Database Documents Energy-efficiency Programs

The U.S. Department of Energy has recognized a new publicly available database that offers federal, state and local decision-makers information documenting the results of energy-efficiency programs in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions. The Regional Energy Efficiency Database (REED), a project of Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships (NEEP), a non-profit organization, provides a one-stop resource to readily access energy-efficiency program data, including energy and peak-demand savings, costs, avoided emissions and job impacts. This is part of the Energy Department’s broader effort to improve public access to energy information, empowering consumers, industry and government agencies to make informed decisions that save money by saving energy.

The REED database allows users to generate reports and download underlying data showing the impacts of ratepayer-funded energy-efficiency programs in Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont. REED will help inform a broad range of policy issues, including energy, economic and air-quality planning, as well as help demonstrate the long-term, money-saving benefits of energy-efficiency investments. Specifically, policymakers, program administrators and other industry stakeholders can use the REED data for a variety of purposes, including comparing efficiency program impacts across states to help identify best practices in efficiency policy and program design, as well as informing progress toward clean air and climate change goals. The database currently includes 2011 electric and gas energy-efficiency program data and will expand this fall to include 2012 data from Delaware and the District of Columbia, as well as the states currently in the database.

REED was developed for NEEP’s Regional Evaluation Measurement and Verification Forum (EM&V Forum) by Boston-based Peregrine Energy Group, and was supported by the Energy Department’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the states in the EM&V Forum.

The Energy Department’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy accelerates development and facilitates deployment of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies and market-based solutions that strengthen U.S. energy security, environmental quality and economic vitality.