Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Energy Committee - 11/03/2016 South Burlington Energy Commiee 575 Dorset Street South Burlington, VT 05403 (802) 846-4106 www.sburl.com facebook.com/SouthBurlington Approved Meeng Minutes November 3, 2016 Committee members present: Don Cummings, James Mount, Keith Epstein (Chair), Linda McGinnis, Marcy Murray, Patty Tashiro Committee members absent: Fred Kosnitsky, Jeremy King, Karen Mckenny, Sam Swanson Community members present: Saint Michael’s College students Matt Fournairs and Tom Crudele City staff present: None Initial business Members agreed on agenda items to be discussed, asked Marcy to scribe, and reviewed October minutes. MOTION: Don moved and James seconded a motion to approve the October 6th minutes. Approved unanimously with revisions. Election Day event planning & Button-up Day of Action Keith shared the form that community members can fill out and take to the polls in exchange for a free energy- saver kit with a retail value of at least $40 (while supplies last). Vermont Gas Systems and an Efficiency Vermont (EVT) grant will pay for the kits. Committee members expressed support for honoring FHTMS science teacher Amelia Lutz’s request to include Button-up Bingo as part of the Day of Action. MOTION: Don moved and Linda seconded a motion to authorize spending of up to $300 for LEDs and up to $30 for clipboards for Button-Up Day (to be reimbursed from the EVT Button-Up Day grant). Because we did not have a quorum at the time of the motion, we will need to revisit this at our next meeting. South Burlington Energy Prize Updates Members shared key accomplishments, next steps, and requests for assistance as Keith scrolled through the pre- meeting written project update summary. Marcy shared the Treasurer’s report. Members enthusiastically supported the idea of sharing all Energy-Prize-related digital sources of materials and advertisements with any group outside the committee who would like to revise and use them. Applause greeted the update by Linda regarding the recently awarded Certificate of Public Good for the landfill solar project—excellent work by Linda, Don, Keith & Fred! Going forward, legislators will need to make key changes to allow other towns to put large arrays on landfills. Don mentioned that the second phase of replacing city streetlights should, if implemented, save the city well over $13,000 per year (in electricity and maintenance costs) with a 5-year payback. Planning for work after the South Burlington Energy Prize contest period ends In his end-of-year report to donors, Don will mention our intention to use remaining funds for work consistent with Energy Prize goals. There was agreement in the need to redefine the “prize” at which our future work will be aiming to win, e.g., a livable earth for human beings. After acknowledging that the two-year Energy Prize period resulted in our focusing an inordinate amount of work on residential and municipal natural gas and electric usage, Don led a brainstorming session for our post- Prize work. Members shared ideas related to the following areas: Transportation, Commercial, Transportation/Commercial, Net Zero (pertaining to transportation, heat & electricity), and Residential. As usual, a project will be chosen only if a member is keenly interested in it and is willing to lead the effort. Linda found committee support for a potential pollinator-friendly solar demonstration on the landfill and for a potential energy-saving transportation-related demonstration project that a group with whom she’s working may pursue. Linda noted that pollinator-friendly solar exists on a capped landfill in Minnesota. Discussion about the Citizens’ Climate Lobby Members agreed to hear a presentation by a representative of the Citizens’ Climate Lobby at one of our 2017 meetings. Upcoming Election of new Chair and Co-Chair Keith has served as Chair during much of our Energy Prize involvement. As originally agreed, his term will conclude at the end of next month when the two-year Georgetown University Energy Prize contest ends. At that time, we will return to a rotating 4-month term for future Chairs and Co-Chairs. Consequently, we will elect a new Chair and Co-Chair at our December meeting. Members expressed great appreciation for Keith’s extended work as Chair. His insight, knowledge, sound judgment, responsiveness, collaborative efforts, kind treatment of others, project-update-process improvement, sense of humor, dedication, and commitment to quality work and meaningful outcomes have been invaluable. Adjournment The meeting adjourned before 9 p.m. Next Scheduled Meeting: Thursday, December 1st, at 6:30 p.m. in the upstairs meeting room at the South Burlington Police Station (19 Gregory Drive • middle entrance)