Impacts of the 2021 WSEC on Industrial Facilities
The built environment accounts for about 40% of global carbon emissions. Reducing building industry emissions regionally is a cornerstone of Washington State’s plan for combating climate change. The 2021 Washington State Energy Code (WSEC) update is an ambitious and important step in reducing carbon emissions and improving building efficiency. The update touches all points of the building industryresidential and commercial, but this paper focuses exclusively on one specific slice: industrial buildings for manufacturing, warehouse, and logistics buildings that extensively utilize spaces classified as “semi-heated” (freeze protection only). Our takeaways can be summarized in four points: Fossil Fuels: There will be legislative uncertainty about the use, and degree of use, of fossil fuels for some time. However, the end goal is clear: they will be phased out in favor of electrification. Renewable Energy: Owners will need to install PV panels, or harness geothermal energy. Envelope, Electrical, and Mechanical Systems: New facilities will follow a scorecard to increase building performance, with choices on strategy made early in design. Washington Clean Building Performance Standard: This standard, separate from the Washington State Energy Code, directly impacts building owners, and needs to be taken into consideration alongside WSEC code requirements.
BACKGROUND Washington, like most states in the country, is in the process of adopting or have adopted the International Building Code (IBC) 2021. States have the latitude to amend the IBC and add other parameters. Washington State has developed its own energy code, the WSEC. Washington State has chosen to take a leadership role in fighting climate change. This effort has
been underway for decades. The State developed a long-term energy consumption program in 2006 with goals set for 2031. State mandate RCW 19.27A includes two key 2031 targets: a 70% reduction in net energy consumption; and 0% fossil-fuel greenhouse gas emissions. Code updates run on a 3-year cycle, and with each iteration performance standards are updated to meet this mandate. Corrections, adjustments, and lessons learned have been integrated in the Washington energy code revisions over the numerous updates. The City of Seattle has its own building and energy code, also on a 3-year update cycle. Traditionally, Seattle is one revision cycle ahead of the State code and provides a laboratory for the State in the direction of upcoming requirements. For example, in Seattle, fossil fuels were banned from most water and space heating systems in new construction by the 2018 City of Seattle code (SBC), adopted in 2021. An additional requirement for this building type is the Washington Clean Building Performance Standard, which was signed into law in 2019 and took effect in 2021, and initially affects commercial buildings over 50,000 SF. This standard is a separate effort and set of requirements, but strategies taken to comply with the energy code update will have a direct impact on compliance with the performance standard. We’ve organized this discussion into three categories: design impacts; build impacts; and operational impacts. The code rollout for the WSEC has been delayed because of litigation related to California Restaurant Association v. City of Berkeley, and as a result the code language will be evolving particularly around the use of natural gas. However, we can be confident that the end goal, and eventual legislation, will include a comprehensive transition away from fossil fuels. It would be wise to plan for this eventuality now. Impacts of the 2021 WSEC on Industrial Facilities v1.02