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Williamstown planners hear CVRPC briefing on energy chapter, Enhanced Energy Plan and Act 248
Summary
CVRPC’s Sam Lash reviewed climate and energy chapters, described the optional Enhanced Energy Plan standards and renewable-energy siting maps, and explained that an Enhanced Energy Plan can give towns a deferential process under Act 248 for energy infrastructure siting.
Sam Lash, a planner with CVRPC, walked commissioners through highlights of Climate Chapter content and then focused on the Energy Chapter and "Energy Planning Standards for Municipal Plans." She described the Enhanced Energy Plan as optional but said an Enhanced plan requires meeting 19 standards and, if adopted, can provide a deferential review process for electric infrastructure under Act 248. "If you have an Enhanced Energy Plan then your plan gets deferential process," Lash said.
Lash also outlined renewable-energy options in the region—hydropower (noting many systems are 80–100 years old), wind as a complement to solar, and emerging vertical-solar panels—and said CVRPC will supply town-level existing electric-infrastructure maps and potential resource-area maps for local review. Lash said Williamstown already exceeds some peers on renewable generation metrics and that she will provide current-use data and recommended energy-efficiency targets for the commission to consider.
