My Interview with Dustin Dennison
Applied Energy Innovations
As I walk into the buzzing offices of Applied Energy Innovations it’s clear that if there is an economic slump, the folks at this company don’t know it, at least not now. It was a different story February of last year. “We were five industrial commercial tradesmen who had been hit hard. We had lost our jobs and were unemployed,” says Dustin, shaking his head. “All of us loved our work and had a passion for renewable resources and energy efficiency. We decided to form a company that would provide green jobs and services for the community.”
Now, seven months later, the whiteboard showing the projects in progress is littered with addresses all over the city. Dustin explained that the company covers three areas:
1) Electrical: solar installations, wind turbines, and lighting retrofits
2) Mechanical: energy efficient heating systems, rooftop HVAC units, air to air exchangers, heat pumps, geothermal, gas and plumbing services, and
3) Exterior General Construction: roofing, siding, and windows.
Since opening in February the company has hired 14 new employees working closely with the adult re-training programs through the Department of Labor,
St. Paul College and
Century College.
Thinking back to when he first realized there was a climate issue, Dustin recalls hearing conversations about air quality while he and his family lived in
Denver. “It was 1994 to 2000 and there was a brown cloud over
Denver. There were blue days and red days depending upon the levels of pollution.” That peaked Dustin’s awareness and when they moved to
Minnesota he commuted in and out of downtown
Minneapolis for work. Noticing the brown cloud hanging over the skyline he said to himself, “This is my hometown, the city where I choose to live and work and raise a family. What are we leaving the next generation?”
To that end Dustin believes that we are a “forgetful society,” and that we need to “keep things on the radar.” For instance, he tells me “In Minnesota we import all of our raw materials to create energy. We are a state spending billions per year to bring energy to us. For that amount of dollars we should be producing and exporting our own energy and creating renewable jobs. There are thousands of miles of open rooftops,” says Dustin. “There could be solar installations everywhere and we could generate an additional 58 megawatts of electricity per year.” Right now there are so many wind turbines that the utility companies are moving quickly toward reaching their mandated standard of 25% renewable energy by 2025. “With rooftop solar installations,” visions Dustin, “we could carve out a niche another 10% above and beyond the mandate.”
In Dustin’s eyes, “Each solar install is a microcosm of events. People who install solar panels are leaders in their communities, in their neighborhoods, on their blocks. They are part of positive change,” he smiles. When asked about the cost to install solar for an average home in
Minneapolis it appears that there are multiple incentives that can bring the cost from close to $20,000 down to approximately $5000 per home.
Part of that is a 30% credit on income taxes that can be exercised over 5 years. Xcel Energy has Solar Rewards that are funded every year but they tend to disappear very quickly. “We make all the applications for the available funds for each client,” says Dustin. “The toughest part for most people is the up front financing.”
Another issue that Dustin encounters as he talks to people concerns government subsidies for renewable energy. “People don’t want to have their tax dollars paying for their neighbor’s solar panel,” he comments as he leans back in his chair. “What they don’t realize is that big oil, with profits of hundreds of billions of dollars each quarter, is subsidizes by our government to the tune of $70 billion per year. That money goes to capping old oil wells, looking for new oil, and cleaning up messes. Renewable energy, on the other hand, is subsidized at about 12 billion per year.” With intensity he finishes, “Our role…our responsibility, is to have these conversations.”
Dustin and the staff at Applied Energy Incentives believe in the work of
MN350. He says, “MN350 is the theory, and Applied Energy Incentives is implementing the theory. “When we take a 60% inefficient boiler and put in a 90% efficient one we are making a substantial reduction in carbon emissions over time. But,” he continues, “We have to continue to build political will and public awareness. The more oil spills in the oceans and rivers, the more nuclear plant disasters, the more we build these liabilities, the more we have the potential for catastrophic events. What happens globally affects all of us.” He pauses for a moment then says, “Think of it this way. If we take a road trip in a station wagon and the back of the car is on fire, are we going to worry about that? At what point do we pull over and address the problem?”
*NOTE*
The MN350 rally at the State Capitol on September 24th will be entirely run on solar energy thanks to Applied Energy Innovations. This company is providing the equipment that will be powering 6 speakers, a sound system, a public address board, literally the entire audio system. Basically anything that requires electricity that day will be powered by the sun. What if the sun doesn’t shine? “No problem,” smiles Dustin, “there are batteries in our trailer that store the sun’s energy. We will pull it right from there.”
