaw Future, the economic development agency for Saginaw County, the two organizations decided to try to increase demand for solar in Michigan by working with local governments to streamline permitting processes for companies interested in installing renewables. They launched four “Solar Ready Community” pilot projects using the streamlined permitting processes and helped develop the infrastructure necessary for local businesses to install solar panels.

The program is working: other solar supply chain companies have moved into the region and Saginaw Future has built a large clean energy manufacturing park called Great Lakes Tech Park that serves as a business accelerator for clean tech.

The Saginaw Chamber can be found online here. Saginaw Future is here. 

Local Chambers and the Military

Raleigh Chamber Hosts Panel with Retired Marine Corps General on Energy Innovation, Regional Economy and National Security 

The Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce recently hosted a groundbreaking discussion with Lt. General Richard C. Zilmer, USMC (Ret.), about the close ties between energy innovation, local economic development and national security.

One conclusion from the discussion: Local chambers with military bases in their communities have an important role to play in the clean energy discussions happening at the local, state and national levels. With growing numbers of military bases prioritizing energy efficiency and renewable energy, local chambers are increasingly seeking to engage their member businesses in clean energy projects.

North Carolina has benefited tremendously from energy innovation and will continue to reap huge economic rewards. During the panel discussion, chambers said that connecting local businesses to the new energy priorities of the military bases is a natural next step.

Last week’s conversation — which was also sponsored by the Research Triangle Regional Partnership Clean Tech Cluster and Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy — demonstrated the power of local chambers to convene stakeholders such as the military, businesses, universities, regional business clusters and government officials for important regional and national conversations. The meeting drew approximately 25 participants including representatives from the local chambers of Raleigh, Morrisville, Asheville and Chapel Hill Carrboro as well from the governor’s office, the North Carolina Department of Commerce and clean tech businesses.

Zilmer, who served in the Marine Corps for 36 years, stressed the connection between energy innovation and national security, a link he first saw in 2006 when he served as commanding general of allied forces in Iraq. At the time, Zilmer noted the connection between American casualties and convoys of fuel supply vehicles. He issued a “Priority 1” rapid resource response to the US Marine Corp for great deployment of renewable energy on the battlefield. The DOD has broad goals to power the military with renewable energy while saving energy at military bases around the country.

The panel concluded that the research triangle area in North Carolina is well positioned to benefit economically as the military and the rest of the country moves toward efficiency and renewable sources of power . With three first-tier research universities and a smart grid and solar industry cluster, North Carolina has already received a $2.7 billion boost over the last six years from clean energy, according to a report by RTI International.

General Zilmer’s Memorial Day column in the News and Observer can be found here. The Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce can be found online here. The Research Triangle Regional Partnership is here.

Local OH Chamber Provides Testimony On Economic Benefits of Wind Power

In testimony last week before the Ohio Legislature, the President of the Van Wert Area Chamber of Commerce made a powerful case for the economics of wind power, saying that a new wind farm has been a tremendous boost for Van Wert County. Economic benefits, she said, have rippled to hotels, restaurants, auto dealers, grocery stores and other member businesses in her rural county as well as providing much-needed funding for local government services and education.

Susan Munroe, President of the Van Wert Area Chamber, asked legislators to halt efforts to freeze the state’s Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard. Under a 2008 law, utilities are required to get 25 percent of Ohio’s electricity from alternative energy sources by 2025. Some legislators are seeking to roll back the standard or freeze it at current levels. Munroe warned that freezing the standard would also freeze further investment in Northwest Ohio and asked legislators “why would you stop something that’s working just as the law intended it would work?”

Business opposition to the rollback is strong: the Ohio Manufacturers’ Association, Honeywell, Whirlpool, Owens Corning, the Campbell Soup Company, DuPont, Honda and many other Ohio businesses do not want legislators to stop or freeze effective standards.

Munroe testified that the Blue Creek Wind Farm, which opened two years ago, is now the largest taxpayer in Van Wert County, providing $2 million annually for schools and local governments and millions more to local farmers and other landowners. “Wind is a lucrative, sustainable “crop” for our farmers and entire community,” Munroe said. “We hope to continue to harvest wind to not only build economic success for our county but provide sustainable, renewable energy for our state.”

Munroe’s full testimony can be found here. A previous oped by the Van Wert Area Chamber can be found here.

