The Energy 2030: On the Road campaign stop in Fort Worth, Texas marks the seventh stop of the campaign to double U.S. energy productivity. To date, we’ve garnered over 100 endorsements from state and local officials to double our nation’s energy productivity by the year 2030. As we’ve done for each stop in the past, we want to take the opportunity to recognize what the Ft. Worth area is already doing to support energy efficiency.

PACE

Local advocates are excited about the potential for Property Assessed Clean Energy programs (PACE) which allow commercial and industrial property owners to use a property tax lien in order to finance energy efficiency upgrades. If well executed, property owners would be able to pay back the initial investment using the savings on monthly energy bills produced by the upgrades. PACE allows local governments to reap the benefits of energy efficiency investments while mitigating upfront costs. Texas lawmakers signed The Property Assessed Clean Energy Act, PACE-enabling legislation, into law in June, 2013, and projects have already been implemented in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area.

ESPCs

Ft. Worth first published an Energy Management Plan in 1981 and entered into an Energy Savings Performance Contract (ESPC) with Johnson Controls, Inc. (JCI) in 2002. This agreement with JCI aims to reduce facility energy and water consumption and provide cost-saving benefits to the city. A number of buildings in the city — including the Will Rogers Memorial Center, the Central Library and the Fort Worth Convention Center — have already or will soon receive retrofits through the JCI contract. More than just four letter acronyms, both PACE and ESPC projects allow for Ft. Worth and other cities to implement essential efficiency upgrades.

Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport

Another important player in the efficiency of Ft. Worth is the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), which is the third busiest airport in the world and serves over 60 million customers annually. Since its establishment, the airport has outlined and executed fundamental practices to ensure the greatest possible efficiency. DFW supports efficient operations and maintenance practices, retrofits inefficient facilities when finances and technology allows and incorporates efficiency into all new construction. The airport sites emissions reduction as a top priority for North Texas, and long-term strategies are helping the travel hub meet its goals.

While these accomplishments are impressive, there is still more work to be done. Further engagement with Texas policymakers, business leaders, consumers and other advocates will allow for even greater proliferation of energy efficiency improvements. The second largest state in the nation will undoubtedly play a key role in doubling our energy productivity by the year 2030.