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NHDES official outlines EPA-funded climate plan and local rebate opportunities
Summary
Kurt Yuengling of NHDES presented an EPA Climate Pollution Reduction Grant program offering distributor-level rebates for heat pumps and related projects through 2027, and shared survey and municipal examples the commission said could inform local efforts.
Kurt Yuengling of the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services presented an overview of an EPA Climate Pollution Reduction Grant program the agency is administering, telling the Temple Conservation Commission the effort aims to fund shovel-ready projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and will run through 2027.
The program offers rebates at the distributor level intended to accelerate adoption of air-source, geothermal and water-source heat pumps, Yuengling said. As part of the grant, the EPA requires participating states to produce a greenhouse gas inventory, short-term projections and reduction targets — data Yuengling described as challenging for municipalities to calculate.
The NHDES presenter cited a University of New Hampshire survey commissioned for the project showing roughly half of New Hampshire residents consider air pollution and climate change important. Survey respondents ranked responsibility for addressing the issues with the federal government first, individuals second, local government third and state government last.
Yuengling pointed to municipal examples he said were relevant to towns considering local projects: some municipalities have set NetZero goals and installed solar on municipal buildings, Portsmouth adopted a climate action plan last year, and Manchester is increasing tree plantings. He described a volunteer-led LED streetlight retrofit in Randolph that ultimately saved the town more than the original investment.
Yuengling emphasized that NHDES has limited regulatory authority to force local projects and therefore relies on voluntary actions and partnerships. The Commission thanked him and indicated interest in learning about projects other towns have pursued that Temple could replicate.
The commission did not take formal action on the presentation but noted the potential to use the examples and promoted follow-up as staff and members evaluate local applicability.
