Commonwealth Conversations: Energy Smarts

Rooftop Solar Challenge: Making solar more affordable, accessible

Mark Sylvia

Commissioner, Department of Energy Resources (DOER)

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Using the sun to power our homes, businesses, and government buildings has come a long way in Massachusetts. Solar capacity has increased 30-fold since 2007, when Governor Patrick set his goal of installing 250 megawatts by 2017. We’re now at 105 MW installed, with solar arrays in at least 334 of our 351 cities and towns.

This solar momentum will be enhanced by the recent award of a $566,354 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy’s SunShot Initiative, Rooftop Solar Challenge. We have developed the “Mass Solar: Making it EZ” pilot program to ease the installation of solar photovoltaics (PV), make  solar energy more accessible and affordable for Massachusetts residents and small businesses, and maintain our state’s leadership in the clean energy sector. 

Five cities and towns - Boston, Cambridge, Harvard, Hatfield, and Winchester – are partnering with the Department of Energy Resources, Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, the Solar Energy Business Association of New England, the Massachusetts Board of Building Regulations and Standards, and MassDevelopment to develop solutions for lowering the non-hardware - or soft costs - of solar installations. These soft costs account for up to 40 percent of the total cost of installed rooftop PV systems in the United States.  I am thrilled that Massachusetts is involved in this initiative to advance the adoption of solar energy and hope you will check out the video below and the links to find out more information. 

You can find more information online at DOER or by visiting the U.S. Department of Energy's SunShot Initiative web page.

Patriots of the clean energy revolution cutting greenhouse gasses

Secretary Richard K. Sullivan Jr.

Secretary, Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs
Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs

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With new science emerging on the health impacts of fossil fuel consumption and increases in extreme weather and storm events relating to climate change, it’s clear that we need to do all that we can to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It’s important because we are a coastal state, we have a vibrant agricultural industry and because we rely on imported energy for our electricity needs. Under the leadership of Governor Patrick, the Commonwealth has risen to the challenge of creating bold long-term goals to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions and investing in energy efficiency and renewable energy.

As a result of the Global Warming Solutions Act (GWSA), signed by Governor Patrick in August 2008, Massachusetts has greenhouse gas emissions limits of an 80 percent reduction of 1990 levels by 2050. In December 2010, our office released a the 2020 Clean Energy and Climate Plan plan that set the ambitious target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent from 1990 levels by 2020.

We’ve already made great progress on greenhouse gas reductions over a short period of time. We recognize the plan has to be dynamic but the investments we’ve made in solar, wind, electric vehicles and energy efficiency are already at work reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

New solar array in Westford, MA.

With the implementation of the Green Communities Act, also signed in 2008, we now have 42 percent of Massachusetts residents (or 2.7 million people) living in Green Communities. All 86 Green Communities  have committed to reducing their municipal energy consumption by 20 percent.  This commitment by these patriots of our Massachusetts clean energy revolution equates to the annual energy consumption of more than 13,000 Massachusetts homes and the greenhouse gases emissions from more than 16,800 cars. 

We have the most aggressive goals in the country and we know that means we have a lot of hard work ahead of us. This Administration has an absolute commitment to obtain those goals. I’ve assigned Undersecretary of Energy Barbara Kates-Garnick and Environment Undersecretary Phil Griffiths to oversee this ambitious plan with focus on transportation, buildings, energy generation, non-energy emissions and climate adaptation.  We’ve got our team in place and a plan to engage with stakeholders. We are also unveiling an online tool to track our progress in May.

It will take all of us to meet these revolutionary clean energy goals. I hope you will join us.

Video of the Week

Maia Fitzstevens

Multimedia intern, Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA)

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We continue today with our brand new Video of the week series, which each week highlights a video or two about clean energy in the Commonwealth. Today we bring you “Investing in Solar for your Home.”

