Environmental Law

Locking Up California's Inmates Behind Green Walls

By Dennis Pfaff and Kevin Livingston, Editors

It might not make the residents any happier, but the institutions housing some of California's criminals are on their way to becoming a lot more earth-friendly.

That became apparent recently when state officials and utilities formally unveiled a program to green the state's enormous prison system with energy efficient building retrofits and renewable power installations.

Retrofit projects at about a dozen prisons are expected to be completed by the end of the year, partially paid for by millions of dollars from the state's big investor-owned utilities, according to a statement from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. In addition, officials announced that a half-dozen prisons will get new solar power installations, each producing more than a megawatt of electricity every year. Two prisons already have such arrays, which supply about a quarter of their power. 

A separate statement from some of the utilities involved in the project said the companies contributed as part of a public-private partnership formed in response to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's so-called Green Building Initiative. That initiative was launched in 2004 with Schwarzenegger's signature on an executive order that sets a goal of reducing by 20 percent the energy used in government and commercial buildings by 2015, and also commits the state to taking "aggressive action" to retrofit buildings.

As the state's largest agency -- with more than 80 facilities housing about 170,000 inmates under the eyes of more than 60,000 employees -- the corrections department "has a unique opportunity to make a huge impact on California's energy grid on a daily basis," said Corrections Secretary Matthew Cate, in the department's statement. Cate added:

"These energy projects allow our agency to harness solar power, maximize conservation efforts, increase efficiencies, and ultimately reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”
 

The department estimated that the efficiency projects would save about 25 million kilowatt hours of power annually, at a savings of $3.2 million. Construction costs were estimated at more than $13 million, for a variety of projects, including renovations to lighting and ventilation systems, as well as other upgrades.

As part of the agency's statement, Schwarzenegger cited the prison project as a "great example" of what he had envisioned when he signed the executive order. He said he hoped it would become a national model.   

The corrections department statement said that the prison agency also was participating in the Climate Registry, nationwide program to set standards for measuring and reporting greenhouse gas emissions.

Just the other day, California was singled out for national recognition for its energy conservation efforts. The has moved to green its building codes, the California Public Utilities Commission, which regulates investor-owned utilities, has also set out an aggressive energy efficiency agenda, and Schwarzenegger recently signed legislation designed to reduce energy consumption by limiting urban sprawl.

The state's utilities have sought more than $3 billion in authorizations from the utility commission for efficiency programs. Companies participating in the prison project include Southern California Gas Company, San Diego Gas and Electric Company, Southern California Edison Company and Pacific Gas and Electric Company.

--Dennis Pfaff of Thelen LLP

Photo: Courtesy of California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation  

Full post as published by Climate Law Update on October 10, 2008 (boomark / email).