Town Report for
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FY14 projects by the NEC targeted home energy efficiency, residential solar, and an energy goal for the Selectboard's strategic plan.
In the statewide Home Energy Challenge, Norwich's goal was to weatherize 3%, or 44, of its homes by the end of 2013. The final town tally was 17 homes. In 2014 the NEC continued to build on this calendar year 2013 campaign: * NEC held a presentation in late March on weatherization with examples from the Norwich Public Library and three residents who had energy audits and weatherized their homes; * NEC volunteers staffed an information table at Tracy Hall in May 2014; * The NEC coordinated with NeighborWorks HEAT Squad during the summer to follow up with Norwich residents who had recently had energy audits. In addition, the NEC organized its 2014 Solarize Norwich campaign, working once again with two Norwich-based companies—Norwich Technologies and Solaflect—to offer discounted pricing for residential PV systems. In support of Vermont's goal of having 90% of its energy needs met in 2050 by renewable energy, the NEC set a goal of 36 homes going solar in 2014. As of June 2014, the end of FY14, 12 Norwich homeowners had committed to installing solar and the NEC was making plans for an active campaign for August-September 2014. [Spoiler for the FY15 report: by mid-October 40 homeowners had gone solar!] In June and July, the NEC met with the Selectboard to develop an energy goal for the board's Strategic Plan. Approved by the Selectboard in September 2014, the goal—for both Town operations and residents— is to reduce, from the 2012 baseline, annual net greenhouse gas emissions from energy consumption by 25% by 2026, 50% by 2038, and 75% by 2050. Other committee work included: * in December 2013, NEC member Linda Gray gave a presentation at the VECAN conference about the committee's 2012 and 2013 Solarize campaigns; * in early May, the NEC sponsored a composting workshop by the Highfields Center for Composting, yet another way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions; * in summer 2014, the NEC applied to the New England Grassroots Environment Fund for a “Seed” grant to fund its activities. The NEC meets regularly on the fourth Tuesday of every month, at 7 pm at Tracy Hall. For more information, contact Linda Gray (649-2032, [email protected]). |