Strengthening Area Businesses Through Energy Efficiency

Illinois Chamber Insists on Local Contractors for Utility Program

Steve Brody, the Executive Director of Galesburg Area Chamber of Commerce in Illinois, did not need much convincing when he was approached by Ameren Illinois to help promote an energy efficiency retrofit program for area businesses. He was, however, adamant that Ameren identify local contractors to do the required energy audits.

“If you want our chamber to participate in this,” Brody said, “you need to get a Galesburg business involved. We want to have Galesburg businesses helping Galesburg businesses.”

Ameren found several local vendors. The chamber organized a “Galesburg on the Go” chamber luncheon about the program. The chamber itself also signed up for a free audit and ended up having virtually all of its lighting replaced at very low cost.

Overall 52 area businesses had free audits and received more than $216,000 in cash incentives to implement 79 retrofit projects that are projected to save a quarter of a million dollars. Last month, the City of Galesburg was presented with the ActOnEnergy 2013 Most Progressive City Award for embracing the efficiency program.

The Galesburg chamber is constantly looking for ways to make area businesses stronger, more profitable, Brody said. “A business needs to be as profitable as possible,” he added. “If you can be as energy efficient as possible, that goes a long way to making your business profitable.”

Interested in replicating the Galesburg program? An article about the Galesburg experience can be found here. The Galesburg chamber is here. Ameren Illinois ActonEnergy program can be found here.

Innovative Landfill Energy Program in North Carolina

As local chamber leaders from across the Carolinas gathered at the Charlotte Motor Speedway to kick off their semi-annual meeting, they were probably not surprised to learn about the $400 million annual boost the raceway provides to the regional economy. But they may have been surprised to hear about the innovative energy program launched in recent years by the Speedway.

The Speedway, which has its own landfill, has partnered with its business community, including Foristar Inc. and Duke Energy, to provide clean energy to 7,700 area homes. Landfill methane powers turbines, which in turn generate electricity distributed through Duke Energy’s grid.

Tim Hagler, a vice president at the Speedway, is an active leader on the Cabarrus Regional Chamber of Commerce Board, which hosted the regional meeting, and has done a great deal to educate chamber members on the economic opportunities with clean energy. He spoke of the Speedway experience along with Chris Carmody, a senior adviser to Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy, a sponsor of the Carolinas meeting.

The Carrabus Regional Chamber is here. An article about the Speedway’s energy program can be found here.

Salt Lake Chamber Launches Renewable Energy Tour

Long a leader in energy innovation, the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce launched a new initiative this month to showcase area businesses that are some of the country’s largest producers of renewable energy.

The chamber brought 50 business leaders on a tour through southern Utah’s Beaver County that included visits to two geothermal plants, a hydro facility, a wind farm, a manufacturing facility and a coal plant that is scheduled to be converted to natural gas. The tour also stopped at a high school renewable energy fair where students showed their achievements in renewable energy research.

The Salt Lake Chamber has for several years run an innovative program to help clear the region’s air by helping area business save fuel and reduce vehicle emissions. By helping to improve air quality in the region, the chamber says it has increased business attraction and retention in the Salt Lake area.

Interested in replicating the Salt Lake programs? A news report about the energy tour can be found here. A profile of the Salt Lake Chamber’s Clean Air program can be found here. The Salt Lake Chamber is online here.

Local MI Chambers Host Clean Energy Discussion with Governor’s Office

The Lansing, Saginaw and Traverse City Chambers of Commerce co-hosted a briefing call with representatives from Governor Rick Snyder’s office to exchange ideas on the state’s clean energy goals. During the briefing, approximately 50 chamber officials and member companies learned about the state’s energy goals and shared information about their energy projects and experiences.

Valerie Brader, Michigan’s senior policy advisor on energy, told the chambers that the state is likely to seek an increase in its energy efficiency and renewable energy standards. She said she was gratified to hear about the activities already being undertaken by chambers and asked them to share their stories more widely to help build support for innovative energy policy in the state.

The Traverse City Area Chamber of Commerce, for example, told the participants about a very well received revolving loan program to fund energy efficiency retrofits. The Saginaw Chamber said it hoped to involve its members in one of the state’s new energy working groups and the Lansing Chamber discussed its continuing efforts to guide innovative energy policies in the state.

The call also featured a briefing about the surprising bipartisan momentum in Congress around energy efficiency legislation.

