Saving Energy - Saving $: 12 Businesses and Non-Profits in TNCC's 2011 MSEI program. Celebrate Success and Join the Action!
In February of 2011 TNCC was awarded a Main Street Efficiency Initiative (MSEI) grant from the Governor's Energy Office (GEO). Twelve businesses & non-profits in Ouray and San Miguel Counties applied to become more energy efficient with the assistance of TNCC, local energy auditors, and energy efficiency rebates. Improvements made during 2011 are estimated to have an annual impact of reducing electricity use by 47,000 kWh and natural gas consumption by 1120 therms, saving at least $27,000 in utility bills! The resulting carbon footprint reduction from these improvements is about 65 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually. This is equivalent to driving a Subaru from Telluride to Denver every day of the year!
On Friday March 2, from 8:30 to 10:00 AM at Telluride's Wilkinson Public Library, TNCC's Green Business Roundtable (GBR) & EcoAction Workshop will highlight the success stories from the MSEI grant program. Our guests will include:
Attendees will learn:
We will also show the "just-completed" video that will soon be airing on Telluride TV!
Participants in the 2011 EcoAction/MSEI program were:
The MSEI business efficiency grant would not have been possible without the Western San Juan Community Energy Board (WSJCEB), which is a collaborative partnership of Ouray and San Miguel County formed to support TNCC's Energy Efficiency Community Block Grant from the GEO. This group of elected officials, government staff, utility staff, and community members has been meeting monthly over the past two years to develop and implement a regional Sustainability Action. The MSEI grant participant successes are steps toward helping us meet our regional energy use reduction goals. The program is just one of several examples in which the regional partnership of the WSJCEB enabled TNCC to apply for and administer a grant that would otherwise not have been feasible in a smaller community. Overall, this grant brought $12,700 of rebates to the community ($1136 possible to each participant) and $7500 to TNCC for program management, a total of $20,200 grant funding to the community!
Energy auditing businesses involved in the program were enLIGHTen, Senter Lane Inspections, and Lotus Energy Solutions. Energy and audit rebates were available through the Governor's Energy Office (GEO) and San Miguel Power Association (SMPA). Energy Efficiency Rebates are still available through SMPA and SourceGas, while funding assistance for energy efficiency improvements is available to businesses through Region 10 Business Loans. The San Miguel Power Association's Partners Program (SMPP) is also available to regional businesses (www.smpa.com). More information on all of these opportunities will be available at the GBR and on TNCC's website.
Projects completed as part of this successful MSEI grant are great examples of how businesses and non-profits can invest in energy efficiency and quickly see a payback of that investment through utility bill savings. Some of the businesses also implemented other sustainability actions, such as recycling and composting. TNCC's EcoAction Initiative is a comprehensive program designed to engage the community in taking steps toward reducing our carbon footprint, through energy efficiency, waste reduction, transportation and behavioral changes. Participants work with a mentor to decide what carbon footprint reduction actions would be most beneficial and then TNCC uses software to track carbon savings after implementation of the recommendations. TNCC invites YOU to learn from the example set by these 12 businesses & non-profits and join the EcoAction Initiative.
The GBRs are hosted by: The New Community Coalition and Wilkinson Public Library with assistance from Telluride Inside and Out. Please RSVP By 3:00 pm March 1, 2011 so we have enough food! For more information or to RSVP call TNCC at 728-5208 or e-mail events.tncc@gmail.com or visit: www.newcommunitycoalition.org
TNCC is this region's sustainability organization with programs focusing on energy efficiency and renewable energy projects, local economy and local food, green building, festival/event recycling and composting and educational events including Green Business Roundtables and Green Home and Business tours. If you haven't signed up for the EcoAction Initiative, a carbon footprint saving community program - you should do so now! Learn the tools to save energy and monitor the results of changes! EcoAction will help you save energy, and money and be more comfortable in your own home or business. Contact TNCC at 728-5208 or events.tncc@gmail.com or visit: www.newcommunitycoalition.org