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Clean Energy and Air Quality Projects in the States

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Clean and Air Quality Integration Initiative sponsors pilot projects in the states and provides analytic assistance, training and outreach. You can link to the following sections on this page.

2008 Air Quality Projects in the States

The initiative sponsored the following projects, which are organized by state, as part of the 2007 State Energy Activities Solicitation:

  • Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity
    This project, which is titled Evaluating the Air Quality Impact of Energy Efficiency (EE) and Renewable Energy (RE) Policies and Programs Using the EE and RE / Air Integration Methodology, will enhance and standardize emissions impact analysis approach in Illinois for use by state energy and air-quality decision makers to help them determine which policies and programs will best achieve their air-quality goals. Using the economic-dispatch model as a base, Illinois will develop a methodology that will enable decision-makers to evaluate various scenarios for including renewable energy and energy efficiency in air quality programs.

  • Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, NESCAUM, Mass. Division of Energy Resources
    This project, which is titled Achieving Northeast Regional Air Quality Goals with Cost-Effective Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Projects, will identify the most cost-effective EE and RE policies and programs within the power generation, industrial, transportation, and commercial and residential buildings sectors that can help Massachusetts reach its air quality goals. Under this project, the state will:
    1. Identify appropriate emission reduction targets that will be used as indicators of air quality goals and to identify a suite of potential EE and RE policies and programs that should be considered for analysis
    2. Analyze the findings, to consider how the findings might influence clean air and energy policy decisions in the state and region
    3. Develop a report summarizing their findings and identifying recommendations for policy integration.
  • Utah Geological Survey, State Energy Program, Public Service Commission, Department of Commerce, Division of Public Utilities, Department of Commerce, Committee of Consumer Services, Department of Environmental Quality, Division of Air Quality (DAQ), Governor's Energy Policy Advisor
    This project, which is titled Development of Metrics for Valuing EE/RE Co-Benefits for Decision Making, will develop metrics for calculating the co-benefits of EE and RE for use in state government decision-making for policy development, utility integrated resource planning review, utility program review, the development of state plans for meeting environmental goals and requirements, and in coordinating the policies of multiple state agencies. The project will assess environmental, natural resource, and health costs and benefits from energy-related projects. It will link the systems that regulate energy utilities and that enforce environmental laws.

  • Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy; Virginia Energy Office; Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments; Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (Air Division); Maryland Energy Administration; Maryland Department of the Environment (ARMA); District Department of Environment's Energy Office and Air Quality Division.
    This project, which is titled Promoting Air Quality with Clean Energy in the Metropolitan Washington Area, will demonstrate and quantify environmental benefits resulting from selected energy efficiency and renewable energy (EERE) programs implemented by the state and local governments in the Metropolitan Washington D.C. region. The primary focus will be on estimating reductions in emissions of pollutants nitrogen oxides (NOx), and carbon dioxide (CO2) from projects and programs with the goal of including these programs in the state implementation plans and regional climate change strategies. In order to do this, the state must develop quantified estimates of air quality benefits that are deemed robust enough to:
    1. Support U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approval of emissions reduction credit in the state implementation plans in Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia for the fine particulate matter standard and the forthcoming ozone standard
    2. Gain recognition of air emissions reduction credit in state greenhouse gas emission registries.

Fact Sheets

DOE air quality activities include pilot projects, analytic assistance, training and outreach. You can read a series of fact sheets listed below that highlight examples of completed projects that DOE funded as partnerships with states to use RE and EE technologies to improve air quality in their regions. The following documents are available as Adobe Acrobat PDFs. Download Adobe Reader.

  • States Address Air Pollution from Energy through Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Programs
    The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) published this fact sheet as part of a series published by the DOE Clean Energy and Air Quality Integration Initiative; DOE/GO-102007-2506; 2 pp.; December 2007 (PDF 275 KB)

  • Illinois — High-Level Commitment Key to Air Quality Success
    NREL published this fact sheet as part of a series published by the DOE Clean Energy and Air Quality Integration Initiative; DOE/GO-102007-2503; 2 pp.; December 2007 (PDF 278 KB).

  • New Jersey — A Leader in Fighting Pollution
    NREL published this fact sheet as part of a series published by the DOE Clean Energy and Air Quality Integration Initiative; DOE/GO-102007-2399; 2 pp.; December 2007 (PDF 355 KB).

  • Texas — Energy Collaborations Working for the Environment
    NREL published this fact sheet as part of a series published by the DOE Clean Energy and Air Quality Integration Initiative; DOE/GO-102007-2502; 2 pp.; December 2007 (PDF 309 KB).

  • Eastern States Harness Clean Energy to Promote Air Quality
    NREL published this brochure as part of a series published by the DOE Clean Energy and Air Quality Integration Initiative; DOE/GO-102007-2500; October 2007 (PDF 755 KB).

  • Final Report on the Clean Energy/Air Quality Integration Initiative Pilot Project of the U.S. Department of Energy's Mid-Atlantic Regional Office
    This report published by the EERE Weatherization and Intergovernmental Program publicizes the results of a pilot project that attempts to use renewable energy and energy efficiency projects to obtain credits nitrogen oxide (NOx) emission reductions under the Clean Air Act; August 2006.

  • Wind Energy and Air Emission Reduction Benefits: A Primer, August 31, 2007 — December 31, 2007
    The National Renewable Energy Laboratory publishes this subcontract report that gives a general background about the air quality impacts of wind energy development on both conventional air pollutants as well as greenhouse gas emissions; NREL/SR-500-42616; February 2008 (PDF 734 KB).

EERE and the EPA underwrite programs that help states coordinate their energy and environmental programs.

  • EERE Special Projects for Air Quality, Energy, and the Environment
    Find descriptions of state projects that combine energy, environmental, and air-quality goals that were funded through the EERE State Energy Program Special Projects solicitations from 2000 to 2006.

  • EERE-TAP Air Quality Projects
    The EERE Technical Assistance Project for State and Local Officials (TAP) provides quick, short-term access to experts at DOE national laboratories for assistance with their renewable energy and energy efficiency policies and programs. The projects listed describe how DOE helped states deal with connecting energy projects with their air-quality goals.

  • EPA State and Local Clean Energy Programs
    The EPA Clean Energy-Environment State and Local Program provides technical assistance, analytical tools, and outreach support to state and local governments. This assistance includes identifying and documenting cost-effective policies and initiatives that promote renewable energy, energy efficiency, and related clean technologies; measuring and evaluating the environmental, economic, and public health benefits of clean energy initiatives; and fostering peer exchange.

  • EPA Clean Energy-Environment State Partnership Program
    The Clean Energy-Environment State Partnership Program is a voluntary program designed to help states review and adopt policies and programs that effectively integrate clean energy into a low-cost, clean, and reliable energy system. The program provides tools and analyses to advance state efforts that improve air quality and public health; increase cost-effective energy efficiency and renewable energy; reap economic benefits; and lower greenhouse gases. EPA launched the program in 2005 with 11 partner states, a number which has now reached 15. These 15 states represent about half the population, energy use and greenhouse gas emissions in the United States.