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EMAC urges standing building committee, energy manager and commissioning agents to curb rising costs
Summary
EMAC chair Peter presented the annual energy report showing flat consumption but rising costs and recommended the RTM codify prior guidance, establish a permanent building committee, hire an energy manager, and require commissioning agents for building projects.
The town's Energy Management Advisory Committee (EMAC) presented its annual report, warning that municipal energy consumption has been roughly constant while costs have increased, and recommending structural changes to governance and project execution to improve long-term efficiency.
Peter, chair of EMAC, said electricity and gas costs have risen substantially and that schools and municipal functions split energy consumption roughly evenly; he noted Greenwich High School accounts for about 20% of the town's energy use. The report showed a 15% cost increase in the last year and average school Energy Star scores near the 43rd percentile, indicating room for improvement.
EMAC's recommendations to the RTM and town leadership included codifying a 2014 RTM guidance on energy efficiency, establishing a permanent professional standing building committee to replace ad hoc committees for greater consistency, hiring a paid energy manager to coordinate across departments and schools, and retaining commissioning agents as a standard part of building projects. Peter said retro-commissioning and audits would be appropriate next steps for underperforming schools such as New Lebanon.
Board members praised the volunteers' work and asked EMAC to share best practices and provide supplemental material and links to the annual report on the BET agenda page for public access.
