Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory for the City of Henderson, Nevada, Department of Utility Services - Much More than an Accounting Exercise

The City of Henderson, Nevada, Department of Utility Services (DUS) completed a utility-wide greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) inventory as part of its Renewable Energy Development Project (the Project). The inventory results show that electricity use contributes the greatest amount to DUS' greenhouse gas emissions by a significant margin. Based on these results, energy conservation and renewable energy (i.e., solar, hydroelectric and bio-energy) projects at the Water Reclamation Facility (WRF) appear to provide the greatest potential for DUS to reduce its GHG emissions. Using DUS' inventory as a point of reference, the paper considers opportunities for water/wastewater utilities to defray the costs of GHG emission reduction projects through the sale of environmental commodities within the context of public GHG emission reduction targets. The paper also proposes the use of scenario analysis for evaluating alternatives for reduction projects considering the high uncertainty surrounding the energy and environmental commodity markets.