BOSTON – More than 75 cities and towns, representing 20 percent of the region’s total population, have signed on with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s New England Community Energy Challenge.
“We’re excited to work with each of these pioneering communities,” Robert W. Varney, the EPA’s regional administrator for New England, said in a statement this afternoon.
When Warwick signed on last July, it was the only Energy Challenge participant in Rhode Island and one of only 30 in all of New England. (READ MORE)
Now, the city is one of six local participants – along with North Providence and the Bristol County communities of Dartmouth, Easton, Mansfield and New Bedford – and there are more than 30 participating communities in Massachusetts alone.
The New England Community Energy Challenge is part of the Energy Star Challenge, a nationwide campaign to improve energy efficiency in commercial and industrial buildings nationwide by 10 percent or more.
Participating cities and towns pledge to assess their energy use, improve municipal energy efficiency and expand renewable energy choices – actions that Varney noted will benefit their budgets as well as their environment.
“Energy use is the single largest source of air pollution in New England, contributing to seasonal air pollution as well as climate change,” he said.
The Energy Challenge participants will be using the Energy Star “Portfolio Manager” tool to measure energy use in schools, wastewater facilities and other municipal buildings. They also will have access to a network of resources – thanks to a collaboration between EPA New England and regional utility companies, businesses and nonprofits – to help them improve energy efficiency and take advantage of local renewable energy resources.
With oil hovering at $100 per barrel, and energy prices still rising, reducing unnecessary consumption is more important than ever, the EPA noted. “The time is right for all our New England leaders to step up to the plate to improve our environment and save money,” Varney said. “This is a win-win program.”
Additional information about the New England Community Energy Challenge and other regional energy-efficiency programs is available from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s New England office at epa.gov/region1/eco/energy.
