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NOx Emissions Reductions from Implementation of the 2000 IECC/IRC Conservation Code to Residential Construction in Texas
Abstract
Four areas in Texas have been designated by
the United States Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) as non-attainment areas because
ozone levels exceed the National Ambient Air
Quality Standard (NAAQS) maximum allowable
limits. These areas face severe sanctions if
attainment is not reached by 2007. Four
additional areas in the state are also approaching
national ozone limits (i.e., classified as affected
areas).
In 2001, the Texas State Legislature
formulated and passed the Texas Emissions
Reduction Plan (TERP), to reduce ozone levels
by encouraging the reduction of emissions of
NOx by sources that are currently not regulated
by the state. An important part of this legislation
is the State's energy efficiency program, which
includes reductions in energy use and demand
that are associated with the adoption of the 2000
IECC1, which represents one of the first times
that the EPA is considering emissions reductions
credits from energy conservation - an important
new development for building efficiency
professionals.
This paper provides an overview of the
procedures that have been developed and used to
calculate the electricity savings and NOx
reductions from residential construction in nonattainment
and affected counties2. Results are
presented that show the annual electricity and
natural gas savings and NOx reductions from
implementation of the 2000 IECC to singlefamily
and multi-family residences in 2003,
which use a code-traceable DOE-2 simulation. A
second paper provides a detailed discussion of
the methods used to calculate the emissions
1 This includes the 2001 Supplement to the 2000 IECC and
2000 IRC (IRC 2000, IECC 2001).
2 The procedures outlined in this paper were developed and
used in the Laboratory's 2002 and 2003 Annual Report to the
TCEQ to satisfy the requirements of the Senate Bill 5
Legislation. In 2003 the Laboratory was awarded a grant
from the EPA, which is administered through the TCEQ, to
expand the development of these procedures into a webbased
tool that would provide state and local authorities with
accurate emissions reductions for use in preparing State
Implementation Plans.
reductions using the eGRID database (Haberl et
al. 2004).
Citation
Haberl, J. S.; Im, P.; Culp, C.; Yazdani, B.; Fitzpatrick, T. (2004). NOx Emissions Reductions from Implementation of the 2000 IECC/IRC Conservation Code to Residential Construction in Texas. Energy Systems Laboratory (http://esl.tamu.edu); Texas A&M University (http://www.tamu.edu). Available electronically from https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /4614.