As the effects of climate change continue to become more apparent, countries are doing their part to reduce dependence on most forms of fossil fuels. Therefore, to play its part, the South AQMD on May 21 introduced the WAIRE program.
The purpose of the WAIRE program was to regulate various businesses better using warehouses. More specifically, these new rules were in place to reduce dependence on energy and equipment that could produce nitrogen emissions.
If you’re looking to learn more about the WAIRE program and its implementation guidelines, here is everything that you need to know about its implementation guidelines.
What is the WAIRE Program?
The WAIRE program, also called the Warehouse Actions and Investments to Reduce Emissions program, aims to make various significant counties as eco-friendly as possible. These counties include Riverside County, Los Angeles County, and Orange County.
WAIRE aims to regulate various regional and local warehouses throughout Californian counties. The primary purpose of this set of guidelines is to ensure that these companies rely less on energy production methods that can cause serious damage to the environment. These warehouses should instead be using environmentally friendly alternatives that fit under the guidelines of the South Coast Air Quality Management District.
The SCAQMD introduced the WAIRE program, also known as rule 2305, in May 2021 in an effort to reduce nitrogen emissions from different warehouses. As the number of nitrogen increases in the atmosphere, it will reduce the amount of breathable air. According to various reports, the excess nitrogen will eventually deposit into various US rivers like the Mississippi-Atchafalaya River Basin. This could lead to further nitrogen pollution.
How Does the WAIRE Program Work?
The primary purpose of the WAIRE program is to regulate better warehouse owners and warehouse operators on the South Coast. The WAIRE program specifically regulates different warehouses that are as big as 100,000 sq ft in a location. According to regional data, 2,902 warehouse owners and 3,995 operators fit this specific criterion.
While the program’s purpose is to ensure that different types of warehouse owners comply with different climate change regulations, they can achieve a lot more. Not only can they make the earth cleaner in the long run, but they can also make warehouse operations more efficient.
The way that the WAIRE program ensures that companies will follow through on this green initiative is by rewarding them with WAIRE points. They can earn these points by following through on making their operation much greener and working under the program’s specific guidelines, which will often include that these different warehousing companies will make deliveries using environmentally friendly vehicles.
By riding these different environmentally friendly vehicles, these different warehouses can rack up points, which they can later use to their advantage. Of course, bringing in all these changes takes work, and companies will have to bear a major expense as they try to adjust their operations to match the WAIRE program better. Granted, the SCAQMD understands the difficulty businesses can face when transitioning, which is why they have offered a solution.
Warehouses can purchase these different WAIRE points, which they can use as a mitigation fee. The mitigation fee is designed to help different companies quickly make their transition, as it can reduce the overall price of getting the different equipment that is necessary to make the transition.
What is the Goal of the WAIRE Program
The WAIRE program has a single goal: to reduce the overall impact that warehouses have on the environment. They will be able to do this with the help of their unique WAIRE points, which most business owners can use and take advantage of almost instantly.
The best thing about the WAIRE program is that it is here to actively help different businesses make the changes they need to qualify for WAIRE points. Companies can only start to accumulate WAIRE points when they do specific tasks that the guidelines specifically approve of. In fact, most companies trying to find their way around the program are having a much harder time. Instead, most companies that have swallowed this difficult pill and rearranged their operations accordingly have significantly improved their work efficiency.
One of the activities that can help them accumulate WAIRE points is if they start driving electric or environmentally safe vehicles. Therefore, operations that rely on trucks and cargo vehicles will need to switch to more sustainable vehicles almost instantly. And when they are our making deliverers in these vehicles, they will continue to accrue these WAIRE Points. They can then use these WAIRE points for mitigation fees, which makes it cheaper for them to make more sustainable changes.
Eventually, the main goal of the WAIRE program is to keep warehouse operations sustainable and ensure that they use as little electricity as possible. Another significant way most of these warehouses can significantly reduce their carbon footprint and essentially reduce the overall reliance on regular energy generated from fossil fuels is through Solar energy and other types of renewable energy.
Methods to Generate Alternative Energy
One of the provisions of the WAIRE program is that warehouses need to be able to generate their own electricity through sustainable means. The energy that they generate will help them earn WAIRE points, which can help them in the future when they decide to make some major changes to their overall system.
However, it is worth talking about how businesses can generate alternative energy. While some can be large and expensive to install, they are all very good at ensuring that your company earns WAIRE points.
Wind Energy
The first primary source of alternative energy comes in the form of wind energy, which can move massive wind turbines to easily power electrical motors, which are responsible for generating their electricity. While these are easily the cheapest ways that people can generate electricity, it is also the most situational. A warehouse must be in a prime position where it could easily take advantage of the fast winds to make as much electricity as possible. Furthermore, these wind turbines can sometimes be expensive to install, which can make it hard to justify the purchase.
While they are easily responsible for generating a large chunk of the overall electricity in the country, it only does so because wind turbines have been placed in strategic locations like open fields and mountaintops.
Hydroelectric Power
Hydroelectric power refers to machines generating electricity with the help of the water’s current. If the water is fast enough, then it will easily be able to power these motors. However, countries have been using this method of generating electricity for a long time, and it has been called dams. These dams throw down water from very high and turn turbines which can help generate electricity.
Despite using water to generate electricity, many regard dams as a non-renewable source of energy since it disturbs natural currents of water. By disturbing these more natural currents, water will not reach essential parts of forests.
Therefore, instead of redirecting that flow of water, many are looking into taking advantage of the already fast-flowing currents of streams and rivers. That can make the operation more eco-friendly, allowing different companies to continue with their job without disturbing Mother Nature.
How Coldwell Solar Can Help Warehouse Operators with Solar Energy Equipment
Of course, while both of these renewable sources of energy are very effective in powering different types of businesses, they are very situational. And when compared to solar energy, the convenience it offers is unmeasured. Not only can they even absorb light during cloudy weather, but they can also be much more efficient and cost-effective than the other methods. Considering this information, you need to choose Coldwell Solar for all of your best solar panel solutions.
Some of the benefits of working with them include the following:
Advanced App to Monitor Savings
One of the most significant advantages of working with Coldwell Solar is that it offers accurate information about how the installation is saving you money. Not only can you track the electricity stored in the system, but you can also effectively see how much you have managed to save as a result of the advanced app.
Reduces Nitrogen Emissions
One of the most obvious benefits of not relying on electricity generated from fossil fuels is that you can easily reduce your nitrogen emissions. Of course, this is the exact situation that the WAIRE program is trying to promote, which can help make your operations more sustainable.
Solar panels do not produce harmful chemicals or by-products when generating electricity, making them especially useful for the WAIRE program.
Contact Coldwell Solar
The best thing about the WAIRE program is that it is an active effort by lawmakers to move towards a more sustainable future. By monitoring and ensuring that these companies are careful with their operations and do not rely on very traditional means to operate their business. The program rewards them for following through on these specific guidelines in the form of WAIRE points.
Coldwell Solar offers effective solar energy solutions to companies, ensuring that they have an easier time following through on these regulations. Solar panels are the way to go if you want to switch to something more renewable.
