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Clean Energy Toolkit Topic: Review Energy Plan Annually

An energy plan should be treated as a living document that can be continually supplemented and passed down to new community stakeholders on an ongoing basis. To that end, a […]

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Clean Energy Toolkit Topic: Receive Green Communities Designation

The Green Communities Designation and Grant Program, is an initiative of the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER) that supports and rewards communities that meet certain clean energy goals established by […]

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Report Monthly Energy Use

As part of a long-term energy plan, after baselining energy use across their portfolio of accounts and facilities, municipalities should track the changes in their energy use over time. This […]

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Procure Energy Services with Chapter 25A

The Green Communities Act (MGL Chapter 25A) put in place several mechanisms to encourage the implementation of energy efficiency and renewable energy projects, including streamlined procurement pathways for energy conservation […]

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Plan for Municipal Retrofit Projects

Energy retrofit projects can have multiple benefits for municipalities in addition to resiliency preparation and climate change mitigation, including operational cost savings, reduced maintenance, and greater comfort. However, large retrofits […]

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Massachusetts Renewable Portfolio Standard

Electricity suppliers in the New England grid generate primarily from fossil fuel and nuclear power resources. However, electricity produced from renewable sources is beginning to gain clout in the market. […]

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Clean Energy Toolkit Topic: Net Metering

In addition to energy generated by large facilities, Massachusetts also allows excess energy generated by small-scale, distributed systems to be purchased by utilities (for up to 3% of their peak […]

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Launch Community-wide Solar & Efficiency Campaign

For municipalities that want to encourage residents to think comprehensively about their energy use, it makes sense to bundle both efficiency and solar outreach into one program in which residents […]

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Clean Energy Toolkit Topic: Local Green Business Program

The purpose of a Green Business Program is twofold: to acknowledge the clean energy efforts and energy savings of the business community; and, to encourage local businesses to take advantage […]

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Clean Energy Toolkit Topic: Landfill Gas Energy

When the biological waste inside landfills becomes trapped without exposure to air, it undergoes anaerobic decomposition and produces organic compounds, such as methane (CH4). Landfills are the largest source of […]

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