Actions

• Undertake community energy planning, which seeks to integrate energy considerations (both demand and supply) into community objectives, plans, operations and infrastructure. To achieve greenhouse gas reductions and other community objectives, the planning addresses scales ranging from individual sites and neighborhoods to entire communities or regions.
• Utilize alternative energy supplies and technologies
• Design buildings and neighborhoods for compatibility with efficient energy infrastructure. For example, consider hydronic (water based) heat distribution within a building for easy connection to a district energy system.

Issues and Considerations

• There are potential trade-offs between building efficiency and alternative energy supply.  For example, as the energy efficiency of a building increases, the economics of a more capital-intensive alternative energy supply may decline. Consider the energy efficiency and alternative supply options together in order to find the optimal allocation of investment between more efficient buildings or infrastructure and alternative forms of energy supply.
• There are very different legal and institutional issues surrounding alternative heating or cooling technologies and alternative electricity production technologies.   Municipalities often have more leverage over alternative sources of heating and cooling, whether through building codes or involvement in district heating and cooling schemes.  Unless they own their own electrical systems, the role of municipalities in the production or acquisition of alternative electricity tends to be more limited, such as removing local zoning or building code barriers to the siting and use of alternative technologies or providing information or incentives for alternative sources.