The end of the year is here, marking the first year anniversary of the EcoAction Initiative. Throthroughout the past year TNCC has been working with participants collecting information about their energy use, making simple suggestions on how participants can make changes to save both energy and money, and tracking the subsequent reductions in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

To date, the EcoAction Initiative has nearly 100 participants from around the region - Telluride, Mountain Village, Ophir, and Norwood. The early adopters of the program (which began in early 2011) have seen an average of 21% reduction in annual GHG emissions. The results ranged from a 5% reduction to an outstanding 48% reduction in one household's carbon footprint.  

Jeff Smith, the home owner and EcoAction Mentor who accomplished an outstanding 48% reduction in carbon foot print, is leading the pack when it comes to greenhouse gas reductions. Smith has implemented changes such as installing a 95% efficient natural gas forced air furnace to replace most of the electric baseboard heat, and the replacement of an electric hot water heater with a natural gas Rinnai tankless hot water heater. However, "the biggest reduction in carbon footprint for me has been the addition of a 5KW solar PV system.  The installation of a 5 KW PV solar system on my garage roof has produced 130% of my electric needs over the last year and saved over 5.5 Tons of carbon dioxide while generating 8498 KW Hrs of power to date." says Smith. Smith's initiative to reduce his carbon footprint is truly admirable and the results are impressive. For this, Jeff truly deserves the title of sustainability star!