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NREL Supports Native American Tribes in Clean Energy Transformational Leadership
(Please note, NREL feature. Copyright concerns are nil.)
http://www.nrel.gov/news/features/2016/24665
[font face=Serif][font size=5]NREL Supports Native American Tribes in Clean Energy Transformational Leadership[/font]
March 30, 2016
[font size=1]A wind farm developed in California by the Campo Band of Mission Indians of the Kumeyaay Nation. Photo from Campo Band[/font]
[font size=3]In the redwood country of northern California, where arboreal giants can live to be 2,000 years old and can reach heights of more than 375 feet, the Blue Lake Rancheria Tribe has also grown something historic: a vision of climate sustainability and leadership.
In 2008, tribal leaders established a new energy vision, including zero net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and 100% renewable energy to power the tribe's community. Since then, the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has been foundational in helping the tribe refine its climate action strategy and GHG reduction goals.
"Our first experience with NREL was attending a tribal energy development workshop in 2012, and we were so impressed," said Blue Lake Rancheria Energy Director Jana Ganion. She's now attended several more, both as a participant and a presenter. "NREL provides expert, practical support for tribes seeking to develop renewable energy, from facility scale to community scale to utility scale."
The tribe has been aggressive in its pursuit of those goals, emerging as a national leader in clean energy development and climate resilience. In December 2014, Blue Lake Rancheria became one of 16 U.S. communities designated as a 2015–2016 White House Climate Action Champion. In making the announcement, the White House noted the tribe had reduced energy consumption by 35% and was committed to reducing GHG emissions 40% by 2018, with a range of approaches including on-site manufacturing of biodiesel to fuel public buses and aggressive energy efficiency measures.
NREL provided Blue Lake Rancheria with technical assistance through the Energy Department's Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs in 2014 to help ensure the safety of the tribe's cutting-edge biomass system. "NREL can provide specific project review as well as technology and financial feasibility information to design, fund, and implement renewable energy systems," Ganion said. "And by actively working to include tribal governments across all their research and development areas, NREL has demonstrated a sustained commitment to Indian country."
In 2015 the tribe won a Strategic Technical Assistance Response Team (START) Program award from the Office of Indian Energy, and NREL is providing the requested technical assistance, including strategic communications planning to create a framework for stakeholder education and engagement around energy efforts, and measurement and verification support to establish a benchmark for energy efficiency and GHG inventories, which will provide the Rancheria with a dashboard for gauging progress toward its climate action goals.
A separate technical assistance project is taking a deep dive into building energy efficiency and capital expense project recommendations for the Rancheria. And, working with the Office of Indian Energy, NREL experts are reviewing cybersecurity for the tribe's low-carbon, community-scale microgrid. "From the first meeting at NREL it was clear that the NREL team is the superstar of the clean energy world. They excel in technical communications, project feasibility studies, and trainings, and provide realistic, objective guidance and recommendations—which are critical to any audience looking to develop these types of projects," said Ganion.
And the Blue Lake Rancheria's experience with NREL isn't unique.
[font size=5]NREL Engaged from Alaska to the Southwest[/font]
[font size=1]Blue Lake Rancheria Vice Chairperson Arla Ramsey and Energy Director Jana Ganion survey the progress of the Tribe's biomass-to-fuel cell power plant, a project NREL supported. Photo from Jana Ganion[/font]
From the subzero tundra in Alaska to the semi-arid landscape of the Southwest, Native American tribes and Alaska Native villages are leading in clean energy–accomplishing their economic development and environmental goals while providing models for other governments to effectively transition to clean energy-based economies.
NREL's State, Local, and Tribal program provides access to the deep clean energy science and engineering knowledge within the lab to Native American tribes and Alaska Native villages to provide the technical and financial model knowledge. The potential for tribal leadership in clean energy is significant: NREL geospatial research shows that American Indian land comprises approximately 2% of the total U.S. land base, representing an estimated 5% of the total U.S. renewable energy generation potential. "There is a huge opportunity to partner with tribes to deliver clean technologies developed in the lab to the real world, and also provide feedback from the real world into the lab," said Elizabeth Doris, NREL program manager for State, Local, and Tribal programs.
For the past few years, the NREL Tribal team has met the clean energy needs of tribes by tapping deep into laboratory technology expertise and assisting with developing strategic energy plans that support their energy visions. Tribal activities at NREL are supported by the Office of Indian Energy, U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, aiding tribal communities by providing data, technology neutral analytics, training, and technical assistance to improve energy efficiency and tap renewable energy resources.
NREL provides tailored programs to large and small entities, including:
NREL is also the primary strategic partner for the Office of Indian Energy's START Program, which is specifically designed to increase clean energy deployment on tribal land and create replicable models and strategies for state, local, and tribal governments.
Since the START Program began in 2012, NREL has engaged its experts in solar and wind energy, as well as building technologies and long-term energy planning, to provide technical assistance to the 31 START projects.[/font]
…[/font][/font]
March 30, 2016
[font size=1]A wind farm developed in California by the Campo Band of Mission Indians of the Kumeyaay Nation. Photo from Campo Band[/font]
[font size=3]In the redwood country of northern California, where arboreal giants can live to be 2,000 years old and can reach heights of more than 375 feet, the Blue Lake Rancheria Tribe has also grown something historic: a vision of climate sustainability and leadership.
