Resilient Communities

Funded by the California Energy Commission (2023-2027), the UPGRADE project aims to develop affordable, efficient, and climate-resilient housing through modular construction. In collaboration with Habitat for Humanity, East Contra Costa Community Alliance, Mighty Buildings, and UC Berkeley, Berkeley Lab researchers will demonstrate three modular townhomes in Bay Point, CA, exceeding 2022 California Title 24 requirements. The project will showcase energy-efficient designs, advanced manufacturing, and resilience features, aiming to lower costs for disadvantaged communities and reduce grid stress. Additionally, it will develop cost models, training programs, and community engagement strategies for the statewide deployment of net-zero, resilient homes.

Contact: Max Wei and and Jingjing Zhang

Pollution, poor air quality, and inadequate air conditioning lead to health problems for many communities. A plan developed by Berkeley Lab in collaboration with local stakeholders combines energy efficiency, electrification, and distributed energy resources to deliver air quality and climate benefits. Researchers joined forces with the City of Fresno, the State of California, numerous other public and private agencies, and Central Valley community organizations to identify common goals and priorities.

In collaboration with community stakeholders in the city of Fresno, California, our researchers have helped communities in Fresno by developing a heat resilience toolkit to enable residents to better cope with extreme heat. Collecting and responding to community feedback was an important component of developing this toolkit.

Contact: Max Wei

Increasingly, states are recognizing equity as a goal of utility regulation, going beyond traditionally stated objectives to ensure that electricity systems are reliable, safe, and fairly priced. State initiatives are critical not only to address historical inequities, but to ensure equitable benefits and burdens in the transition to a clean energy future. This report provides four perspectives on advancing equity in electric utility regulation, from representatives of energy justice and consumer organizations and a leading utility in this area.

Contact: Lisa Schwartz

The Division’s Electricity Markets and Policy Department has conducted research on expanding access to energy efficiency in low- and moderate-income (LMI) households for a number of years. Our work focuses on how to make capital available to LMI households for home upgrades and on understanding how well energy efficiency programs reach and serve LMI households.

Contacts: Jeff Deason, Natalie Mims Frick and Greg Leventis

Understanding who benefits — and who doesn’t — from the solar energy boom is one way to start closing gaps in clean energy equity. Berkeley Lab researchers have compiled demographic data on 3.3 million U.S. households, representing more than 85% of the nation’s rooftop-solar-powered homes. Information on factors including income, race, ethnicity, education level, occupation, age, and home value inform clean energy policies, to potentially make them more equitable for families in lower income brackets.

Although solar energy costs continue to shrink, many low- and moderate-income homeowners and renters still cannot afford these renewable energy systems. Community solar projects offer multiple households and businesses affordable access to clean energy. In collaboration with more than 2,000 community stakeholders across the nation, Berkeley Lab provides free technical assistance through the National Community Solar Partnership, with goals to boost community solar deployment by 700%, reaching 5 million households and cutting $1 billion from power bills.

Many communities face air pollution but lack resources to monitor it. In response, Berkeley Lab, in partnership with UC Berkeley and community-based organizations, deploys low-cost sensors in these areas to track neighborhood-level pollution. Since 2016, efforts in West Oakland, Richmond, Modesto, and San Francisco have generated data that inform policies to reduce pollution exposure and mitigate health impacts in the most affected communities.

Heavy-duty diesel trucks are essential for the movement of goods in California and the nation, but they contribute significantly to the burden of diesel particulate matter and nitrogen oxides in the air. Nitrogen oxide emissions are linked to significant health impacts, and many communities who live and work in close proximity to these sources of pollution have been more significantly impacted by these emissions. Berkeley Lab and UC Berkeley scientists work together to lead research in measuring the performance and durability of after-treatment emission control technologies as well as effectiveness of vehicle inspection and maintenance programs in reducing emissions from other vehicle types in compliance with EPA standards.

The overall project goal is to conduct field, laboratory, and simulation research to inform developers of kitchen ventilation requirements in residential building codes for new California homes. The field component of the project sampled 23 apartments at 4 properties. The field study focused on this sector because the effect of pollutant exposure to cooking emissions (PM, NOx) is expected to be higher in smaller homes with higher occupant densities.

Contacts: Brett Singer and Rengie Chan

Communities face health risks from pollution related to transportation. A tool from Berkeley Lab models everyday travel decisions and simulates transportation options to anticipate effects on emissions, congestion, and energy use, as well as the mobility, cost, and health impacts. Developed in partnership with UrbanSim, Inc., the Behavior, Energy, Autonomy, and Mobility (BEAM) Comprehensive Regional Evaluator (CORE) Modeling Framework helps government agencies, policymakers, and businesses make informed and equitable planning decisions.