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Firms eye
the benefits
of going green
By HOLLI L. ESTRIDGE
With fuel prices at an all-time high, Jason Adams said it's hard for his company Maroon Cab -- which logs some 300 miles per day on each of its three cars -- to save on fuel.
But the company's recent investment in a Toyota Prius, the auto manufacturer's more fuel efficient hybrid model, now is saving almost $40 per day. And the cab's an attention grabber, Adams said.
"Our feedback has been very favorable," Adams said. "People want to know about the car."
In addition to fuel savings -- the Prius gets 46.7 miles per gallon on the freeway, compared to the 13 to 15 miles the cab company's Crown Victorias receive -- the cab company is also polluting less, Adams said.
Meanwhile, the new hybrid, one in a fleet of three cars, passed one important milestone last week. The 'green' car now dons a maroon hue to match the rest of the fleet.
Maroon Cab is not the only local company to go green. Simultaneously riding a national trend and eyeing spiraling energy costs, dozens of local companies are opting to operate lighter, or greener.
For Rami Cerone, owner of downtown Bryan's Caffe Capri, reducing trash at his restaurant meant taking cues from his habits at home.
"I was recycling at home anyway," Cerone said. "Then I thought -- I use a lot more at the restaurant than I do at home."
Soon Cerone was replacing Cafe Capri's foam take-out containers with corn-based, biodegradable boxes, trading high-wattage light bulbs for incandescents and carting recyclables off to a drop-off recycling center in the Wal-Mart parking lot in Bryan.
"We now recycle all of our cardboard and all of our glass -- beer bottles and wine bottles," Cerone said. "We load everything in the back of a truck when we're done with our work in the afternoon."
While the restaurant's green habits are not widely known among restaurant patrons, Cerone said he and his staff frequently answer questions about the corn-based, take-home materials. And Cafe Capri prominently advertises its practices on a corner of the restaurant menu.
Energy-efficiency
A handful of household appliance and materials suppliers and 'green' builders have entered the local market, since the trend has emerged in other cities.
Paul Hora, program manager for solar programs and a key account manager for Bryan Texas Utilities, said some of that is due to improved customer awareness. Bryan and College Station municipally-owned utilities now offer incentives for homeowners opting toward efficient home appliances.
"Moving in that direction is the right thing to do," Hora said. "We need to start looking at alternatives to fossil fuels."
In Bryan, customers who invest in photovoltaic cells for their homes can get a rebate for nearly half the cost of some systems. Plus they can see a reduction of as much as 10 to 20 percent in their monthly energy bill, Hora said.
Photovoltaic panels are capable of producing a voltage when exposed to radiant energy.
"Photovoltaic is very expensive upfront, because of worldwide demand for the panels," said Adam Burke, managing director of Texas Green Energy, a city of Bryan-certified local installer of panels and solar thermal systems. "I think manufacturers are just starting to ramp up their production capacity. New technologies are promising to come along, which should drive down prices."
Photovoltaic panels can cost anywhere from $6,000 to $20,000 depending on the size of the system, Hora said. And the pay back is on the order of 10 to 17 years.
Solar thermal can range from $2,500 to $4,000 after the rebate and has a return on investment in six and a half years, Burke said.
Burke said he started the local firm with business partner David Kappler in October, after he researched and installed similar products atop his own home.
"When I started, there were no systems in this area at all," Burke said. "And they're still not a common sight"
But Bryan's rebate program has prompted some homeowners and even commercial operations to at least get more information from Texas Green Energy, Burke said.
The city of Bryan will conduct site surveys for homeowners free of charge, to help them decide whether photovoltaic panels are viable options for their homes.
College Station's participation in the national Good Cents program has prompted some homeowners to opt toward energy-conscious construction.
Good Cents-qualified homes boast energy-efficient design to reduce solar heat load into a house, improved attic ventilation, high-efficient heating and air conditioning systems and other utility-saving measures.
Charles Thomas of Charles Thomas Homes said his company has built dozens of homes under the Good Cents program.
"From a consumer standpoint, we do several things that exceed the normal building requirements," he said. "One of the keys to our homes is the energy efficiency of the air conditioning system. We install -- as a very minimum -- units with a SEER rating of 14."
The Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating is the rating and performance standard developed by the U.S. government and equipment manufacturers. A SEER of 12 is common for high-efficiency units.
Charles Thomas primarily builds in College Station's Edelweiss Gartens, south of Rock Prairie Road. But the builder has been in the market for about 26 years.
"We have been selling our houses about as fast as we can complete them," Thomas said. "People are aware of the energy costs now."
