Agenda - 02-02-2021 Virtual Board Meeting; 6-a - Community Climate Action Grant - Project Selection for FY20-21

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7 With agreement of the chosen applicant appropriate modifications are made to the house to transition from an inefficient to an efficient water heater." "For this project two members of the Orange County Home Preservation Coalition are significant collaborators: Rebuilding Together of the Triangle and Habitat for Humanity of Orange County... Both RTT and HH are critical to the success of this project.They have the expertise and experience to assess the needs of a household, plan the modifications, and efficiently implement the desired changes. Although not a formal partner,the Orange County Home Preservation Coalition identifies target households, connects these households with the appropriate provider, and helps educate their clients about the benefits that OCHPC providers can deliver." Project Benefits: "This project has requested funds to replace 30 water heaters and based on our experience we anticipate selecting 20 households with electric water heaters and 10 households with gas water heaters. We believe that each selected household will directly benefit from reduced utility bills and reduced greenhouse gas emissions...This project should reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 29 short tons/year assuming grid- supplied electricity emissions of 0.5 pounds COze/kwh. As grid supplied electricity emissions subside with a greener grid,yearly GHG emissions reduction against a 2020 baseline will increase." "A reasonable average lifetime for a heat-pump water heater is about 15 years. During this time if the heat- pump water heater replaces an electric water heater the expected savings in the utility bill is$360/year—if the heat-pump water heater replaces a gas water heater the expected savings in the utility bill is$104/year." Grant Dollars Requested Per Metric Ton of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduced During Project Lifetime: $309 HRC Comments:This project has a good direct impact to marginalized Orange County residents and a good return on investment.The demographics of the target population are focused on those who need the most assistance.The HRC did not fully understand the NAACP's involvement since it seems funds would go to partners already doing this work. CFE Comments:Overall, excellent application. Emissions of GHG from a gas-fired water heater are local and would be eliminated entirely with the replacement by a heat pump water heater. Emissions from an electric water heater are indirect,that is they are emitted by the electric utility. A heat pump water heater reduces electric demand and the consequent emissions. Financial efficiency is enhanced by the use of other volunteer based collaborators and potential incentives from Duke Energy.The experience and capabilities of the collaborators also enhances the capacity of NAACP.The implementation plan is well-developed and applicant has a good network of volunteers and contractors who have carried out related projects.The project will use an existing pipeline for identifying and vetting households eligible for the program.All of the heat pump water heaters will be purchased from Orange County sources. The CFE liked that the funds would be directly invested into community members and efficiency upgrades to housing.The number of people reached is small, but impact on those people is large.The lifespan of the new water heating systems should be good and assist home prices in having increased value.The applicant is asking for a somewhat large amount of funding, and the cost of installation seems high, but the applicant makes a good argument that the energy savings on water heating are comparably cheap. It would be good to discuss disposal plans for the old water heater systems. The installation of the heat pump water heaters should be completed within 18 months from time of award.