Press Release  Healey-Driscoll Administration Awards Nearly $8 Million in Green Communities Grants

Boston — The Healey-Driscoll Administration today awarded nearly $8 million to cities and towns across Massachusetts to fund energy efficiency and clean energy projects. The Department of Energy Resources (DOER) selected 46 municipalities to receive Green Communities competitive grants. With today’s announcement, DOER will have awarded more than $199 million to Green Communities in Designation Grants and Competitive Grants since 2010.

“This funding helps cities and towns cut their energy costs, freeing up more resources for essential local services like schools, public safety and infrastructure,” said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Rebecca Tepper. “We are proud to support these communities with local energy projects that deliver lower costs, cleaner air, and more reliable, resilient public buildings.”

The proposed projects are expected to save about $566,000 each year in energy costs. The annual energy savings of 24,516 MMBtus is enough to power 279 Massachusetts households. These projects also cut greenhouse gas emissions by 1,421 metric tons annually, which is roughly equivalent to taking more than 309 gas-powered cars off the road.

“Congratulations to these 46 communities on their local clean energy projects, which benefit the municipalities and their residents and businesses with improved public health, more comfortable buildings and of course, lower monthly energy bills,” said DOER Commissioner Elizabeth Mahony. “Half of these projects transition buildings and fleets to more efficient technology, and we’re proud to work with our municipal partners on these investments in their energy future.”

The cities and towns will use the funding for a variety of projects designed to reduce energy use and costs in their municipal operations. These projects include installing high-efficiency lighting and building weatherization, upgrading to energy management systems, facility retro-commissioning (which identifies ways to improve a building’s performance), and transitioning HVAC systems away from fossil fuels by installing air- or ground-source heat pumps.

The town of Canton is using its grant award to update the heating and cooling systems at its senior center, saving the town over $22,000 a year in electricity costs.

The projects supported in Quincy include replacing an outdated electric resistance pool heater with a heat pump water heater, which will reduce the building’s electricity use by 270,000 kWh, resulting in over $67,000 in annual savings.

And in Townsend, retro-commissioning the nineteenth century town hall and replacing older inefficient lighting with LED technology in the Hawthorne Brook Middle School will save the town $32,000 in electric and natural gas costs.

The following municipalities received grant awards:

“For budget lean communities, these grants are transformative to accelerate much needed capital improvements that will also provide savings in the future through reduced energy use which is better for our environment. Win – win,” said State Representative Kristin Kassner. “Thank you to the administration for making investments in Georgetown and Ipswich toward a clean energy future.”

Under the Green Communities Act, cities and towns must meet five criteria to be designated a Green Community and receive funding. The grants provide financial support for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects that further the designated communities’ clean energy goals and are awarded to existing Green Communities that have successfully invested their initial designation grants and previous competitive grant awards. Funding for these grants is available through proceeds from carbon allowance auctions under the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). Competitive awards are capped at $250,000 per municipality, or $500,000 if applying for comprehensive building decarbonization funding. Building decarbonization funding is for projects that are ready for immediate implementation but may extend beyond typical grant implementation times and costs.

Additional information on awarded projects and funding amounts is available online.

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