1. Southeast
Regional
Initiative
Sustainability Summit
Knoxville, Tennessee
August 22, 2013

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Southeast Regional Initiative
Sustainability Summits: The starting place

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Southeast
Regional
Initiative
Broader goals
Lower costs for businesses,
municipalities, universities,
and consumers;
less dependence on foreign oil;
economic development;
and a cleaner environment
Mechanism
Regional leadership
team working with
states, municipalities,
NGOs, businesses,
investors, and
universities
Primary goal
Sustainability
in energy use,
transportation, low-carbon
power generation,
and waste and
water management

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Areas of opportunity
• Power generation
• Energy efficiency
• Transportation
Tennessee
Kentucky
North
Carolina
South
Carolina
GeorgiaAlabamaMississippi
Florida
Southeast Sustainability
Group focus:
EPA Region 4
EPA: www2.epa.gov/aboutepa/about-epa-region-4-southeast

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Power generation
Fossil, 73.3%
Nuclear, 22.9
%
Hydro, 1.5% Other, 2.3%
Regional fuel mix
Regional greenhouse gas emissions:
635 million metric tons per year of CO2
equivalent (~9% of U.S. total)*
Opportunity:
Shifting to non-fossil
sources of power
*EPA: In 2007, U.S. greenhouse gas emissions totaled 7,252.8 million metric tons CO2 Eq.
**2009 EPA e-grid data

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Energy efficiency
• Commercial and residential
buildings represent ~40%
of U.S. energy consumption
• A 30% reduction in energy
use in half of the Southeast’s
buildings would create
– 7,000 MW average reduction
in power demand
– Savings of $6 billion
(at 10 cents/kWh)
18% 19% 25%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Population Energy use Housing
units
Nation
Southeast
U.S. Census Bureau. http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=DEC_10_DP_DPDP1&prodType=table

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Transportation
Drivers in the Southeast
typically log more miles than
the national average
10,045
11,561
11,595
11,433
14,848
11,332
11,791
11,294
13,270
U.S. Average
Tennessee
South Carolina
North Carolina
Mississippi
Kentucky
Georgia
Florida
Alabama
Vehicle miles traveled
per capita, 2007
U.S. Department of Transportation. RITA.
http://www.bts.gov/publications/state_transportation_statistics/state_transportation_statistics_2009/pdf/entire.pdf

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Most workers in the region commute
to work alone
Commute
to work
alone
Carpool
to work
Public
transport Other
Mean travel
time
(minutes)
Alabama 83.0% 11.8% 0.5% 4.7% 24.0
Tennessee 82.7% 10.6% 0.7% 6.0% 24.0
Mississippi 81.7% 12.3% 0.4% 5.6% 24.1
Kentucky 81.2% 11.3% 1.2% 6.3% 22.6
South Carolina 81.1% 10.9% 0.7% 7.3% 23.3
North Carolina 80.0% 11.5% 1.1% 7.3% 23.4
Florida 79.4% 10.3% 2.0% 8.3% 25.9
Georgia 77.7% 11.9% 2.4% 8.1% 27.0
United States average 75.5% 10.7% 5.0% 8.7% 25.5
U.S. Department of Transportation. RITA., 2009
http://www.bts.gov/publications/state_transportation_statistics/state_transportation_statistics_2009/pdf/entire.pdf

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Except in Florida, we lag the nation
in use of public transit
Passenger trips (thousands), 2009
Mississippi 1,385.2
Alabama 6,957.9
South Carolina 8,566.4
Kentucky 25,934.1
Tennessee 31,672.3
North Carolina 61,573.2
Georgia 188,352.2
United States average 202,674.8
Florida 264,927.5
Total passenger miles, 2009
Mississippi 14,465.8
Alabama 41,242.9
South Carolina 48,017.0
Kentucky 105,288.0
Tennessee 162,086.1
North Carolina 288,174.2
Georgia 1,036,429.1
United States average 1,077,072.8
Florida 1,448,141.8
National Transit Database. Federal Transit Administration. Annual Databases, 2009. http://www.ntdprogram.gov/ntdprogram/data.htm

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Train service in the region is limited
Midwest Northeast
Southeast
Amtrak. http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer/Page/1237405732511/1237405732511

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Framework for the initiative:
Southeast Sustainability Group
• Nonprofit corporation,
established in December 2012
• 6 founding members
(organizations) in place
• Officers elected
• First projects being scoped
Mission
Advance sustainability
through the understanding, development,
and implementation of projects on a large
and widely spread scale across
the Southeast United States

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Why a non-profit structure?
• Gives identity to the effort
• Adds structure and direction to the effort
(board of directors, officers, deliverables,
and reporting requirements)
• Creates an entity that can
– Apply for grants
– Enter into agreements
• Allows us to speak in an organized way
to local, state, and federal issues
via forums, press releases,
and public meetings
• Provides a formal mechanism
for multi-state initiatives
Board members
• Clark-Atlanta University
• Indian River State College
• Nissan North America
• Oak Ridge National Laboratory
• Tennessee Valley Authority
• University of Tennessee

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Participation in Southeast
Sustainability Group: Contacts
Susan Ballentine, susan.ballentine@southeastsustainabilitygroup.org
Allen Bottorff, allen.bottorff@southeastsustainabilitygroup.org
Melissa Lapsa, melissa.lapsa@southeastsustainabilitygroup.org
John Myers, john.myers@southeastsustainabilitygroup.org
Olu Olatidoye, olu.olatidoye@southeastsustainabilitygroup.org
Ken Srebnik, ken.srebnik@southeastsustainabilitygroup.org
www.southeastsustainabilitygroup.org