The Cornwall Economic Development Advisory Committee recently issued six recommendations to the Town Board. One of them was to support the Conservation Advisory Council’s (CCAC) quest to create a clean energy community, as well as erect car chargers for electronic vehicles.
Carla Castillo, chair of the CCAC, said the committee is looking at improvements in the downtown area and one of the items is installing car chargers.
“There are many people in the community who have hybrids and a smaller number who have plug-in hybrids or fully electric vehicles,” said Castillo.
She noted Ulster County conducted a comprehensive analysis to determine whether it made sense to bring eco-friendly vehicles to different county owned properties.
“If properly placed in locations where there are some features which are attractive to tourists, then charging stations can be a big benefit/boost to tourism,” said Castillo.
The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s (NYSERDA) clean energy program has identified 10 impact actions designed to reduce greenhouse gasses and help municipalities save money.
One of the items is installing charging stations. Another is benchmarking. Castillo, as an employee with the Hudson Valley Regional Council, has spoken with the Town Board about adopting a policy to report the energy use of buildings.
“Once you know the usage of those buildings, you can compare it to the regional average,” she said. “Then you see whether your buildings are energy hogs and which buildings may need clean energy/emergency efficiency improvements.”
Another action item is converting street lights to energy efficient LED technology. During the next CCAC meeting, at 7 p.m. on Oct 3 at Munger Cottage, Castillo will be speaking professionally about the benefits of LED lighting.
By completing four of the ten action items, the town would receive designation as a clean energy community, as well as a $5,000 grant to support additional eco-friendly programs.
NYSERDA’s clean energy program has identified the following high impact action items:
Benchmarking – Adopt a policy to report the energy use of buildings
Clean Energy Upgrades – Achieve 10 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from buildings
LED street lights – Convert street lights to energy efficient LED technology
Clean fleets – Install electric vehicle charging stations or deploy alternative fuel vehicles
Solarize – Undertake a local solarize campaign to increase the number of solar rooftops
Unified solar permit – Streamline the approvals process for solar
Energy code enforcement training – Train compliance officers in energy code best practices
Climate smart communities certification – Get certified by the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation
Community choice aggregation – Put energy supply choices in your community’s hands
Energize New York finance – Offer energy upgrade financing to businesses and non-profits
