Wellfleet one of thirteen newest Green Communities

Wellfleet joins three other Cape towns for state designation

Article | News | December 7, 2014 - 7:15am | By CapeCodToday Staff

 

 

Wellfleet is the Cape's newest Green Community. Photo of the Bound Brook area by Jane Booth.

The state last week announced the latest batch of towns in the commonwealth to be designated Green Communities and Wellfleet was one of them. This year's group of thirteen towns contained only one from Cape Cod. Wellfleet is now the fourth town on the Cape to become a Green Community joining its Outer Cape neighbors Provincetown and Truro and Mashpee on the Upper Cape.

To be designated a Green Community, a municipality must meet five clean energy benchmarks:

1. Adopt a local zoning law or ordinance that allows "as-of-right siting"
2. Adopt expedited permitting for the as-of right facilities
3. Establish a program to reduce municipal energy use by 20% in 5 years
4. Buy only fuel efficient vehicles for the municipality if available and practical
5. Adopt energy-saving building for new residential construction over 3,000 square feet such as "stretch code"

One a city or town has met the criteria and been designated a green community, that municipality becomes eligible for state funding for renewable energy or energy efficiency projects, according to the state's Office of Environmental Affairs (EEA). Base grants are $125,000 and increased according to the project's criteria with a cap of $1 million.

The Town of Wellfleet was awarded a grant of $140,000. The town is currently developing a photovoltaic array on the capped landfill adjacent to the Wellfleet Transfer Station.

Read more about the town's energy efforts on their Wellfleet Energy Committee website here.




http://www.capecodtoday.com/article/2014/12/07/28132-wellfleet-one-thirteen-newest-green-communities



There is a great deal of information offered on the state's web site:

Energy and Environmental Affairs