Background/Objectives

Federal agencies must meet multiple goals with limited funding, and large portfolios that span the United States or even world present varying challenges and opportunities. Net zero energy and emissions are just two of those goals. PNNL’s research first studies the different methods to achieve net zero at sites with diverse characteristics. Then the selected strategies were used as the basis to examine the relationship between net-zero goals and other goals including resilience, environmental justice, and cost-effectiveness. The results of this research help federal agencies understand the impacts of working toward net zero goals and help them determine where and how net-zero strategies could be implemented to maximize achievement of various goals and requirements.

Approach/Activities

Sixteen locations were selected as the focus of this study, representing a cross-section of climate zones, existing energy profiles, and local environments/communities. The team collected information to characterize the current status of energy consumption and generation, emissions generation, resilience postures, local community demographics, and annual operational expenditures. Efficiency, onsite carbon-free energy generation, electrification, and fuel switching strategies were identified to minimize the purchase of energy from offsite and the use of carbon-based energy. The selection of strategies considered both site-specific feasibility as well as the range of project types across the sites, to encompass a wide representation of elements for impacts analysis. Each set of strategies at each site was evaluated for impacts to resilience, environmental justice, and life cycle costs, compared to the established site-specific baselines. Simultaneous pursuit of net zero water and waste was also evaluated, and the analysis accounted for changes to energy and emissions baselines caused by water and waste strategies being implemented.

Results/Lessons Learned

PNNL found that not all sites were able to achieve net zero due to various constraints, although most may be able to. The presentation will discuss the net zero strategies considered, and those that were determined to be necessary to achieve net zero goals. The relationship between the net zero strategies and resilience, environmental justice, and life cycle costs will also be discussed. The conclusion will summarize the interrelated aspects of these goals and considerations, how multiple goals can be achieved simultaneously, and the optimal way for large portfolios of facilities to tackle these challenging pursuits based on the extrapolation of the pilot site analyses.