BEST - Businesses for an Environmentally Sustainable Tomorrow

Description

BEST (Businesses for an Environmentally Sustainable Tomorrow) is a program developed by the Portland Energy Office (PEO) that provides one-stop shopping for area businesses interested in enjoying the economic benefits derived from increased energy efficiency, water conservation, waste reduction, and transportation alternatives (including more efficient commuting practices).

Through the BEST program, PEO serves as a broker for the services that other organizations provide, including utility rebates, state tax credits, city incentive programs, financing options, municipal stormwater drain discounts and technical assistance. Friendly, persuasive fact sheets describing the BEST programs encourage businesses to adopt comprehensive efficiency programs by detailing the precise, and significant, economic benefits available to them through participation in the program. 

In addition, PEO recognizes those businesses that have made significant accomplishments in all four sectors (energy, water, waste and transportation) as BEST Successes. Businesses that have demonstrated remarkable success in a single sector receive BEST Innovators awards.

"This effort encourages a 'big picture' approach by business," says Curt Nichols, Senior Energy Program Manager. "By promoting the efficient use of all natural resources -- not just saving energy at the expense of increased water use or traffic de-congestion at the expense of air pollution -- we encourage businesses active in one sector, like recycling, to expand their efforts into other sustainable practices," says Nichols.

Nichols says that the growing success of the BEST program is due, in part, to PEO's aggressive campaign to publicize the achievements of successful BEST businesses. BEST materials are peppered with mini success stories and BEST makes available one-page case studies of successful efficiency achievements to potential participants.

The BEST initiative can easily be replicated in other communities since the natural resource issues encountered by business and industry are virtually identical from city to city. The Portland Energy Office has been approached by several other cities looking to establish similar programs and such "program transfers" are currently being pursued.

Program Highlights

Water Conservation

• Two office buildings in Portland's Central Eastside upgraded their lighting fixtures, heating units and air conditioning units to save energy. The total cost for both buildings was $3.4 million. Projected total savings are $460,000 annually, or a rate equal to 13.4% return on their investment.
• The Mill End Store, a small business in Milwaukee, added skylights and a lighting/temperature control system to the store saving $4,000 a year in energy costs.
• A new 23-story building in Portland worked with the Oregon Department of Energy and Pacific Power to exceed Oregon's Non-residential Building Energy Code. The additional 30% in energy savings gained from this investment in low-energy lighting, efficient heating and cooling systems and insulated walls and windows saves $61,000 a year.

• Providence Hospital recycles 25 tons of paper and 6 tons of plastic each month. Savings in disposal costs for the paper alone run $20,000 a year. The recycling revenue received by the hospital is given to the Providence Foundation in support of their charitable efforts.
• Textronix, located in Beaverton, sends old circuit boards, solder paste jars and cleaning wipes to a refiner where the precious metals are extracted and reused. In addition, they recycle office paper, sell old office furniture and dismantle and recycle items that don't sell. Total annual savings: $3 million.
• Rim Co, in building a new shopping complex, crushed demolished concrete into gravel to be used as fill. 12,000 tons of concrete were diverted from the landfill and 200 tons of steel was recycled in the process, saving at least $100,000.

• Portland General Electric meter readers now park their trucks in many neighborhoods and use bikes to get from house to house. With 12 bikes in use, PGE estimates they will save $1,500 the first year alone.
• Flightcraft aviation uses two electric carts to tow corporate jets between the runway and terminals rather than letting the jets do so under their own power saving a minimum of 60 gallons of gasoline a week.
• When U.S. Bank relocated 1,500 employees from downtown Portland to new office space in Gresham, they purchased four vans and established a van pool. The forty employees participating in the program save half a million commuter miles and 35,000 gallons of gasoline per year.

Vital Statistics

• Program Management/Partnerships: The Portland Energy Office manages the project and has entered into partnerships with the Urban Consortium Energy Task Force, the Environmental Protection Agency, Portland General Electric, and Pacific Power.
  
  
• Budget: $90,000 first year costs. $40,000 to $70,000 per year thereafter. BEST was started with a grant from the Urban Consortium Energy Task Force (UCETF). Additional funding comes from local utilities, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy.
  
  
• Community Served: Businesses within the 136-square-mile Portland metropolitan area employing 660,000 residents.
  
  
• Measures of Success:
  
  $3.5 million saved by area businesses through cost avoidance.
  12.8 million kilowatt hours of electricity saved.
  17,500 therms (10⁵ BTU's) of natural gas saved. 
  286,000 gallons of gasoline saved.
  Production of 47,500 tons of solid waste avoided.
  1.3 million vehicle miles of travel avoided.
  15,200 tons of carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions eliminated.