Energize Bend was created in 2022 around the idea of advocating for the adoption of electrification in homes and buildings across Bend. Energize Bend is a coalition of businesses, nonprofits and individuals who all come together for this one goal that aims to modernize our energy use, helping curb the effects of fossil fuel-caused climate change.
The origins of the campaign can be traced back to one experience: a common one that many environmentally-conscious home buyers have felt. A community member in 2022 was moving into a house here in Bend, and she did not want to have any natural gas appliances in her home. She told her builder her preference, and was met with a fee.
It is standard for many builders to take incentives from the natural gas industry to make sure that homes are built with the capabilities of using fossil fuels. If someone doesn’t want that, it means that they must pay a fee, simply to decide what goes on in their own home.
That logic alone did not sit well with many people once it was realized, and many community members since then have felt that it is unethical to charge a homeowner this fee, to not do something in their home.
Brennan Breen, the Energize Bend campaign coordinator and former natural gas chemical engineer, says that the community recognized this system as feeling unfair. In addition, he mentioned the potential impact that homes and buildings have on local emissions. Bend is looking to double our housing stock in the foreseeable future, and already, 51 percent of our total emissions come from buildings and construction.
“We need to build smart from the start, and plan for the future,” Breen said. “Buildings are a low-hanging fruit that we can realistically make a large impact with.”
To make this positive change systemic, Breen and all of Energize Bend are pushing for a Climate Impact Fee, which would charge builders a moderate fee for building structures with gas appliances; all-electric builds would avoid the fee altogether, and revenue from the fee could be used to upgrade the energy efficiency of low-middle income homes in Bend.
A main point that Breen expressed regarding the campaign involves getting people motivated towards environmental action. Unlike other environmental campaigns, this isn’t an aesthetically pleasing one, where supporters can share images of beautiful natural areas and talk about preserving them. However, this campaign involving HVAC systems and electric appliances is still important, as the effects of climate change are not some faraway threat; they are being felt… in Bend… today.
