MAPC’s Clean Energy Division has just unveiled a video about our Local Energy Action Program in Medford.
The City had already done a lot of clean energy work before reaching out to us. A Green Community, Medford had set the goal of reducing its municipal energy use by 20% by 2014. By 2013, it had already reduced energy use by 30%, but Medford wanted to do even more. The City engaged MAPC to create a local energy action plan that delved into less obvious ways to reduce energy consumption.
We suggested Medford adjust its sights beyond its own governmental use. Municipal use, after all, represented only a small fraction—just 3%—of the total energy consumed in Medford. Residents accounted for 62% and businesses 30%. To address the largest portion of community energy use, we helped Medford launch its Go Green Medford campaign. We identified programs well suited to Medford, helped the city apply for funding, and supported the programs’ implementation. The two residential outreach programs, the National Grid Community Efficiency Initiative and Solarize Medford, have met with great success. More than 550 Medford residents completed home energy audits and 48 residents and businesses installed solar panels in 2013 as a result of these programs.
Find out more about MAPC’s Clean Energy services.
—Brenda Pike, MAPC Energy Intern