Energy Efficiency RFP Guidance for Water and Wastewater Treatment Facilities

 

In response to unprecedented support for energy efficiency across both private and public sectors, the Consortium for Energy Efficiency (CEE), in cooperation with the Water Environment Federation (WEF), recently released "Energy Efficiency RFP Guidance for Water and Wastewater Treatment Facilities."

 

The new guidance provides water utilities, cities, and towns with ready-to-use language to help them include energy efficiency requirements in solicitations for design services. Municipal officials may use this guidance to simplify and streamline the RFP process, to help cities and towns tap into federal funding streams and local efficiency program resources, and to make energy efficiency a standard feature of treatment facilities.

 

"We hope that water utilities and town councils across North America will take advantage of this new resource to help them seize the energy efficiency opportunity," said CEE Executive Director Marc Hoffman. "Energy efficiency offers a great opportunity for municipal water and wastewater treatment facilities to cut costs and improve process reliability, Energy savings at these facilities leads directly to more money for other priorities such as schools and public safety."

 

Although water and wastewater treatment facilities provide an invaluable service to their communities, they are also the largest energy consumers in many cities and towns. In fact, data collected by energy efficiency program administrators shows that a typical wastewater treatment facility spends as much as $100,000 per year on energy for every 1 MGD of treatment capacity. By making energy efficiency a standard part of their management practices, facilities could potentially save between $20,000 and $40,000 per 1 MGD per year — money that could be used for capital improvements, education, or other essential services.

 

The Energy Efficiency RFP Guidance provides information and tools to help cities and towns gain access to the energy savings potential in their water and wastewater treatment facilities. It includes ready-to-use language to request consideration of measures including high speed blowers, sensors and process controls, variable frequency drives, nutrient removal processes, and more.

 

"Energy efficiency and energy independence are essential to sustainable water and wastewater treatment," said WEF President Paul Freedman. "WEF commends CEE for taking the lead in developing this new guidance and encourages utilities to incorporate energy efficiency as part of their standard operating practices."