Westfield farm wins grant for green practices
Date: 11/9/2010
Nov. 10, 2010By Katelyn Gendron
Assistant Editor
WESTFIELD -- Kosinski Farms has received a sizeable boost in its efforts to achieve sustainability.
The farm was the only in Hampden County last month to receive one of the Department of Agricultural Resources' 42 Agricultural Energy Grants to improve energy efficiency and green practices. The $10,963 grant will cover approximately one-third of the cost of a 4.4kW photovoltaic system, used to provide heat and energy to the farm stand, according to Kosinski Farms co-owner Gene Kosinski.
"This is a really nice subsistence grant ... we couldn't do it alone. It's a huge investment," he said, noting this is the second grant the farm has received to expand its sustainable energy practices.
Kosinski explained of the photovoltaic system, "We're planning to capture the sun's energy and heat our hot water with it and [provide] energy to the farm stand. I don't know if it will be totally self-sufficient [during spring, summer and fall] but during the winter it will be 100 percent self-sufficient because we're shut down and there's just minimal needs."
Forty-two grants totaling $450,000 were awarded to farmers in Barnstable, Berkshire, Essex, Franklin, Hampshire, Middlesex, Norfolk, Plymouth and Worcester counties. The grants will be used to fund osmosis and heat recovery systems for maple syrup operations; thermal blankets for greenhouses; variable speed vacuum pumps for dairies; and higher efficiency boilers and furnaces.
"Energy efficiency and renewable energy projects create jobs, lower operating costs for businesses and increase our energy independence," Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Ian Bowles, said. "These grants help the Massachusetts agricultural industry embrace new techniques for saving energy and protecting the environment."