Brian Henry, energy auditor for College Station Utilities said participation in the Good Cents program jumped to 228 homeowners in 2002 near the peak of the local housing boom. Only 66 homeowners participated in 2007, and 38 have constructed Good Cents homes so far this year.
Henry said the city strengthened Good Cents requirements in 2006, and participation subsequently decreased.
The city also recently adopted a program, allowing residents to fuel their homes with renewable wind power, at varying percentages. CSU Director of Electric Utilities David Massey said the utility is re-selling the power from a West Texas wind farm.
The local home-building industry at large is still investigating green building standards, though a handful of companies like Thomas and Ellis Custom Homes have built energy-efficient models.
The Bryan-College Station Home Builders Association is looking to potentially adopt the National Association of Home Builders' green certification program.
"Most people want to be conscious of what they use," said Keith Ellis, board president of the local association. "The main component locally is energy efficiency."
Victor Drozd of 2-D Homes, a Bryan-based design-build firm, said energy efficiency is frequently a concern among local home buyers. His firm can work within customers' budgets to design an energy conscious home, he said.
Institutional measures
While also promoting efficiency city-wide, the cities of Bryan and College Station -- large local employers -- are making strides toward green practices.
The city of College Station kicked off its "Green College Station" initiative in late June, offering free fluorescent light bulbs, organic grocery bags and leak protection kits to local residents.
In April, the United States Conference of Mayors designated College Station a Cool City, recognizing its action plan to pursue energy efficiency and renewable energy, improve air quality, boost water conservation, protect open space and green areas, encourage green building techniques and reduce greenhouse gases emissions.
Meanwhile, the city of Bryan's Green Team still is in the process of developing an action plan primarily to expand environmentally-friendly practices already in existence, said Sustainability Programs Coordinator Mary Strauss. The citywide effort encompasses all city departments.
The city already has several programs in place to reduce the city's environmental footprint, including the water department's F.O.G. (fats, oils and grease) program to reduce the impact of those items in the sewer system, composting facilities and a drive-in recycling center.
Texas A&M University also has a series of program, aimed at boosting the university's fiscal and environmental efforts, said sustainability officer Kelly Wellman.
"Our generally-accepted definition of green is meeting the needs of the present, without jeopardizing our ability to meet future needs," Wellman said.
In September of 2006, Texas A&M's Office of Energy Management -- which leads the university's energy conservation promotion and education program -- was recognized by the State of Texas Comptroller for "energy efficiency and improving air quality in the state of Texas." The office also received the Region IV Corporate Energy Management Award, last year, having saved $50 million in energy costs over a 10-year period.
But the university's efforts do not stop at energy efficiency.
Texas A&M has implemented green designs in several of its newest buildings, also adding low-flow faucets and toilets in an effort to minimize water consumption, Willman said. And the university recycles scrap metal and other items left-over from the recycling process.
The university also powers its transit buses with a biodiesel blend, derived from recycled fryer oil from dining services.
"This makes good business sense," said Wellman, who works under the vice president for facilities office as a sustainability liaison to the university. "So you're seeing a lot of it."
Local hospitals also are attempting to do their part, mostly from an energy savings standpoint.
While none of St. Joseph's buildings are green certified per se, hospital spokesman Tim Ottinger said the hospital is placing a number of energy saving and higher-efficiency equipment into those facilities and looking at ways to improve its use of energy.
"We've been trying for years to partner with someone to pick up our recyclables, but we haven't yet been able to find a partner who is willing to come and pick up the recycling," Ottinger said.
Tom Jackson, chief executive of the College Station Medical Center, said the medical office building the hospital added three years ago is the most advanced of its kind in the region -- and very energy efficient. The hospital also recycles plastics, papers, cardboards and certain glasswares, he said.
Michelle Fortune, chief executive of The Physicians Centre, said her organization is also seeking ways to recycle cardboard, to curtail the "enormous amount" of materials going into its dumpsters.
"We also control our atmosphere," Fortunate said. "Areas that are not utilized in the evening are set to timers."
Catching on
For 20 years, Brazos Natural Foods has been selling 'green' products.
Owner Janis Atkins said the green movement is catching on locally, because of greater media exposure.
"Oprah had a show on green products two or three months ago, and it was a big hit," Atkins said. "We started receiving calls and customers coming in that weren't already familiar with us. I think we're all becoming more conscious of what we can do to help the environment."
Brazos Natural Foods sells green cleaning products, DEET-free insect repellents, sun care products with higher-than-average SPF protection and filtered water bottles -- aimed at diverting water bottle waste from landfills.
