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Date: 2/4/2020
BLANDFORD – The Town of Blandford is projecting an annual savings of almost $17,000 on its municipal utility bills thanks to recent engagement with the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission (PVPC) and the Commonwealth’s Green Communities Grant Program - administered by the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources.
The majority of the savings will be achieved by the conversion
of town buildings to LED lighting, including Town Hall, Water Treatment, Highway Garage, (completed); Porter Memorial Library, Post Office, and the Historical Building.
Altogether, the conversion to LED is projected to reduce the town’s usage by almost 70,000 kilowatts hours annually.
Other energy improvements include a new heating pump for the Historical Building, which is expected to save 1,250 gallons of oil per year; and a Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) system installed this month in Town Hall that will provide greater control over the building’s hot water circulation system, lowering the building’s energy use by another 10,000 kwh.
Blandford Town Administrator Joshua Garcia said they worked with PVPC to identify projects that would make improvements to municipal buildings aimed at reducing energy consumption and lowering the cost of monthly electric bills.
In total, $138,425 has been awarded to the town in Green Community grants.
“The Green Communities Program is another great example of the Commonwealth incentivizing communities large and small to make the upfront systematic improvements necessary to realize savings to the local taxpayer like the work we are now completing in Blandford,” said Blandford Selectboard Chair Cara Letendre in a recent announcement.
“Moving forward we will continue to work with PVPC and the state to make improvements that are good for the environment
as well as the town budget,” Letendre added.
Blandford is one of 271 communities in the Commonwealth with Green Communities designations, making them eligible for grant funding that allows municipal governments to improve energy consumption and air quality.
Thirty-one new Green Community designations were announced in January 2020 on the DOER website at www.mass.gov/green-communities-division, including Tolland, with a January 2020 award announcement of $126,800.
Former Westfield Mayor Brian P. Sullivan joined the Green Communities Division of the DOER as director in November, 2019.