SEQUIM — Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and its Richland and Sequim labs aim to be among the first federal facilities in the nation to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions.
The U.S. Department of Energy announced on May 25 that $38 million will be dedicated to the Net Zero Labs (NZL) Pilot Initiative to begin de-carbonizing four of the department’s 17 national laboratories in support of President Joe Biden’s goal to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions no later than 2050.
PNNL officials report the new initiative follows its own Net-Zero Emissions and Resilient Operations (NZERO) initiative, which fully transitions its campuses to net-zero by 2030.
PNNL Director Steven Ashby said their labs are “ideally suited to help the nation meet its ambitious climate and energy goals.”
He said “with DOE’s investment in the NZL Pilot Initiative — along with our innovation and commitment, ongoing campus modernization, and robust collaborations and community partnerships — we can get there (by 2030).”
Laboratory officials report Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL)’s initiative includes plans to:
• Replace current energy sources with low-impact sources, such as renewables, while reducing energy use in buildings and fleet vehicles;
• Move away from natural gas and transition to electrifying buildings, vehicles and equipment in partnership with local electric utilities;
• Upgrade equipment to be more efficient, such as using waste heat captured from supercomputers to heat other buildings at its Richland campus;
• Update building design standards and model campus buildings to reduce emissions and protect against electric utility disruptions.
In Sequim
At the Marine and Coastal Research Laboratory in Sequim, researchers look to implement the Integrated Renewable Energy System (IRES) by building a demonstration test bed to develop and test renewable energy production, management and multiple marine uses, such as ocean observations, underwater vehicles and aquaculture, according to laboratory officials.
The state Department of Commerce contributed $4.65 million to the platform and the U.S. Department of Energy $4.43 million toward this joint project that scientists say demonstrates PNNL’s “living laboratory” concept.
The platform includes a test boat charger that will support a Department of Energy-funded hybrid-electric research vessel. It also helps leverage PNNL’s expertise in energy resources that could save money and enhance electric grid resilience, laboratory officials report.
Researchers said this test platform could help advance resilient energy options by modeling how multiple renewable energy resources could power shoreline businesses or communities.
It will also demonstrate how different renewable systems can be integrated to reduce carbon emissions and contribute to a net zero emissions site and provide lessons, controls and protocols to help others reduce emissions and increase energy resilience, laboratory officials report.
PNNL officials said they are committed to sharing what they learn about regional decarbonization and resilience goals with the community, and they are in conversations with Clallam PUD and others in the community.
“Regional stakeholder engagement will be key to accelerating adoption,” Ashby said.
Other laboratories participating in the NZL Pilot Initiative include Idaho National Laboratory in Idaho Falls; the National Energy Technology Laboratory in Pittsburgh, Pa., Morgantown, W.Va., and Albany, Ore.; and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colo.
For more about PNNL’s NZERO initiative, see pnnl.gov/net-zero.