A summary of energy efficiency legislative initiatives in Washington can be found here. A short profile of the Traverse City program can be found here. 

Foster City Chamber Teams Up With Cleantech Open Accelerator

The Foster City Chamber in California continues to enhance its reputation as an innovator by co-hosting a forum with the Cleantech Open and IBM to educate local businesses about the upcoming national 2014 Cleantech Open Accelerator.

The forum will feature leading architects and technology entrepreneurs focused on designing smart buildings that can reward owners with significant energy savings. The chamber’s member companies will learn about the latest in smart building design and software.

Chambers around the country may want to share the Accelerator link with their entrepreneurial businesses. The Foster City Chamber of Commerce is here. 

Local TN Chamber Guides Members Toward Efficiency Incentives

In 2010, the Bartlett Area Chamber launched an innovative new energy efficiency service for its member companies that helps assess energy use, plan upgrades and implement action plans. In a two-year period, the chamber helped 43 companies implement efficiency projects valued at $5.5 million.

“Over and over again, we realized that most commercial buildings are wasting anywhere from 20 percent to 30 percent of their energy,” said Chamber CEO John Threadgill. “In this economy, our members can’t afford to throw their money away. Energy efficiency is the solution.”

More recently, the Bartlett chamber began working with the county’s Economic Development team to educate companies about the available tax benefits for energy efficiency and similar resource saving programs.

Click here to read our profile of the Bartlett Area Chamber and how it created a staff position to help its member companies with energy efficiency.

Local Chamber in Gadsden, Florida, Installs Solar System on Office Building

Demonstrating the power of local chambers to lead by establishing pilot projects, the Chamber of Gadsden County in Florida has announced plans to become the first business in its area to install a fully integrated solar energy system.

The chamber will install four solar panels capable of generating 1 kilowatt of energy on its building. The project will demonstrate the feasibility of incorporating a solar system into an existing building as an alternative energy source.

According to Independent Green Technologies, the company handling the installation, the parties have agreed to a barter relationship. The chamber gets a solar installation and Independent Green Technologies receives a membership to the Gadsden chamber.

The Gadsden Chamber is online here. Independent Green Technologies can be found here.

Cleveland Chamber’s Small Business Partner Promotes Energy Efficiency

The Council of Smaller Enterprises (COSE), Cleveland Chamber of Commerce’s Small-Business Partner, released a new video illustrating how small businesses can save money through energy assessments. The video features Mike Mitchell, owner of Mitchell’s Ice Cream, and how he saved thousands of dollars on his energy bills.

COSE has a strong record of producing creative materials to bring the energy efficiency message to its member businesses. See here for its “Seven Steps to Energy Efficiency and Savings” offers a turnkey set of solutions to identify energy savings.

Local MN Chamber Uses Energy Efficiency as Retention Strategy

With local energy rates increasing, the Hibbing Area Chamber of Commerce in Minnesota wondered what it could do to help its member companies survive. “For us, it was not only helping reduce energy waste,” said Lory Fedo, chamber President and CEO. “We are helping people stay in business because they just cannot afford these utility bills.”

After exploring options, Hibbing launched a “Business Energy Retrofit” program in cooperation with the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board and the Arrowhead Economic Opportunity Agency. Working together, they established a “one stop shop” for area businesses that include audits and step-by-step programs to help implement efficiency retrofits.

IRRRB has invested $750,000 in the program. Approximately 50 businesses have taken advantage of the mixture of grants and low-cost loans. Another 100 are on a waiting list with the next phase of the program anticipated this spring. “The beauty of the program is that it assists businesses regardless of their size and projects,” Fedo says. “And we get healthier businesses and happy members.”

The Business Energy Retrofit application can be found on the chamber’s website here. A brochure on the BER program from the Arrowhead Economic Opportunity Agency can be found here.

2014 Clean Energy Investment Briefing

Local Chambers Well Positioned To Foster Economic and Job Development in Clean Energy Space

With developments in clean energy and renewables coming at an ever-faster pace, local chambers of commerce are well positioned to harness the energy of entrepreneurs and investors to build their communities in profitable and sustainable ways.

That was the message delivered by clean energy experts who spoke to chamber executives during the annual clean energy investment forecast hosted by Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy. The Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce joined the briefing as a featured speaker, highlighting the critical role that chambers can play in convening stakeholders, creating public-private partnerships to create clean energy hubs and hosting demonstration projects.

