Link back to Energy Committee Meeting Minutes page
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Hingham Green Energy Action Committee meeting minutes.
Present: David Killory (briefly), John Tzimorangas, Russ Heissner, Brian Phillips, Pam Harty, Rob Baynes.
Absent: Ted Alexiades.
Minutes of 11/29 (last meeting) accepted unanimously.
Russ: we have a broad scope, we need to narrow it. Let’s discuss it now. This is a policy making committee. What should we focus on ?
John: good points about open meeting law. Emails to group may be accepted into the minutes. Move to elect Rob as secretary, unanimous.
Brian: still trying to figure out our mission. I have past experience with energy management. We need to attack the tangible items. costs/consumption. Not as green as others, but we need to look at it practically. e.g. a windmill might take 4-5 years to approve. See the committee as 3 areas: demand, supply, alternative energy sources. Reduce consumption, pay as little as possible for energy, set policy for usage of alternative energy sources.
Pam: likes the practical approach to specific energy use. Likes Newton's green energy plan: total carbon reduction. What can we reasonably do? Municipal buildings and vehicles, reduce carbon output.
Rob: address usage through stricter building codes. Boston building codes, green standard.
Pam: Use the town of Newton as an example.
Russ: (taking notes on big post it):
Demand
Supply
Carbon footprint - captures renewable energy too
How do we view energy in Hingham?
Demand : building codes, energy audits, volatile market, save $
Supply : use bio diesel for home heating ? Supply recommendations go to
light board. We are 10% green, where do we want to go with it?
John: we can set policy, e.g. recommend to light board more green energy
Russ: we could set policy around renewable and carbon footprint
Brian: we need to set benchmarks for all 3 areas so we know where we are now.
Russ: what is our policy, how do we achieve it?
John: what is our mission statement? Goals, objectives, what it takes to get there.
Russ: it takes a while to form a mission statement, we can do that tonight.
John: we have done complete detailed energy audits already. We have the data electronically, to use to set benchmarks.
Russ: what are the state, fed. or local building codes for energy usage? We need to meet or exceed that. Process of new state level codes for better energy usage. We can start with the mission statement now, and come out with a working plan to forward to Phil Edmunson.
Pam: ICLEI intl. council for local env. initiatives (and audience member).
Mass climate action network - they will help us.
Russ: let’s show some internet info on related topics before we do mission statment. Mass already has a renewable energy standard - shown online. Mass technology collaborative (www.mtc.org), what funding and grants at fed. or state level, rebates for small renewable energy projs. wind... building code.
www.carbonfootprint.com (Carbon footprint: impact of human activities on the environment in terms of the amount of greenhouse gasses produced.)
NREL national renewable energy lab. www.nrel.gov
Solar energy websites: American Solar Energy Society
John: solar panels on the HS for school curriculum, no storage batteries.
Brian: doing a small installation like this is good for our education.
John: we have to start somewhere; this is the first solar proj. in town.
Russ: energy star website, HMLP already has rebate program. Renewable energy access, news clearing house.
John: will ask Mat Patrick - State Democratic Rep. from Falmouth. Energy intrest, on committee. Sponsoring a bill. He could come and talk to us. We could find out the green building code changes in Boston, and use that for our plan.
Pam: building energy 07 conference. Ai3 (new east school architect) exhibitor or booth possibly.
Russ: do we want to be a clearing house of info for other town members, projects? Recommend we set up energy planning office (permanent)? Visit office as part of building permit process. Makes sure building projects conform.
John: this 'energy planning office' would be part of the building dept, planning, zoning, environmental, etc. process.
Russ: do we want to make a statement on how energy use affects national security?
Pam: resource conservation issue, national security, environmental issue.
Brian: we need to be careful on how we word the mission statement, it's for the the public.
John: this committee came out of a Hingham long range planning meeting.
Russ: shows PPT from earlier Hingham energy committee that formed this one.
Brian: a mission statement should be short, no more than two sentences. What is the actual name of this committee?
Russ: State of town meeting, we were introduced as "Hingham Green Energy
Action Committee". It's our official name. Mission statement time:
Brian: purpose is to serve the residents of the town of Hingham by providing a sustainable energy policy....
Group discussion on mission statement ensues...
John: HMLP will do free energy audit for any home, just starting for business.
Mission Statement:
To serve the residents of the town of Hingham by establishing energy policies that will promote the efficient use of energy, increase awareness and will reduce environmental impact.