This video features Massachusetts residents who have installed solar photovoltaic panels on the roofs of their homes. They share their stories about how investing in solar has made an impact on their lives. Not only do these homeowners spend less on their monthly bills (one resident’s bill dropped from $130 per month to $40 per month), they are doing their part to help meet our statewide clean energy goals.

In Massachusetts we spend $18 billion of the $22 billion spent annually on foreign sources of energy from Canada, Latin America and the Middle East. Instead of spending that money elsewhere we’d like to keep those dollars here in Massachusetts by investing in solar projects that put local installers to work while stabilizing long-term energy costs for residents and businesses and cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

The residents in the video explain how they can sell excess energy back to their utilities and how upfront costs in investing in solar technology are not as expensive as many might think. With the help of state support from solar energy certificates, rebates, tax credits, and sales tax exemptions, residents can help defray their initial investment. One resident even said that she wished she had installed solar 10 years ago, if she knew it would pay off so quickly!

Learn more about home solar energy projects by watching the video.

If you find a video you’d like to see in this blog, share it in the comments section below!

Video of the Week

Madeleine Barr
Multimedia intern, Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA)
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Today we are starting a new Video of the Week series in which we highlight a clean energy video from the Commonwealth. With so many great clean energy stories happening across the state, it will be difficult to pick just one. 

This week, we have two videos that feature energy measurement projects that were funded by the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009 – which just had its third year anniversary and has resulted in a paycheck for more than 6,500 clean energy workers.

Through the Enterprise Energy Management Systems (EEMS), EnerNOC is installed energy meters at state-owned buildings so that facilities managers can see just how much energy is being used.  Using this information they will be able to make adjustments in their own consumption.  This video highlights how Fitchburg State University utilizes EnerNOC technology to reduce their overall energy costs. 

Our second video this week is of the Massachusetts Hospital School; it is an institution that provides medical, rehabilitative, educational, recreational, and vocational services to children and young adults with disabilities.  The mission of this school is to help the students achieve their full potential in all aspects of daily life.  By staying aware of energy consumption through EnerNOC software, the Mass Hospital School can spend its money on assets valuable to their students’ growth as opposed to wasting the limited funds on unnecessary energy use.  This video shows just how they do it. 

Know of a video that you’d like to see on the blog? Share it in the comments section below. 

Energy by the numbers: 2.7 Million

Dan Burgess

Clean Energy Fellow, Department of Energy Resources

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Since the Green Communities Act was passed in 2008, 86 cities and towns in the Commonwealth have been officially designated as a Green Community - that means more than 2.7 million Massachusetts residents are living in a municipality that has met five clean energy criteria.

The residents, businesses, and public officials in these municipalities are making real progress in reducing our dependence on foreign sources of energy and are key partners in the progress that the Commonwealth is making toward achieving a cleaner energy future. 

Visit the Green Communities web page to see a map of the 86 municipalities and to learn more about the program.

Infographic: Clean Energy in Massachusetts

Dan Burgess

Clean Energy Fellow, Department of Energy Resources

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You can download the text of this infographic here.

Energy efficiency services available to businesses

Maia Fitzstevens

Multimedia intern, Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA)

View Maia's Bio

Interested in investing in energy efficiency to cut costs and reduce energy use at your business? If so, you should know that energy efficiency services, incentives and technical assistance are available for all Massachusetts industries and businesses.

Mass Save®, an initiative sponsored by Massachusetts’ gas and electric utilities and energy efficiency service providers, offers a wide variety of opportunities to save energy and money in the near and long term for small businesses, medium and large businesses, and industrial customers. Whether you need help assessing your energy use, updating your lighting to compact fluorescents or LEDs, or making sure that you choose the right high efficiency heating and cooling system for your building, the help you need to manage your energy costs most effectively is there.  Mass Save can also connect you with incentives for new construction and equipment or building upgrades.

To see how other businesses, nonprofit organizations, and communities have used these services, take a look at the case studies posted online at Mass Save. There are also industry-specific details available for sectors like healthcare, property management, labs, and grocery stores. 

