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This week in buildings, land and industry, NetZero Insider’s James Downing wrote about the Department of Energy’s $6 billion in funding for 33 projects to limit emissions from hard-to-abate industries including oil refining, chemicals and cement. Some industrial processes require fuel, which is leading researchers to explore alternatives such as hydrogen and fossil fuels with carbon capture and storage.
In our curated news, TheNew York Times has the details on Berkeley, California’s decision to withdraw its ban on natural gas in new homes after losing a court challenge. While the city decided to cease enforcement of its ban, other jurisdictions have taken up similar policies, but with designs to avoid the constitutional issues that sunk Berkeley’s.
Chicago has been considering its own natural gas ban and the Sun Times ran an op-ed by a pastor and environmental justice advocate who argued it should move ahead with the policy. The piece argued that natural gas is unaffordable for many Black and Brown Chicagoans, with the city leading the country in natural gas shutoffs. It also argues that minority communities face a higher risk from indoor pollution from burning natural gas.
Canary Media has a story on another front in that policy debate – building codes, which clean energy advocates say have been influenced by fossil fuel lobbies to limit changes that would benefit electrification and the adoption of heat pumps. The International Code Council at the last minute stripped electrification provisions from its 2024 International Energy Conservation Code.
Energy News Network has a story about how a climate action group worked with advocates for low-income Virginians to help find residents who would benefit from efficiency retrofits. Some of the non-profits help pay low-income customers’ utility bills, so the retrofits will help those dollars go further in the future.
See these and other stories in this week’s Intelligence Report:
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Colorado
In the Geos neighborhood, heat pumps, solar and energy efficiency abound. The net-zero community offers a glimpse into what a decarbonized home can look like. Canary Media
International
The International Code Council voted March 18 to finalize the 2024 International Energy Conservation Code, or IECC. As part of its decision, certain provisions aimed at cutting greenhouse gas emissions, rather than directly improving energy efficiency in buildings, will be moved from the main body of the code to the appendices. Facilities Dive
U.S.
A nonprofit that sets U.S. building codes has nixed rules to make new homes ready for EVs and heat pumps. Climate advocates blame fossil gas lobbyists. Canary Media
Virginia
A climate action group had money for home energy retrofits, but it needed a way to find participants who could benefit most from its services. The solution: partnerships. Energy News Network
Cooking
Illinois
By prioritizing clean energy solutions, the Clean and Affordable Buildings Ordinance paves the way for a more sustainable future while creating thousands of new jobs and safeguarding public health. Pastor Scott Onqu?, policy director of Faith in Place and Faith in Place Action Fund, urges the City Council to pass the ordinance quickly and take the first step in a much-needed managed transition from fossil fuels, setting the stage for an affordable, equitable, clean economy. Chicago Sun-Times
Energy Efficiency
Kansas
Kansas officials should prioritize investments in energy efficiency for rental housing, easing the burden on at least one-third of our fellow Kansans and averting wastage amounting to millions of dollars. Let us set a precedent, demonstrating that environmental stewardship and social equity can go hand in hand, embodying the Kansan spirit of caring for our fellow community members, writes S. Mohsen Fatemi, who is pursuing a Ph.D. in the school of public affairs and administration at the University of Kansas, focusing on sustainable energy governance, policy and justice. Kansas Reflector
Space Cooling & Heating
California
The city of Berkeley, Calif., has agreed to repeal a landmark climate rule that would have banned natural gas hookups in new homes, throwing into question the fate of dozens of similar restrictions on gas in cities across the country. The New York Times
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Steel
U.S.
Ultimately, how to sustainably produce steel is one challenge among many that must be tackled in parallel to solve the climate crisis. Only through investment in new technologies and supportive policies and infrastructure can we achieve a landscape that is conducive to zero-carbon industrial practices. Both the public and private sectors must show a strong appetite for sustainable steel to fully transform the industry, writes Nik Sawe, a policy analyst at Energy Innovation: Policy & Technology. Energy News Network
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