Sustainable Silicon Valley  Project: Helping Small and Medium Businesses in Silicon Valley Get Started on Cost-Effective Energy Efficiency Improvements and Carbon Reduction Strategies

“How do I cost-effectively start to reduce my business’s energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions?” 

Small and medium businesses in Silicon Valley need assistance tailored especially for them if the region is to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions adequately to mitigate global warming while keeping these businesses profitable and providing much of the employment in the region.

Small and medium businesses must not be overlooked in the overall effort in Silicon Valley to reduce greenhouse gases. In Santa Clara County alone, for example, of the 50,800 business establishments in 2004, 95% had fewer than 50 employees.

These businesses typically have limited or no in-house staff devoted to environmental stewardship or familiarity with related codes, standards, regulations, and local incentive programs. They are also often characterized by: a less-well-defined formal management structure and less specialized positions; busy staff with multiple responsibilities who do not have time or environmental expertise; less dominant market positions and so driven more by cash flow than year-end profits. They also tend to do less sophisticated financial analysis of capital projects than bigger companies, and so are likely to rely more on payback periods for go/no-go decisions than more sophisticated techniques such as net present value or internal rate of return analysis.

There is plenty of best practices information available publicly on the web and elsewhere, but that multitude of sources is a problem. What single source does a small business owner or manager go to answer the question: How do I cost-effectively start to reduce my business’s energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions?

SSV means to provide an answer appropriate to many of these businesses.

SSV is in a unique position to foster the spread of best practices in climate protection through its partnership with over 85 organizations, including large and small companies, in Silicon Valley.  These partners have pledged to reduce their own emissions, and also commit to share their experience with others. SSV, working with KEMA Inc. on this project, will be drawing on this vast resource of experience and knowledge.

SSV and KEMA are interviewing these local businesses, as well as others who have successful energy efficiency programs, to compile best practices in achieving exemplary energy use and emissions reductions. As already mentioned, the needs of small and medium businesses differ from those of larger ones, and the products from this project will be adjusted to take these needs into account.   The completed publication, “Guidebook on Energy Efficiency and Carbon Emissions Reductions: For Small to Medium Business in the Silicon Valley”, is scheduled to be published in late 2008 and early 2009. The guidebook will be available on the SSV website and be supported through hands-on workshops. It will provide concise, easy to use information on how to start saving energy and money, with targeted resources for local businesses in the Silicon Valley.    

The guidebook project is supported in large part by a $75,000 grant from the Bay Area Air Quality Management District to Sustainable Silicon Valley (SSV).

To stay informed on this project, and other Sustainable Silicon Valley programs, please sign up for the SSV mailing list on this web page.