Marin County recently gave the green light for energy-efficient updates to its green building requirements.
Green Tech Media says governments are looking for ways to slash fossil fuel use and meet their greenhouse gas reduction goals and they’re turning to increasingly carbon-free grids to decarbonize buildings.
The move to encourage all-electric buildings is directly connected to the increased availability of renewable electricity in the county, according to Alice Zanmiller, sustainability planner with the Community Development Agency in Marin County.
Marin County is looking to raise awareness that all-electric homes are feasible today. The county was recently awarded a grant of just under $300,000 from the Bay Area Air Quality Management District to launch a building de-carbonization project.
“We’ll provide direct incentives to homeowners across Marin County who swap out natural-gas appliances for high-efficiency all-electric ones, such as heat pumps (water and space) and induction cooktops,” said Zanmiller. “We’re hoping the outcome is that folks will understand the steps, barriers and resources available to make their existing house all-electric. We’ll complete a survey and report out on lessons learned and resources developed through the process to share with other local governments.”
