From Staff Reports

Western North Carolina leads the state in renewable energy capacity, speakers noted June 28 during a conference for green businesses in the Haynes Building at A-B Tech’s Enka campus.

In fact, as one program attendee confided afterward, the region has been called “the Saudi Arabia of biomass.”
The speakers cited the WNC’s status in a report from the nonprofit N.C. Sustainable Energy Association’s newly released 2011 North Carolina Clean Energy Data Book, which is billed as the first comprehensive guide to the state’s clean energy economy.

The findings were based on WNC’s strength in capacity for hydroelectric power, solar and wind power. The report also found the 31-county AdvantageWest region ranks highly among the seven economic development regions in the number of energy-efficient homebuilders and in the number of renewable energy systems.

The June 28 program, which lasted 90 minutes and focused on evolving clean energy trends, drew about 40 people.

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Paul Quinlan (standing) and Rich Crawley (right) speak on June 28.

A short question-and-answer period followed each of the presentations. The event was hosted by the NCSEA and the WNC Clean Energy Economy Project.

The speakers included Paul Quinlan, managing director of the NCSEA in Raleigh; and Rich Crawley, manager of market research and spatial analysis for AdvantageWest.

Speaking on behalf of the duo, Quinlan noted that the report was released last week “and what we’re doing now is touring across the state and having discussions and getting input.”

Quinlan reviewed the Health Built Homes and LEED certification programs for energy-efficiency and sustainability. He also said that the state “lacks geothermal resources for utility-scale applications. Geothermal heat pumps are viable in residential and commercial settings.”

The Fontana Dam, which is part of the Tennessee Valley Authority and located in WNC, is — by far — the largest such hydro-electric resource in North Carolina, he said.

As for wind energy, Quinlan said Appalachian State University in Boone has the “largest machine” in the state. He noted there also is a significant wind energy project in Beech Mountain, near Boone.

He said renewable energy revenue streams include the sale of electricity (or cost savings), renewable energy certificates and state and federal tax credits.

Quinlan cited polling results showing that 91 percent of state voters support using solar power to meet “our growing needs for energy and (specifically) electricity.”

Fielding questions after his talk, Quinlan cited Food Lion as “the leader” in North Carolina of any commercial or industrial company in making its supermarkets energy-efficient. In general, he noted that “about two-thirds of (the energy-efficient) projects are occurring in urban, with the rest in rural counties.”

He added that “floor and ceiling insulation wasn’t required in homes built in North Carolina until 1975,” that a relatively large amount of current houses were built before 1970, “especially in Western North Carolina,” and “manufactured homes are typically less-efficient (energy-wise) than stick-built homes.”

Meanwhile, Crawley said, “Charlotte has maybe 30 solar firms, while Western North Carolina might have eight solar firms, scattered mostly in Asheville, Buncombe” County and the vicinity.

Ampifying on Quinlan’s reference to Food Lion, he said the Salisbury-based grocery chain has “28 out of 31 blue dots” across the state, denoting energy-efficient stores. “They cut their operating costs by a quarter (one-fourth) ... They are now powering (the equivalent of) 336 virtual stores ... No other grocery chain has done this.”

In pointing out another highlight, Crawley said “Buncombe County and Chapel Hill are the two areas that light up bright red on the North Carolina map” as solar-energy leaders. “Asheville, in particular, is one of the most dense solar clusters in North Carolina.”

He also noted that WNC has a number of hydroelectic operations, “but they’re primarily on dams with equipment that is often 50 years or older.”

Regarding WNC’s status as having the largest renewal energy capacity of any region in the state, Crawley said there is much “potential for people to capitalize on, especially for boilers.” To that end, he said biomass system capacity in landfill gas offers tremendous possibilities in WNC.

Overall, Crawley said that “the Asheville region is well-positioned to pursue new opportunities in renewable energy technologies.

As he was fielding questions after his talk, Crawley noted that there is “more vertical geothermal (energy potential) in our state than anticipated.”