Considerations for climate and sustainability are woven throughout Biden Administration policies from the President’s Management Agenda (PMA) to an executive order (EO) on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad. This consistent and holistic look at how the business of government impacts our global climate has resulted in specific policies and projects being implemented outside of the traditional confines of environmental and energy-focused agencies.
Sustainability as a Procurement Checkbox
The climate EO specifically directs federal agencies to procure carbon pollution-free electricity, and clean, zero-emission vehicles. In fact, the Department of Energy national laboratories are looking at solar power, wind power, geothermal, hydrogen, and other types of power to move away from a carbon-based economy.
In response to the realities of increasing extreme weather events, agencies are being asked to reevaluate their resiliency from the buildings that they inhabit to how their supply chains can withstand weather disruptions. This includes understanding and taking into account the sustainability practices of their suppliers as part of the acquisition evaluation process.
Powering Digital Government Sustainably
Government’s reliance on technology has grown while the physical number of data centers has shrunk as part of a concerted data center consolidation program. Reducing the footprint of the technology the government uses saves money and reduces energy consumption, but the work is not complete. Now, agencies are looking at how to further reduce the climate impact of the remaining data centers including reevaluating how cool data centers need to be and what energy sources could provide the cooling and electricity for the buildings. New requirements for availability and sustainability are being introduced in Congress to ensure that technology is provided in an environmentally friendly way and is resilient to natural disasters.
Sustainable Tech = Sustainability Solutions
With technology delivered in environmentally conscious ways, the government is finding creative ways to use it to drive sustainability projects. A mapping solution is helping communities understand freshwater availability in order to help inform water conservation plans. The interactive map shows where freshwater shortages exist, as well as the demand and usage patterns of areas. Together, this data can help predict future shortages and allow communities to implement water saving measures sooner.
Las Vegas is deploying “digital twins” to mimic real-world conditions so that they can experiment with city planning and energy management ideas before beginning real-world implementation. Planners can simulate and then optimize large-scale building projects using the data collected from these online models as it relates to air quality, emissions, mobility, noise pollution and traffic.
For more information about sustainability policies and projects check out these resources.
- Too Little, Too Slow Climate: Adaptation Failure Puts World At Risk (white paper) – This report looks at progress in planning, financing and implementing adaptation actions as proposed by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). It also discusses the benefits of prioritizing actions that both reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help communities adapt, such as nature-based solutions.
- Available and Emerging Technologies for Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Combustion Turbine Electric Generating Units (white paper) – This white paper is intended to aid state and local air pollution control agencies, tribal authorities, and regulated entities in evaluating technologies and measures that can be implemented to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
- As the Built Environment Changes, AI and Machine Learning Tell a More Complete Story (white paper) – This paper outlines some of the key ways that intelligent imaging, data retrieval, and AI-driven analysis can provide ongoing benefits like cost and labor savings, and increase transparency at every level of public sector operations.
- Climate and Energy Implications of Crypto-Assets in the United States (white paper) – Executive Order 14067, “Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets,” was developed to support responsible digital asset development. The President directed the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy to examine the connections between distributed ledger technologies and energy transitions. This report provides an assessment of the potential for these technologies to impede or advance efforts to tackle climate change at home and abroad.
- Solar and Energy Storage Summit (June 21-22, 2023; San Francisco, CA) – This event features discussions for catapulting forward the development of North American solar and storage through the transformational impact of the Inflation Reduction Act and progressing the transition to a clean energy future.
- Smart Data for Energy Optimization Summit (October 3-4, 2023; National Harbor, MD) – Learn how to integrate smart, data-driven capabilities in a usable way to help support energy optimization goals throughout the design, build, retrofit and maintenance phases. Topics include facility planning and strategy, cybersecurity, measuring energy use, and more.
More insight into managing climate change and sustainability activities is available on GovWhitePapers and GovEvents.
