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February 13, 2015
Rural Renewable Energy, Energy Efficiency Get A Boost with USDA Funding
On February 10, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced the availability of $280 million in grants and loans through the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP). Administered by the USDA’s Rural Business Service, the program provides grants and loans to farmers, ranchers and rural small businesses to install renewable energy systems, make energy efficiency upgrades, and conduct energy audits at businesses and farms. With extreme temperature events and rising costs of energy, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack underscored the importance of reducing rural America’s energy costs while also lowering the emission of climate change-causing air pollutants. “Developing renewable energy presents an enormous economic opportunity for rural America. Incorporat[ing] renewable energy and energy efficiency technology into their operations … can help a business reduce energy use and costs; … reduce dependence on foreign oil and cut carbon pollution as well."
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EPA Issues New Emissions Standards for Residential Wood & Pellet Stoves
On February 4, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released updated emissions standards for new residential wood heaters, under Section 111 of the Clean Air Act. Prior to this 2015 final rule, the New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) were last updated in 1988. The revision of the standards reflect improved wood heater technology, which allows residential heaters to run cleaner and more efficiently, producing fewer emissions. For the first-time, new wood fired boilers, indoor wood-fired air furnaces, and single burn-rate woodstoves will also be regulated under the new rule. Residential pellet stoves are also included in the new emissions standards. In total, 2.9 million homes in the United States, roughly 2 percent, use wood heat. Among those homes who do use wood heat, the largest percentage of use is by those on the lower-end of the income spectrum. Pellet and wood stoves are growing in popularity as well; last year, the Energy Information Agency (EIA) reported that wood heat saw a 50 percent jump in 2013 in the New England region alone.
RFS Roundup: Bipartisan Group of Senators Urge EPA to Finalize Biodiesel Volumes
On February 9, 26 Senators sent a letter to EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy, asking the agency to finalize 2014 volumes and quickly set 2015 and 2016 numbers. Separately, Sen. Boxer (D-CA) and Ranking Minority Member of the Committee for Environment and Public Works, which has oversight of the EPA, has written to EPA on the subject. Under the Renewable Fuel Standard, the agency can separately set fuel volumes for various categories.
Event: The 2016 Budget: Impacts on Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy
Wednesday, February 25 2:00 pm - 3:30 pm
210 Cannon House Office Building 1st Street and C Street Southeast
Free and open to the public
Please RSVP to expedite check-in.
The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) – in partnership with the House Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucus – invites you to a briefing on the energy efficiency and renewable energy implications of the fiscal year (FY) 2016 budget proposal released by President Obama on February 2. The Administration's overall $4 trillion budget proposal provides a renewed focus on addressing climate change, and would invest $7.4 billion in clean energy technology programs across all agencies, led by the Department of Energy (DOE), the Department of Defense, the National Science Foundation, and the Department of Agriculture. This briefing will focus on the DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), whose budget would increase 42 percent over 2015 enacted levels, to $2.7 billion.
Visit http://www.eesi.org/briefings/view/022515budget for more information.
To Contact the Editor: Jessie Stolark at eesi@eesi.org
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