The North Carolina Energy Efficiency Roadmap is a guide developed by the Nicholas Institute in partnership with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality to help the state implement new solutions, remove barriers, and achieve its energy efficiency potential.
The Roadmap recognizes and builds on considerable energy efficiency work that was already being done within the state. The document collects the expertise and ideas of more than 100 stakeholders in North Carolina to identify and achieve a shared set of energy efficiency policy goals and inform the statewide Clean Energy Plan, part of Governor Roy Cooper’s Executive Order 80.
The Roadmap makes 32 recommendations, grouped into 10 focus areas, in order to achieve the following three objectives:
- Align interests to create an energy efficiency conducive climate
- Increase access for hard to reach sectors
- Develop a uniform standard for tracking/benchmarking energy efficiency costs and benefits
Like any good atlas, the Energy Efficiency Roadmap outlines a clear path from each recommendation’s starting point to its destination, explaining possible routes and potential barriers along the way. The Roadmap is supplemented with many programs and initiatives that would be helpful to further “fuel” energy efficiency programs that already exist in North Carolina. This document will be integral in helping businesses, policy makers, and North Carolina citizens to save money and reduce their impact on the environment, while achieving the goals of the Clean Energy Plan and generating practical policy solutions to mitigate climate change in a holistic and equitable way.
Project Products
North Carolina Energy Efficiency Roadmap
Energy efficiency (EE) is widely considered a least cost option for meeting energy demand while reducing energy costs and carbon emissions. While EE has experienced slow and steady growth in North Carolina, much more can be done to maximize the full potential of this least cost resource.
North Carolina Energy Efficiency Dashboard
Using data from multiple public sources, the Nicholas Institute created the framework for an online performance dashboard for NC energy efficiency metrics in the residential, commercial, industrial, and institutional sectors. The dashboard enables users to view aggregated, non-attributable data about energy use and energy intensity in the state.
