Energy Savings in Taunton Schools

The Taunton School Department energy savings have been previously addressed in this forum and I call your attention to the Taunton Gazette article below that bears watching.

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If you're in one of the few remaining communities failing to address municipal energy use, maybe you need to ask why.

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In my personal opinion, the Middleborough Gas & Electric should be leading the way instead of conducting poorly worded polls and wasting ratepayers' money doing so. Customers of the Middleborough G&E are no longer enjoying the best competitive rates, nor are they getting the best bang for the buck.

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Like other communities, the Middleborough G&E should be promoting the 'low hanging fruit' philosophy of other towns and assisting residents who want to reduce their energy consumption, as well as working with town governments of both Lakeville and Middleboro to achieve cost savings.

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Attorney General Martha Coakley reminded, at the Regional Energy Roundtable, of the Darwin quote that 'It's not the strongest who survive, but those who adapt.'

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And Mark Reed, Director of Public Affairs, NSTAR, said 'If you can't manage the cost of energy, you can manage the use.'

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The concept of PRE-PAYING for energy for 20 to 50 years through renewables was commented on and replaces the concept of 'pay back' when considering installation and investment.

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Simply put, you can begin with 1. conservation by tackling the simplest methods first, the low hanging fruit requiring little or no investment; 2. consideration of installation of appropriate renewables technology, or more appropriately for most, installation of photovoltaics and creating consortiums with other towns to construct wind turbines, tidal/wave turbines 3. investing in renewables in terms of 'pre-paying' for future energy use.

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City schools saving money on energy
Taunton —
The city’s school district has saved more than $1 million in energy costs since enrolling in an energy conservation program, according to Matthew Stellar, energy manager for Taunton schools.
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Since partnering with Energy Education Inc., a national energy conservation program, the school system has seen an 18 percent reduction in the amount of money it would have spent without the program in place, said Stellar, who is the son of superintendent Arthur W. Stellar. Without the program in place, the district would have spent an estimated $5.5 million on electricity, water, gas and other energy expenses. With the program in place, the school system spent about $4.5 million during that time frame.

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“We have been able to spend this million dollars of energy savings elsewhere in our budget to support education,” the superintendent said. “Consequently, we have been able to avoid the major staff layoffs and other significant financial problems of many other districts in Massachusetts.”

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In March 2006, the school committee approved a four-year contract with Energy Education.

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A representative of the company went to Thursday’s school committee meeting to present the district with an award recognizing the energy cost savings.

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As part of the program, the energy manager tracks energy consumption, compares it to a baseline period and calculates the amount of energy that would have been used had conservation and management practices not been implemented. By tracking consumption and analyzing energy use, he can identify areas that need attention.

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Energy programs in Taunton were also recognized this past May, when the state Department of Energy and Environmental Affairs presented “Excellence in Energy and Environmental Education Awards” to Martin and Friedman middle schools, which were among 23 in the state to receive the honor. Taunton Gazette