The County of San Diego has published a Progress Report on its 2013-2015 Strategic Energy Plan. The Report shares what the County has accomplished in the Plan during its 2013-2014 Fiscal Year. Some energy efficiency highlights are shared below; the Progress Report can be reviewed in full here.
- Reviewed all capital improvement and major maintenance projects for
opportunities to reduce energy/water consumption and related costs,
minimize greenhouse gas emissions and promote sustainability practices in
County operations. - Completed 8 projects to modernize lighting fixtures, replace lamps and light bulbs in County facilities. The expected annual savings for these projects is 973,000 kWh or enough energy to power about 90 average homes. The County received $656,000 in zero interest loans from SDG&E to fund these projects.Finalized retro-commissioning (a process for identifying where a facility’s equipment, lighting and control systems can be improved and making the necessary adjustments) at the East Mesa Detention Facility, North County Regional Center, and Health Services Complex. The expected annual energy savings for these facilities is 1,678,000 kWh or enough energy to power about 157 average homes. The County received $383,000 in incentives and grants and $807,000 dollars in zero interest loans to fund these projects.
- Finished outdoor energy efficient lighting retrofits at Heise Park and Live Oak Park, a lighting control system at 4S Ranch Park and solar parking lot lights at Heise Park.
- Put in efficient sink fixtures, toilet flush valves, and shower heads at Vista
Detention Facility. The new equipment is expected to save approximately 21
million gallons of water annually or about 42% of the total water
consumption at that facility. That’s enough water to supply about 128 average
households. The savings will pay for the project costs in less than 3 years. - Installed high efficiency irrigation heads and smart irrigation controllers
at six County parks. The improvements not only reduced irrigation use by
over 30%, but also reduced time devoted to irrigation maintenance. The
retrofits were successful at Hilton Head Park, Clemmens Lane Park, Rainbow
Park, Lindo Lake Park, Live Oak Park and Felicita Park.