If you are a large industrial company, there’s another resource to check out, the Industrial Assessment Center (IAC). IAC was recently hailed by President Barack Obama as "an important part of the administrations 'all-of-the-above' approach to domestic energy sources" through conducting energy assessments that save manufacturers money and teaching students how to be energy efficiency leaders. Over the last 25 years, IAC has made 2,243 recommendations  to help Massachusetts companies save energy and money, and specializes in helping companies identify best energy practices, which include improving waste heat recovery and compressed air systems or creating more efficient steam, pump and fan systems. To find out more or to schedule an energy audit you can visit their website.

There are many other energy efficiency incentive programs, both state and federal, which help businesses reduce the costs of implementing these efficiency improvements and you can find a comprehensive list here.

 

Energy By the Numbers: $17,689,893

Dan Burgess

Clean Energy Fellow, Department of Energy Resources

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Since 2008, 86 Massachusets cities and towns have received a combined total of $17,689,893 in Green Communities grant awards for clean energy projects in their community. 

These grants have helped fund projects that are creating local Massachusetts jobs and developing cleaner, safer and more sustainable energy options for these communities.  These projects have included solar photovoltaic installations, the development of energy management plans, installation of LED streetlights, and adopting various other energy efficient measures.

The Green Communities program is a crucial component of the Commonwealth’s efforts to create a cleaner energy future and you can visit the program web page to see a map of Green Communities in Massachusetts and to learn more about the program.

ARRA 101: The Recovery Act turns three

Dan Burgess

Clean Energy Fellow, Department of Energy Resources

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Last week, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) reached it's third year anniversary. Since 2009, the Patrick-Murray Administration has prudently invested Massachusetts' federal stimulus funds with thousands of clean energy projects completed as a result. Check out some of the social media highlights of Recovery Act in Massachusetts below - you can also view these stories in a slide show. 

2012: Time for the new (and improved!)

Mark Sylvia

Commissioner, Department of Energy Resources (DOER)

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Here we are, already in the second month of the New Year. If you were impacted by the tornadoes last year in western and central Massachusetts, you know that months later, residents of Monson, Springfield and surrounding towns are still working to restore their homes and get their lives back to normal. You’re probably relieved to turn the calendar page, make a fresh start and plan for the year ahead.

The staff at the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources and Massachusetts Clean Energy Center want to help you make 2012 a better year than last, by helping you rebuild – and rebuild keeping energy efficiency and renewable energy in mind. 

The ReBuild Western Massachusetts program offers rebates, grants and 0 percent interest loans for energy efficiency improvements and solar projects as you repair or rebuild your homes.  If you plan to install windows, doors or a new heating system this year, understand that there are a number of available incentives to reduce your costs.   Home and business owners as well as municipalities in the affected areas are eligible for up to $5,000 rebates and 0 percent interest loans for up to $100,000.  The available incentives in the ReBuild program in conjunction with many incentives offered by local utilities may make your efficient home improvements cost less than a non-efficient measure. Check out the video below to learn more.

ReBuild Western Massachusetts: wwlp.com

By installing good insulation, ENERGY STAR® qualified windows and doors, or a high efficiency heating system, you’ll improve your comfort every day while saving money on your monthly electrical bills. 

If you are installing a new water heater, keep in mind that a solar water heating system can provide up to 75 percent of your annual hot water usage and can greatly reduce bills from expensive heating fuels like oil, electricity and propane. 

Installing a new roof? This could be a great time to incorporate a solar electric system to lower your monthly electric bills.  With the additional rebate available in the recovery zones, almost 75 percent of the system is covered and the system can actually pay for itself in the first 2-3 years!

Remember – energy improvements are the only household improvements that actually pay you back. And when you are ready to sell the house, a lower utility bill can help sell the house faster.  Here’s to a new and improved year!

To find out more about the ReBuild Western Mass program, call 877-524-1325 to speak to a representative, email rebuildwma@icfi.com, or visit www.mass.gov/energy/rebuildwesternma.