Oneida Indian Nation – 2019 Project

NOTE: Project pages are being updated regularly to reflect changes, if any; however, some of the information may be dated.

Summary

The Oneida Indian Nation will build upon a previously conducted energy audit of tribal buildings to implement energy efficiency measures (EEMs) in nearly 30 facilities. The project is expected to save more than $450,000 annually and reduce more than 4 million killowatt-hours (kWh) and 50,000 therms of energy use per year. It is also expected to reduce the Nation’s annual greenhouse gas emissions by more than 3,000 metric tons.

The Oneida Indian Nation is a federally recognized sovereign Indian Nation with approximately 1,000 enrolled members, many of whom reside on or near the Nation’s ancestral homelands in central New York state. The Nation was created and recognized by the 1794 Treaty of Canandaigua. Over the course of the past decades, the Nation reacquired approximately 17,844 noncontiguous acres of its Reservation land within a 350.6-square-mile area of Oneida and Madison counties in central New York. 

In recent years, the Nation acquired or constructed new facilities in a relatively short period of time. Due to the rapid nature of expansion, the Nation’s approach to energy use and efficiency has been conducted in silos—department- or enterprise-specific—without coordination across sites. Nation leadership recognizes that to truly honor the commitment to sustainable development, a more comprehensive approach is needed. The Nation initiated this process with its 2017 Energy Master Planning Project, which identified EEMs throughout Nation-owned facilities that would, if implemented, result in energy and cost savings.

Using prior Department of Energy funding through the Office of Indian Energy’s First Steps toward Developing Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency on Tribal Lands 2016 funding opportunity, the Nation engaged a consultant to establish baseline energy use throughout Nation-owned buildings. The overall energy audit performed adhered to the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) Level II energy audit standard, which requires a walk-through analysis of buildings, as well as an energy survey and analysis. ASHRAE Level II further stipulates that reports showing low-cost and no-cost measures, potential improvements, and detailed energy and financial analysis must be generated.

Multiple EEMs with associated implementation costs and resulting energy and cost savings were considered. A savings-to-investment ratio (SIR) was calculated for each EEM across all properties, as well as for each property. The higher the SIR, the more cost-efficient the change. That analysis was completed in 2018, and the consultant provided several reports to the Nation detailing the data and EEM recommendations.

The EEMs proposed for these nearly 30 buildings were selected from the full list of EEMs proposed for all 40 buildings reviewed in the 2018 energy audit. Those selected were deemed the most impactful from an energy efficiency standpoint and/or most feasible and cost-effective, with the most favorable payback periods.

This project enables the Nation to build upon a previously conducted energy audit of Nation buildings to implement EEMs across nearly 30 facilities. These EEMs were identified by a consultant who determined baseline energy use of existing Nation buildings. The specific goals of this project are: (1) more than $450,000 saved annually, (2) reduction of more than 4 million kWh and 50,000 therms of energy use annually, and (3) reduction of more than 3,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually.

The project will improve the energy efficiency of the Nation by reducing both the amount of energy used and energy costs, at levels exceeding the above-stated project goals, and will provide the Nation with the opportunity to further support its efforts to protect its environment and natural resources, ensuring a safe, healthful, and productive environment for residents and visitors on Nations lands, as well as for the seventh generation to come.

The Nation will implement a variety of EEMs across nearly 30 buildings, which include lighting upgrades; heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) improvements; changes to water heaters; upgrades to walk-in cooler fan motors, and various upgrades/controls to maximize energy efficiency. At least two measures will be implemented at each building.

Exterior lighting will be updated to light-emitting diode (LED) fixtures. This will involve removing existing fixtures and installing new fixtures, as well as replacing light poles to accommodate the new fixtures. Interior lighting will also be converted to LEDs by removing existing fixtures and installing new fixtures and occupancy sensors.  

Several HVAC-related EEMs will be implemented at 25 of the Nation-owned buildings in this project. These include implementation of remote HVAC management by installing programmable thermostats and a remote-access connection and implementation of demand control ventilation with CO2 sensors and Remote Terminal Unit Distributed Control System controllers.

Water heater upgrades will occur in three buildings and will include new reset controls, pumps, and replacement of full units. Refrigeration condensing unit upgrades will replace evaporator fan motors in walk-in coolers with electronically commutated motors, and snow-melt boilers will be replaced at various SavOn convenience stores.

The Nation will also upgrade the chiller system at the Cogen plant, installing controls on water pumps to balance water temperature and volume for maximum efficiency. And kitchen exhaust hoods will be outfitted with sensors that allow operation to be adjusted based on cooking intensity.

Once installed, the new equipment will be maintained under the Nation’s facilities general operation and maintenance processes, and operations and maintenance costs will be covered by the Nation’s general budget. 

The Oneida Indian Nation is a federally recognized, self-governing sovereign Indian Nation with an approximately 300,000-acre Reservation that was created and recognized by the 1794 Treaty of Canandaigua. Over the course of the past decades, the Nation reacquired approximately 17,844 noncontiguous acres of its Reservation land within a 350.6-square-mile area of Oneida and Madison counties in central New York. This project encompasses nearly 30 buildings, all of which are owned by the Nation and on Nation lands. The facilities are located throughout the 300,000-acre Oneida Reservation in Oneida and Madison counties in central New York. 

The project was competitively selected under the Office of Indian Energy's Fiscal Year 2019 funding opportunity announcement “Energy Infrastructure Deployment on Tribal Lands - 2019” (DE-FOA-0002032) and started in September 2019.

The project status reports provide more information.