The Common Carbon Metric: A Future Enabler of Building Efficiency Projects?

Last week a client asked about the value of his carbon offset post-implementation of his energy-saving improvements: Is there any monetary value and - if not - when will carbon credits become a currency? It's a common and good question. Much has been discussed about negawatts, white tags, and a soon-to-come market for trading carbon offsets. When such a market will emerge is uncertain, but most all are convinced it will happen.

As the folks over at CleanTechies attest, "buildings represent about one-third of emissions worldwide and provide some of the quickest and most cost-effective ways to reduce carbon emissions." However, the full value of building retrofits has yet to be realized, since carbon management and credit trading can't be effectively implemented without consistent and reliable measurement techniques.

Enter the Common Carbon Metric:

A group of industry players, led by UNEP’s Sustainable Buildings and Climate Initiative has been working over the last few years to address the inconsistencies in carbon measurement techniques around the world. The group has been working to develop clear and transferable carbon metrics (known as the Common Carbon Metric) that can be used to measure carbon reductions in buildings, whether it’s a new office park in Mumbai or a retrofit program in Rio de Janeiro.

One of the group’s recent breakthroughs was to enable Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects to use these new metrics in CDM building projects. The CDM is a program that allows Annex I countries (i.e., the majority of developed countries) to invest in carbon reduction projects in developing countries and claim the carbon reductions for their Kyoto Protocol carbon reduction targets.

While building projects have technically been eligible for CDM status for the last ten years, inconsistencies in the methods for measuring carbon from CDM projects have made CDM projects for buildings prohibitively expensive. By making the Common Carbon Metric a viable pathway to measuring and certifying carbon reductions, it will be much easier for developed countries to invest in carbon-reducing building projects in the future.

What does this mean for businesses operating in California, the U.S. and abroad? At the moment, financial and reputational (or branding) motivations are often behind companies' efforts to reduce their emissions and slow the effects of climate change. A major development in carbon measurement - one that allows organizations to capture additional financial gains based on the product of their energy savings - should serve as a catalyst to encourage additional participation in the already low-hanging and tasty fruit of building efficiency.

Kohl's Efficiency Kick: $50 Million in Savings

Kermit the Frog once bemoaned, it's not easy being green. One of the world's largest retailers, Kohl's Department Stores, would disagree with our amphibian childhood friend.

As reported in GreenBiz, Kohl's has reached another milestone in its aggressive sustainability campaign: 500 stores in the retail chain have now earned the Energy Star label. Smart company, smart energy. Here's an encapsulation of the story:

The [Energy Star] designation, now borne by almost half the company's 1,089 stores, recognizes the sites for outstanding energy efficiency and building performance. To obtain the label, buildings must rank in the top 25 percent of the rating system set by the Energy Star program maintained by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy.

In announcing the achievement yesterday, Kohl's said its energy efficiency efforts in the past four years have helped the company avoid $50 million in electricity cost and have boosted efficiency by more than 20 percent.

The firm marked its accomplishment by making a new commitment to green building: Starting next spring all newly constructed stores are to pursue "Designed to Earn the Energy Star" designations.

The recognition means the building has been designed for a level of energy efficiency that would merit an Energy Star label, and "Designed to Earn" sites must perform at that level for a year in order to qualify for an Energy Star label. So far, five Kohl's stores have been deemed "Designed to Earn the Energy Star" this year.

"We are building on our commitment to drive energy efficiency companywide as we continue to near our goal of being carbon neutral," said Ken Bonning, Kohl's executive vice president of store planning and logistics, in a statement yesterday.

In December, Kohl's set a goal of becoming carbon neutral by the end of this year. The target applies to the company's U.S. stores, distribution centers and corporate offices, which are to operate with net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by the close of 2010.