HAMMONTON BLOG

New law helps public buildings go green

Public buildings that can't go green because they lack the funds to pay for the work have a new way to finance these projects through a law enacted Wednesday.

Hailed as a way to get more New Jerseyans back to work, the program was designed to help public entities make their buildings more energy efficient while saving taxpayers the expense of the work and the energy inefficiencies.

"Towns, schools, counties and public colleges can now become more energy efficient and save money when they retrofit their buildings and enter into long-term energy contracts with no additional costs," Gov. Jon Corzine said.

Some 15 years in the making, the Energy Savings Improvement Program allows public entities to contract with energy savings companies in lease-purchases.

Under the arrangement, the energy companies would front the money for the work and the public entity would pay the debt over time through the savings. A third-party contractor would conduct an audit of the building to identify and recommend potential energy savings projects. The work could range from installing motion-detector sensors for lights to installing more efficient boilers for heaters.

Corzine said that in some cases, public entities would be able to build their own cogeneration plants and sell the unused electricity back to the electric companies.

The program would apply to public buildings such as hospitals, police stations, public colleges, schools and municipal buildings.

Jeff Tittel, director of the New Jersey chapter of the Sierra Club, said the law doesn't go far enough. The state would have to extend a similar program to private citizens to get a shot at an estimated $150 billion in federal funds earmarked for the creation of green-collar jobs, he said.
"It's a nice small step, but they're missing the bigger picture," Tittel said.

Energy funding allocated for project

By ADAM SMELTZ
Courier-Post Staff

A tentative plan to install electricity-producing solar panels at the municipal building appears ready to become reality, a spokesman said Tuesday.

The township has received confirmation that the New Jersey Clean Energy Program will grant $285,000 to help finance the $800,000 project, mayoral aide Dan Keashen said.

He said the township is expecting to receive an additional $300,000 in federal funding to support the effort.

Confirmation on that prospect should arrive later in the month, when federal lawmakers finalize an omnibus spending bill, Keashen said.

The remaining funds for the project probably will be provided through a bond of more than $200,000. Utility savings generated by the solar panels -- not tax dollars -- are expected to cover the debt payments over 10 years.

"First and foremost, the biggest benefit would be the fiscal savings, the conservation," Keashen said. "It really just is common sense."

The township is planning to solicit contractors' bids in the spring for the solar-panel project, with work to begin in the summer.

Solar energy captured by the panels, spread across the 19,400-square-foot roof, could trim about 30 percent from the $153,000-a-year power bill at the Chapel Avenue building, Operations Manager Ari Messinger has said.

Further, the township expects to see an additional savings of $20,000 a month by funneling extra electricity back to Public Service Electric and Gas. Messinger said the effort, including those "solar credits," should save taxpayers' money.

The project is part of a 10-point Green Action Plan that the township council adopted in March 2008.

Reach Adam Smeltz at (856) 486-2919 or asmeltz@gannett.com