AGA, the American Public Gas Association (APGA) and the National Propane Gas Association (NPGA) File Comments on the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) NOPR on a Proposed Safety Standard for Gas Furnaces and Boilers.
Recall that in the BECS Committee October 27, 2023 Update on End Use Codes and Standards, we reported that the CPSC published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) Federal Register Notice on a proposed safety standard for residential gas furnaces, boilers, wall furnaces and floor furnaces. According to the NOPR, “ The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (Commission or CPSC) has determined preliminarily that there is an unreasonable risk of injury and death associated with residential gas fired central furnaces, boilers, wall furnaces, and floor furnaces. To address this risk, the Commission proposes a rule to detect and prevent dangerous levels of carbon monoxide (CO) production and leakage from residential gas furnaces and boilers.” The NOPR proposes that a carbon monoxide (CO) sensor be installed within the residential gas fired central furnace or boiler that would shut them down in the event of excessive CO production in the exhausted combustion products from these vented space heating products. Attached are the joint timely comments filed yesterday, January 25th by AGA, APGA and NPGA in response to the NOPR. Our comments outlined concerns that the quantifiable benefits did not exceed the quantifiable costs as determined by the CPSC cost-benefit analyses, CO alarms that are being mandated in new home and existing home provide superior protection from CO events in homes and businesses and concerns with the longevity and accuracy of CO sensors exposed to the harsh environment they would be exposed in combustion products exiting the heating equipment. We appreciate the feedback from the BECS Committee utility members who provided comments on the draft and will provide updates on the CPSC action on the NOPR when available.
AGA, APGA and NPGA Request a 30-day Extension on the DOE RFI on Developing a National Definition for a Zero Emissions Building that Proposes No On-Site Emissions.
In last week’s Update on End Use Codes and Standards, we reported that on January 2, 2024 the DOE’s Building Technologies Office (BTO) released a Request for Information (RFI) to “solicit feedback from industry, academia, research laboratories, government agencies, and other stakeholders on Part 1 of a draft National Definition for a Zero Emissions Building. Responses to this RFI will help to develop a National Definition for a Zero Emissions Building that will serve as a clear market signal and consistent target, backed by measurable data, that is intended to help move the building sector to zero emissions.”
According to the RFI, “Part 1 of the definition will focus on zero operating emissions. Future parts of this definition will likely include embodied carbon, refrigerants, and other key elements.” As proposed, the definition of a zero operating emissions building is one that is:
1. Highly Energy Efficient
2. Free of on-site emissions from energy use and
3. Powered solely from clean energy
The RFI states that “Part 1 of the draft definition in full, which includes details on the criteria above, is available here: https://www.energy.gov/eere/buildings/national-definition-zero-emissions-building “. “This RFI aims to gather more extensive insights on the definition. DOE will consider responses to this RFI before finalizing version 1.00 of Part 1 of the National Definition for a Zero Emissions Building.” As proposed, the definition in Part 1 that includes, “Free of on-site emissions from energy use” is a major concern for natural gas applications. Note that we have received some comments from the BECS Committee on responding to the RFI and welcome additional feedback from the members to address the no on-site emissions provision in the definition that would prohibit gas appliances and equipment in the built environment. The RFI requested comments by February 5, 2024. On January 19, 2024, AGA, APGA and NPGA filed the attached request for a 30-day extension for filing comments. We will provide DOE’s response on the request for an extension when available.
State Codes Activity Update.
Attached is a weekly feature of the “Friday Update” covering state code calendar activities as presented by the online utility “Fiscal Note,” which is sponsored by APGA and AGA Code and Standards. Please review the update and determine if there are state code activities that impact your service territory or organization.