Next week the Assembly Natural Resources committee in California has an aggressive zero energy new home bill to vote on; the bill would require that by 2020, all new homes built in California are zero net energy homes. The homes would help decrease the state’s dependence on fossil fuels and could set a new standard for states throughout the nation. Assemblywoman Lori Saldana introduced the bill last year, and it passed the Assembly, but the bill later died in the Senate.
As part of the bill’s plan, the homes would produce enough energy through solar panels or nearby wind or geothermal plants to power themselves and would virtually eliminate a homeowner’s electricity bill. The system could be set up like a grid that replicates a giant battery; the grid would use the surplus of energy produced by homes during the day, to power all of the homes on the grid at night.
Saldana mentions that nearly one quarter of greenhouse gas emissions are related to the heating and cooling of buildings and that the bill would help cut the emissions blamed for global warming. Opponents of the bill argue that new homes are already very energy efficient and that a better solution would be to target older homes, which have a greater dependency on fossil fuels.
The estimated costs of upgrading a home to a zero net energy home range from $15,000 – $50,000 but Saldana is confident that state rebates, federal tax breaks and decreased electricity bills would make the investment worth it for homeowners and builders. If a family saves $150/month on their electricity bill, they would save $54,000 in energy costs over 30 years.
California residents and officials are consistently pushing for smarter ways to conserve energy. Home builders in the state are already building energy efficient homes and communities; if this bill passes, it would be a great step forward in energy conservation, but would focusing on updating older homes do just as much…if not more?
Read more about the bill – http://www.mercurynews.com/breakingnews/ci_12128231
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If it’s true that these homes will save the owners $54,000 then why does California even need this bill? Let the market do its job, people!
When I heard Gary Keller tell us at Keller Williams Family Reunion that the future of real estate is the Green sector, I took note. California seems to be leading the nation in reducing our dependence on fossil fuels and reducing our carbon footprint on the world.
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I think it is a good goal for 2020. I think any sooner would just become a burden and would not be possible but with some work 2020 is achievable. By then technology will be cheap and effective enough for the average person. Right now it takes a pretty good investment but in the end you come out on top plus it is nice being self-sufficient.
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@Dandruff Danny – that’s a good point and California home builders have been doing a good job moving that way on their own.
@Joe – It seems like California has lead the way for some time. Hopefully, they continue to do so in the future.
@Brennan – Yeah something too soon may end up hurting things too much. You never know, in 2020 we may have a few new technologies that would make building zero energy homes easier and cheaper.
I can’t see it to work without state or federal rebates, it will be to expensive for average person. But if they give some sort of rebates it will be great for the enviroment.
I don’t if the government needs to get involved or the free market can figure it out by themselves, I just know building green homes is a good thing. We always hear about how much cars contribute to global warming etc., but the housing sector accounts for an astounding percentage of the problem and gets way less attention.
It is really interesting to see from outside the US that suddenly Saving Energy becomes a topic in the States as well.
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It’s a lofty goal which CA residents will surely voted against once they realize that all this bill does is jack up the new home prices. Forget about government rebates. CA is broker and so is the fed. More rebates simply means higher taxes.
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That goal will be hard to achieve in such a relatively short period but there are other places in Europe where many new houses are built in the "passive" style.
Terrific, I think many people are voluntarily taking this route although not entirely taking their electricity bills to zero but still doing it to save their costs and also help the environment. I think that’s a fantastic idea if each and every house starts to power themselves up, I am sure the costs will come down and there will be ways for everyone to afford the system.