Michael Haley of the Greater Raleigh Chamber’s Economic Development Office described how his region undertook a survey of area businesses and found an emerging hub of smart grid firms that allowed the region to create a Smart Grid Cluster that the chamber then sought to develop through traditional chamber roles such as conveners, partners, amplifiers and economic and job development.

Also speaking to approximately 60 chamber representatives from around the country, Sheeraz Haji, CEO, Cleantech Group, told local chambers that market disruption is still ongoing in the transportation, lighting and home energy sectors presenting new opportunities for local businesses. Matthew Nordan, Managing Partner of MNL Partners, a clean energy investment firm, described how clean energy companies are positioning themselves in the US and abroad and how cities are attracting investment by creating a start-up ecosystem where they provide start-ups with shared space and capital equipment, demonstration sites and more.

Local Chambers Voice Support for Renewable Energy

The Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce and the Hutchinson/Reno County Chamber are speaking out in support of wind energy. Their statements of support come as the state legislature in Kansas once again considers measures to repeal the state’s renewable energy standards.

Commenting on a recent poll finding that 91 percent of Kansas voters strongly support using renewable energy, Jim Heeter, President and CEO of the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce, told reporters that “the state’s renewable energy policy has helped foster new business and jobs in Kansas.” And Jason Ball, President and CEO of the Hutchinson/Reno County Chamber of Commerce, said that “policies such as the Renewable Portfolio Standard support companies that currently provide jobs in Kansas, and it keeps Kansas competitive when recruiting new employers and investment to the region.”

According to the poll, voters overwhelmingly believe that renewable energy leads to new investments and jobs in the state.

Local MI Chambers Open Energy Dialogue With Policy Makers

Local chambers in Michigan organized a luncheon and briefing with Governor Rick Snyder’s office to discuss the development of the state’s ten-year energy plan. Only hours before the Governor’s “State of the State” speech, his chief energy advisor, Valerie Brader, told more than a dozen chamber CEOs that the governor believes expanded energy efficiency and renewable standards will be a key part of the plan. Local chambers were encouraged to provide input into this key economic development opportunity for the state.

The program was co-sponsored by the Lansing Chamber of Commerce, the Traverse City Chamber of Commerce, the Saginaw Chamber of Commerce, and Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy. Co-hosts Tim Daman (CEO, Lansing Chamber) and Doug Luciani (CEO, Traverse City Chamber) shared their clean energy economic development projects with the Governor’s representatives and their chamber colleagues.

See Governor Snyder's video on setting goals for “No Regrets” energy future by 2025.

Local MA Chambers Hear Potential For Offshore Wind Development

Early last year, the New Bedford Economic Development Council established a special wind energy center to boost efforts to develop the offshore wind industry in this southeastern Massachusetts town. Last weekend, the Mayor of New Bedford told a roomful of local chamber of commerce executives that wind energy will transform his city’s economy.

Speaking to the annual meeting of the Massachusetts Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives, Mayor Jonathan Mitchell said that the state is building a $100 million facility at the New Bedford port to support the construction, assembly and deployment of offshore wind projects and said that nearly a quarter of the nation’s wind energy resources sit just a few miles from this historic whaling community.

Mayor Mitchell thanked the New Bedford Chamber of Commerce, a partner in the wind energy center, and urged the other chamber executives from Massachusetts to fully explore renewable energy resources for their own communities. CICE was one of the sponsors of the MACCE meeting and hosted a clean energy table to share information about clean energy opportunities for chambers.

Mayor Mitchell’s state of the city address from 2013 can be found on the New Bedford Chamber of Commerce website here. 

MT's Laurel Chamber Celebrates the Holidays by Saving Energy

To mark the holiday season, we offer something a bit ‘lighter’: the Christmas tale of Montana’s Laurel Chamber of Commerce, which this year added new sparkle to its downtown holiday decorations by swapping out more than 1,000 bulbs with new energy-efficient lights. The new bulbs are expected to last 40 holiday seasons!

“For the first time, we proudly present the community with street decorations that are newly rewired and include all new LED bulbs,” Chamber Executive Secretary Joanne Flynn said.

See this short video about the many advantages of LED lights over regular incandescent light sources here.

An article in the local Montana newspaper describes the chamber project and the advantages of LEDs (light-emitting diodes), such as lower energy consumption, longer lifetime, improved physical robustness, and smaller size.