Ann Howard, director of Environmental Accreditation Programs at the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) National Accreditation Board (ANAB), has published "Mission Assurance through Energy Assurance, DoD Installations and the Use of ISO 50001," in the Defense Standardization Program Journal. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) voluntary energy management standard ISO 50001, Energy Management Systems and Guidelines for Use, provides a framework for integrating energy management into an organization's business processes.
In her article, Ms. Howard cites research from the Pew Charitable Trust which reveals that U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), is the largest energy user in the United States. The DoD's installations represent 284,000 buildings with more than 2 billion square feet accounting for 1 percent of the total energy expended in the U.S. at a cost of almost $4 billion.
These U.S. military installations are required to comply with the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 and the more recent John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act, which directs military branches to examine "energy and climate resilience" in every installation master plan. Robust implementation of ISO 50001 provides important tools for climate change mitigation. In addition to implementing the standard, some organizations pursue third-party certification to demonstrate best practices in energy management and continued energy performance improvement.
Ms. Howard examines two specific cases and provides details about the challenges and benefits of implementation of ISO 50001. The full article appears in print in the January-April 2019 issue of the Journal and is also published online and can be downloaded for free.