Over the course of 2012, RAP delivered a series of webinars on the broad theme of quantifying the air quality impacts of energy efficiency (EE) policies and programs to an Energy Efficiency/Air Quality Planning Workgroup convened by the Northeast States for Coordinated Air Use Management (NESCAUM) and the Ozone Transport Commission (OTC). The webinar attendees were primarily state and federal air pollution regulators from northeastern and mid-Atlantic states stretching from Maine to Virginia.

In Module 1, held on August 28, 2012, RAP senior associate Chris James and associate John Shenot addressed three basic questions at an introductory level:

• Why does the measurement of EE impacts matter to air regulators?
• Where are EE data found?
• Who produces EE data?

Mr. James and Mr. Shenot presented Modules 2A and 2B on September 6, 2012. Module 2A provides a more detailed look at how EE data are developed, while Module 2B explains several ways to estimate the air pollution emissions that are avoided through the implementation of EE policies and programs.

Module 3, presented on October 11, 2012, with contributions from US Environmental Protection Agency staff, began with a further look at ways to estimate avoided air emissions resulting from EE policies and programs. The discussion concluded with an examination of how regulators can use EE data and avoided emissions data for air quality program and planning purposes.

In the final webinar in the series, Modules 4 and 4b were presented on November 20, 2012. This session, also with contributions from staff of the US Environmental Protection Agency, offered an overview of several national, regional, and state venues for improving methods for quantifying the impacts of EE policies and programs.  The discussion focused on opportunities for air pollution regulators to communicate their needs and contribute to these improvement efforts.

For more information about these and similar training opportunities, please contact us at [email protected].