This Sustainability Plan recommendation was combined with the Climate Action Recommendations Report BE.3: Commercial Building Benchmarking. That strategy is to implement a commercial energy benchmarking program by 2022 to encourage owners and tenants to improve energy efficiency and reduce commercial energy consumption by 7% by 2025.
Due to unforeseen circumstances, the commercial benchmarking program has been delayed. Our strategy has evolved to work towards implementing a compulsory program in 2024, and continue to support our largest customers (those greater than 50,000 square feet) in their efforts to comply with the state's Building Performance Standards requirements.
Energy /
E-5Report and benchmark energy use
Progress
- Not started
- Planning
- Continuous
- Implementation
Late
Implementation of Longmont's Commercial Benchmarking Program continues to be underway. After an unforeseen interruption in the business climate of 2020 and 2021, the City directed its efforts toward supporting the state's benchmarking policy and building performance standards implementation. Longmont's automated portal is now operational, providing aggregate, or "whole building," data to automatically or manually import into ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager®. Over 60 building owners took advantage of our automated data portal to report benchmarking results to the state in 2023. LPC is committed to advancing further in our benchmarking initiatives, and the program will continue to progress throughout 2024.
Description
Building energy benchmarking lets you compare your building to similar building types in similar climates so that you can see whether your building's energy use is above average, below average or on par. To do this, a participant inputs basic building data and 12 months of electric and natural gas use information into the Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager to calculate a score, and submits the results to Longmont Power & Communications.
In 2021, the State of Colorado passed a bill requiring commercial and multi-family properties greater than 50,000 sq. ft. to benchmark their energy use. The goal of this law is to help building owners increase energy efficiency, lower energy costs, and decrease greenhouse gas emissions in the building sector. In 2023, Colorado adopted Building Performance Standards (BPS), setting targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions of 7% by 2026 and 20% by 2030.
Tasks
What are we doing?
- 7/2024
Midyear Update
What has been done?
- 11/30/2022
Automated Portal
Longmont Power & Communications was selected for grant funding by the Colorado Energy Office to provide an automated portal. The focus for the Longmont program in 2022 was to develop this automated portal, allowing building owners to more easily obtain utility-bill data and aid them in benchmarking.
Summary and contacts
Topic Area
Timeline
Continuous
Initiation period
Responsible organizations
Contact persons
- Susan BartlettDirector, Energy Strategies & SolutionsLongmont Power & Communications
- Maureen JanikEnergy Services SpecialistLongmont Power & Communications
Information updated 07/18/2024
As we reach the midpoint of the year, Longmont Power & Communications continues its support for the State of Colorado's Building Performance program. We are gaining valuable insights both as a program participant and from the experiences shared by customers of LPC. Internally, we are addressing technical complexities to ensure accurate data and timely customer support in a streamlined fashion.
In collaboration with Efficiency Works, we are exploring ways to enhance support in navigating complex energy efficiency solutions and optimizing building performance. Our efforts aim to foster a regulatory environment that supports long-term sustainability investments.