PEOPLE

PETER TURNBULL, Principal Consultant & Strategic Energy Advisor

Peter Turnbull’s career at Pacific Gas and Electric Company spanned 38 years, all focused on energy efficiency and demand-side management with customers.   From 2010 through 2019, he led PG&E’s customer-facing Zero Net Energy (ZNE) work.   Notable achievements include:

• Production and oversight of Zero Net Energy Case Study Buildings, three-volume set of case studies documenting in detail the design, construction and performance of 17 successful commercial ZNE buildings (11 of which are full electric)

• Leadership and management of Architecture at Zero, an annual architectural design competition now entering its ninth year emphasizing ZNE design for site-specific projects.  The competition is organized as a teaching tool for the design community; it has featured work with sites as diverse at San Francisco’s Tenderloin neighborhood, UC Merced and the Estuary and Ocean Science Center in Tiburon, CA  (see www.architectureatzero.com)

• Design, management and implementation of the Proposition 39 Zero Net Energy Program for K-14 public schools in California:  this program featured ZNE design consultation and project cost buy-down of several participating schools retrofit to ZNE performance levels; ZNE training seminars, both live and Web based which reached more than 1000 participants; case studies and supplemental materials

• Design, management and implementation of the Production Builder Pilot, a program which provided detailed consulting assistance, incremental cost buy-down and energy performance monitoring for specific homes built by national and regional production home builders. The program succeeded in demonstrating that ZNE can be done in a production builder environment at low incremental cost and without disrupting the “look and feel” of the home

•  Zero Energy Building Research, Outreach & Education: Over the ten years of ZNE work, Peter organized guided numerous symposia, conference presentations, technology evaluations and white papers examining a wide range of ZNE issues at customer sites and at the grid edge. His efforts include oversight of a number of case studies, technology analyses and policy white papers on ZNE. 

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Over Peter's career, he has had extensive experience in developing and managing energy efficiency rebate programs with a concentration on commercial markets.  He likewise has extensive experience working with emerging technologies, codes and standards work, analytic tool development, and market research, especially in the areas of cool roofing, daylighting and commercial food service.