In 2008, tribal leaders established a new energy vision, including zero net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and 100% renewable energy to power the tribe's community. Since then, the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has been foundational in helping the tribe refine its climate action strategy and GHG reduction goals.
"Our first experience with NREL was attending a tribal energy development workshop in 2012, and we were so impressed," said Blue Lake Rancheria Energy Director Jana Ganion. She's now attended several more, both as a participant and a presenter. "NREL provides expert, practical support for tribes seeking to develop renewable energy, from facility scale to community scale to utility scale."
The tribe has been aggressive in its pursuit of those goals, emerging as a national leader in clean energy development and climate resilience. In December 2014, Blue Lake Rancheria became one of 16 U.S. communities designated as a 2015–2016 White House Climate Action Champion. In making the announcement, the White House noted the tribe had reduced energy consumption by 35% and was committed to reducing GHG emissions 40% by 2018, with a range of approaches including on-site manufacturing of biodiesel to fuel public buses and aggressive energy efficiency measures.
NREL provided Blue Lake Rancheria with technical assistance through the Energy Department's Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs in 2014 to help ensure the safety of the tribe's cutting-edge biomass system. "NREL can provide specific project review as well as technology and financial feasibility information to design, fund, and implement renewable energy systems," Ganion said. "And by actively working to include tribal governments across all their research and development areas, NREL has demonstrated a sustained commitment to Indian country."
In 2015 the tribe won a Strategic Technical Assistance Response Team (START) Program award from the Office of Indian Energy, and NREL is providing the requested technical assistance, including strategic communications planning to create a framework for stakeholder education and engagement around energy efforts, and measurement and verification support to establish a benchmark for energy efficiency and GHG inventories, which will provide the Rancheria with a dashboard for gauging progress toward its climate action goals.
A separate technical assistance project is taking a deep dive into building energy efficiency and capital expense project recommendations for the Rancheria. And, working with the Office of Indian Energy, NREL experts are reviewing cybersecurity for the tribe's low-carbon, community-scale microgrid. "From the first meeting at NREL it was clear that the NREL team is the superstar of the clean energy world. They excel in technical communications, project feasibility studies, and trainings, and provide realistic, objective guidance and recommendations—which are critical to any audience looking to develop these types of projects," said Ganion.
And the Blue Lake Rancheria's experience with NREL isn't unique.
[font size=5]NREL Engaged from Alaska to the Southwest[/font]
[font size=1]Blue Lake Rancheria Vice Chairperson Arla Ramsey and Energy Director Jana Ganion survey the progress of the Tribe's biomass-to-fuel cell power plant, a project NREL supported. Photo from Jana Ganion[/font]
From the subzero tundra in Alaska to the semi-arid landscape of the Southwest, Native American tribes and Alaska Native villages are leading in clean energy–accomplishing their economic development and environmental goals while providing models for other governments to effectively transition to clean energy-based economies.
NREL's State, Local, and Tribal program provides access to the deep clean energy science and engineering knowledge within the lab to Native American tribes and Alaska Native villages to provide the technical and financial model knowledge. The potential for tribal leadership in clean energy is significant: NREL geospatial research shows that American Indian land comprises approximately 2% of the total U.S. land base, representing an estimated 5% of the total U.S. renewable energy generation potential. "There is a huge opportunity to partner with tribes to deliver clean technologies developed in the lab to the real world, and also provide feedback from the real world into the lab," said Elizabeth Doris, NREL program manager for State, Local, and Tribal programs.
For the past few years, the NREL Tribal team has met the clean energy needs of tribes by tapping deep into laboratory technology expertise and assisting with developing strategic energy plans that support their energy visions. Tribal activities at NREL are supported by the Office of Indian Energy, U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, aiding tribal communities by providing data, technology neutral analytics, training, and technical assistance to improve energy efficiency and tap renewable energy resources.
NREL provides tailored programs to large and small entities, including:
- Technology and Market Analytics. NREL provides credible research and analytics (PDF) to identify impactful opportunities for clean energy development on tribal land, drawing on NREL's deep scientific and technical knowledge.
- Direct Technical Assistance. NREL has been working with tribes to solve clean energy challenges since 1995, with 122 high-impact interactions occurring between 2012 and 2015. Currently, tribes have cost-free access to NREL expertise through the Office of Indian Energy.
- Capacity Building. To effectively deliver clean energy technologies to market, governments, program administrators, and technology end users, NREL provides technology, market, and stakeholder communications strategy trainings such as webinars to tribes.
- Resilience Assessment and Planning. NREL provides renewable energy community assessments to identify climate vulnerabilities and help develop solutions.
NREL is also the primary strategic partner for the Office of Indian Energy's START Program, which is specifically designed to increase clean energy deployment on tribal land and create replicable models and strategies for state, local, and tribal governments.
Since the START Program began in 2012, NREL has engaged its experts in solar and wind energy, as well as building technologies and long-term energy planning, to provide technical assistance to the 31 START projects.[/font]
…[/font][/font]
