Lee International Helps Maine Secure $30 Million Energy Efficiency Grant for Weatherization Projects that Reduce Carbon Emissions

WESTBROOK, ME — Lee International was a key player in a recent announcement by Maine Governor John E. Baldacci that Maine has received a $30 million federal grant from The Recovery Act to fund energy efficiency upgrades in Maine.

The competitive award is part of $452 million in Recovery Act funding through the U.S. Department of Energy awarded to 25 communities around the country. Under the Retrofit Ramp-Up initiative, communities, governments and nonprofit organizations will work together to pioneer innovative programs to support large-scale retrofits and make energy efficiency accessible to thousands of homeowners and businesses. The new energy efficiency effort was announced recently by Vice President Biden.

According to Cathy Lee of Lee International, weatherization of buildings is an effective way to reduce carbon emissions that result from heating or cooling by an average of 25% and lower household energy bills at the same time. However, these opportunities are often missed for lack of funds and capacity.

The Maine funding will allow the Maine State Housing Authority (MaineHousing) to expand its weatherization initiative for low income dwellings in the state of Maine with the support of carbon finance. Under the MaineHousing Carbon Quantification Project, emission reductions from weatherization will be monetized through appropriate carbon finance instruments.

MaineHousing engaged Climate Focus and its U.S-based consultant Lee International in the development of a new methodology suitable for weatherization of single and multifamily buildings under the Voluntary Carbon Standard (VCS). Credits will be sold initially into the U.S. voluntary market but are intended to qualify for use in the U.S. compliance market if proposed legislation providing for energy efficiency offsets is adopted in the US.

The project is supported by Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (PHFA), New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency (NJ HMFA), the Ford Foundation and ARRA funds through the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). MaineHousing intends to help replicate the project in other states across the U.S. through its close connections to other state housing authorities. The methodology is currently undergoing validation under the VCS Double Approval process and has been posted by the VCS for public commenting. Final approval is expected in the upcoming months.

Lee International helps organizations benefit strategically and financially from carbon emissions trading schemes. Our focus is on Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects in developing countries, emission reduction projects for the voluntary markets in the USA and Europe, and the new mandatory regional trading programs in the USA, such as the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). The firm provides a full complement of legal, regulatory and advisory services connecting buyers and sellers in Brazil, South Africa, China, Canada, EU, and the USA, while monitoring emerging carbon trading programs in the United States.

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