Goals:
1. The establishment of town-wide Renewable Energy Standards for (1) electric power generation and use, and (2) renewable fuels for fleet vehicles, heating, and stand-by power generation.
2. The establishment of “green” building codes that enhance energy efficiency
3. The establishment of zoning by-laws for land-use that promotes energy efficiency, conservation, or alternative power generation.
4. The establishment of Energy Performance Contracting Programs for residential, commercial, and municipal purposes.
5. Identification of Capital Project Incentives Programs from Private Equity, State, Federal programs
6. Identification of Operating Incentives from Private, State, & Federal programs
7. The establishment of Community Outreach programs that communicate that benefits of energy conservation and renewable energy
8. The establishment of benchmarking standards that compare similar programs established in other towns and municipalities throughout the US with Hingham’s own standards.
Pam: moves to vote this as our mission statement.
Brian: second, unanimous vote.
Russ: next meeting - workplan, timetable for bullet points. We will be trying to get some air time at the next town meeting. Meeting is last Monday in April. Deadline is usually Jan. 23 to put in a warrant. Perhaps we put a placeholder in for town meeting for a warrant to change building codes.
Rob: Next meeting?
Russ: Agenda: to establish our work plan. Warrant proposal to advisory committee, plus speaking slot from Tom Odonell (town moderator).
Russ: I move we adjourn, seconded, voted unanimous.
Date of next meeting, Thurs. Feb. 8 at 7:30pm
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Rob (post meeting secretary notes): email John and get whom I email minutes to. Also ask who I notify of next meeting. Ask who I get to make link to our minutes page to town and HMLP web site: http://www.hingham-ma.gov/towngov_minutes.html
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Email and documents shown in the meeting from Russ’s computer and later emailed to Rob, the secretary:
Rob:
Here is the presentation that lists the bullet points that we agreed to attach to the end of our mission statement. Can you please incorporate them and then publish to the team as part of the meeting minutes?
I also said that I would send out an e-mail with the web links that we reviewed at the meeting. I will send that out with another e-mail to the group. We will need to make sure that the e-mail becomes part of the meeting minutes.
Finally, David Killory passed out a document at the beginning of the meeting that I gave to Brian Phillips for his review. We can discuss the document at the next meeting, but I wanted to make sure that the fact that we recieved it was captured in the meeting minutes, but that we will table discussion of it until the next meeting.
Thanks!
Go Pats!
Best Regards,
Russ Heissner
Bullets from Russ’s presentation (also added to mission statement as ‘Goals’ in the minutes above):
The establishment of town-wide Renewable Energy Standards for (1) electric power generation and use, and (2) renewable fuels for fleet vehicles, heating, and stand-by power generation.
The establishment of “green” building codes that enhance energy efficiency
The establishment of zoning by-laws for land-use that promotes energy efficiency, conservation, or alternative power generation.
The establishment of Energy Performance Contracting Programs for residential, commercial, and municipal purposes.
Identification of Capital Project Incentives Programs from Private Equity, State, Federal programs
Identification of Operating Incentives from Private, State, & Federal programs
The establishment of Community Outreach programs that communicate that benefits of energy conservation and renewable energy
The establishment of benchmarking standards that compare similar programs established in other towns and municipalities throughout the US with Hingham’s own standards.
Web site links from Russ:
Date: Sun, 14 Jan 2007 10:57:21 -0500
From: Russell Heissner
To: ...
Subject: Links to web resources discussed at the 11-Jan-07 Meeting
All:
Here are the web links to the resources that we discussed at the meeting:
See you all on Feb 8th!
http://www.carbonfootprint.com/
http://www.conservation.org/xp/CIWEB/programs/climatechange/carboncalculator.xml?CMP=KNC-calc0706&gclid=CK3E44HKv4kCFQx1VAodRljvPQ
http://www.mtpc.org/
http://www.nrel.gov/
http://www.eere.energy.gov/
http://www.ases.org/
http://www.awea.org/
http://buildingenergy.nesea.org/
http://www.mass.gov/doer/programs/renew/renew.htm
http://www.dsireusa.org/
http://www.eia.doe.gov/
http://www.energystar.gov/
http://www.irecusa.org/
http://www.metrofuture.org/
http://www.pathnet.org/index.asp
http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/home
http://www.solarenergy.org/
Best Regards,
Russ Heissner