March 18, 2010 - The village of Pinckney has approved a $50,000 energy contract with a Michigan nonprofit organization that will provide 475 residents with energy kits to both improve their energy efficiencies and track their energy savings.
The contract with the Michigan Group for a Renewable Energy Efficient Nation will be reimbursed through a block grant issued by a state agency, meaning the actual cost to the village of Pinckney is zero.
Village President Rebecca Foster said energy kits will likely be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis, with the likely target date being Earth Day, which is April 22.
"We're so 'green' here, we can't stand it," Foster joked, noting that Pinckney has taken advantage of "green" power initiatives in the past and will continue to do so. This is the second time the village has utilized funds through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
"There are a couple things we'll try to do with this," Foster said. "We want to use an energy calculator and see what some of our residents would save over the course of the year, and we'd like to see what some of our residents' actual real savings are."
To accomplish this, Foster is hoping some residents will turn in their energy bills for comparison, though that will not be a requirement to use the energy kits. Foster said the village would also try to track water savings, since the kits are equipped with water saving measures, too.
Each energy kit contains 42 energy-conservation measures, including two LED night lights, two 23-watt exterior floodlights, four 13-watt compact fluorescent light bulbs, four 23-watt compact fluorescent light bulbs, eight switch plates, 16 outlet sealers, two earth massage showerheads, two dual-threaded faucet aerators, one dual-spray kitchen aerator, a three-in-one LED night light and an energy savers' booklet.
The kits are estimated to generate $125 to $150 in energy savings each year.
Foster said the village hopes to graph the differences in energy and water bills for its residents to compare predicted energy savings with actual energy savings.
"We should get a nice comparison of what companies say you're going to save versus what you actually look at," Foster said. "We'll see how efficient those numbers are."
The village will be reimbursed through the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Multi-Purpose Block Grant, issued by the Michigan Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth Bureau of Energy Systems.
Contact Daily Press & Argus reporter Frank Konkel at (517) 552-2835 or at fkonkel@gannett.com.
By Frank Konkel
DAILY PRESS & ARGUS
March 18, 2010
