The City's Clean Energy Commission is working to fulfill Mayor Carolyn Kirk's charge of having Gloucester become a Department of Energy Resources-certified "Green Community."
To that end, the commission is hosting a free public event to discuss and hear input regarding the challenges and opportunities involved in meeting that goal through a "stretch" of the state building code tomorrow from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the Sawyer Free Library.
There are five criteria to becoming a certified "green community," Clean Energy Commission member Jill Buchanan said in a prepared statement. And the most challenging is the adoption of a more energy efficient version of the state building code, hence the "stretch" label, Buchanan said.
If the city is able to meet all the criteria by the end of 2010 or sooner, which includes City Council adoption of the stretch code, it will be eligible to apply to a $10 million annual grant pool for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects for Gloucester along with other certified green communities.
Communities that certify early will be eligible, currently, for grant awards up to $1 million. The group envisions doing a lot more energy infrastructure repair and upgrades to city buildings and adding renewable energy sources that could further save more money for Gloucester if it is able to successfully apply for this type of grant.
"Our first step toward becoming certified is to host a series of workshops on the 'stretch code' for decision-makers, builders/contractors and the real estate community, as we try to address questions and generate support for its passage by the City Council later this year," the commission statement indicated.
"We think there are a lot of positives, and some challenges, for Gloucester to become a leader in green energy on the North Shore as we all become increasingly aware of energy costs, and also the need to do the right thing on climate change."
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