MISSION STATEMENT: To identify energy savings for the Town and energy savings opportunities for the community.

 

CURRENT GOAL: Our current goal is a 10% reduction in total energy consumption by the Town by the end of 2009, with incremental decreases thereafter, toward a three year goal of 25% reduction in total energy consumption by the Town (relative to the 2007 baseline data) by the end of the 2011 fiscal year.

 
At the 2007 Enfield Town Meeting, Article 25 was passed: "The Town of Enfield encourages New Hampshire citizens to work for emission reductions within their communities, and we ask our Selectmen to consider the appointment of a voluntary energy committee to recommend local steps to save energy and reduce emissions ". This created the framework for the Enfield Energy Committee to come into existence.  In the summer of 2008 all of the positions on the committee were filled, and we started meeting.   Since then, the Enfield Energy Committee has met nine times.  The committee usually meets on the fourth Tuesday of the month at 5 PM in the Whitney Hall Conference Room and we welcome members of the community to join us.

We have spent considerable time this year assessing the Towns overall energy consumption, as well as the Co2 which we emit as result of our energy use.  Audits have been performed on all of our electric, heating oil and propane usage and a building by building energy analysis has been performed.  A complete analysis of 2007's energy usage is available on our website at http://energy.enfield.nh.us, as well as on the Town website at http://www.enfield.nh.us.  Assessment of energy usage was carried out using the Energy Star Portfolio Manager in accord with the EPA’s Community Energy Challenge of 10% energy reduction.  Data was collected on fuel and power usage at town owned facilities.  With the use of a Kill-a-watt meter to identify how much energy various office devices actually consume, even when they are turned off, and starting to use smart energy outlet strips, we have been able to identify many opportunities to conserve energy, and have started taking steps to reduce our overall energy consumption.
 

An energy audit was performed by National Grid on the public works building, and the results indicated a potential cost savings of $692.38, and 7,094 Kilowatt hours annually by changing out light fixtures in the work bays. The costs of this project are being split 70/30 between National Grid and the Town, with the Towns portion being financed interest free.  With a 36 month payback, and a savings of 7.7% on electric consumption at the public works building, this is one of several cost and energy savings projects which we hope to peruse. Recently, a programmable thermostat has been installed in the Community Building to save energy and money on heating the building.

 
One of the single largest components of our Towns total electric usage is our outdoor lighting, which presently accounts for more then one third of our total electric usage.  The financial cost, which is in excess of $25,000 a year, as well as the environmental impact of powering our town's 227street lights has been a major topic of discussion.  We've had discussions with other towns in the region about their street lighting policies, and have done considerable research on street lighting standards and best practices.    In a pilot study conducted by committee members over the past few months, more that half of the streetlights assessed were determined to be potentially removable as they don't meet current best practices for outdoor lighting, and in many cases, don't seem to actually illuminate anything.  Resources from two area towns were used to help determine how we might progress with any possible street light reduction.  Considerable amounts of additional work and discussion with the community is needed on this project before any changes would be made, and we welcome your thoughts and ideas on this, and on any energy related issue.  The current economic climate places additional emphasis on meeting the reduction goals set by the committee, and street lighting is a major opportunity for financial savings, as well as for reduction in our overall environmental impact.

 

We have also recently embarked on an "Idling Awareness" program.   Leaving your car running when you are not driving it has a huge impact on fuel consumption, and emissions of Co2 as well as other pollutants. Idling gets you nowhere, and the exhaust from vehicle engines contributes to human health problems, including lung damage and asthma.   Ten seconds of idling your car uses more gas then restarting your engine.   We hope to utilize signage and educational materials available through the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services to help make people aware of the negative impacts of unnecessary vehicle idling. 

 

Much attention has been given to the possibility of utilizing alternative energy use by the Town.  Hydro, wind, solar, and geothermal considerations have been discussed, and a study is under way to determine the feasibility of using hydro power at the Shaker Museum and in downtown to power street lighting.   The Enfield Energy Committee and the Shaker Museum Board and its Sustainability Committee have shared common concerns and ideas for energy efficiency, conservation and use of alternative energy.   Members of the Energy Committee are working with the Library Committee on their construction project,  which currently has a very efficient geothermal heating component.  Energy conservation by increased community recycling and energy expenditure of solid waste removal were topics discussed by the committee.  Public awareness for energy savings has been fostered with provision of a Kill-a-Watt meter which is available for community members to check out from the Library so you can identify which devices are using the most energy at your house, and you can identify opportunities for savings.  We will have a display board which will demonstrate the different types of light bulbs and the energy savings of using Compact Fluorescent and LED lighting compared to traditional incandescent lights available soon.

Many members of the Energy Committee have been involved with other regional energy groups, attending meetings and conferences such as Solarfest, have been working with the State of New Hampshire Office of Energy and Planning's Renewable Energy group, the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services and are involved in groups such as the New Hampshire Sustainable Energy Association and the regional Sustainable Energy Resource Group (SERG).

We have started to put together an information website at http://energy.enfield.nh.us, which has our meeting minutes, updates on various project we are working on, as well as information about what other communities are working on, and resources on how you can save energy at your house or office. There has been a wealth of sharing of information by several guests and members of the community who have willingly offered their time and valuable insights into energy conservation initiatives, for which we are very appreciative.

 



Respectfully submitted,


Steve Goldsmith, Chair