Community energy use strategies help municipalities look towards renewable fuels and energy efficient alternatives which help reduce the total energy consumption of their communities. It also helps lead municipal employees to conserve energy, preserve the environment, and decrease greenhouse gas emissions from municipal facilities, services, and vehicle fleets.
Community Energy Use
• Use PACE financing. Learn more about PACE Wisconsin.
• Make watt meters available to the public.
• Adopt a Residential Energy Conservation Ordinance (time-of-sale certification and upgrades).
Measuring Community Energy Use
• Work with local utility companies to calculate total electricity and natural gas consumption annually, beginning with the fifth year before entering the program.
• Become established as an Energy Independence Community (EIC).
Government Energy Use Policies
• Include transportation energy/emissions as criterion in RFPs for purchases of goods over $10,000.
• Develop list of lighting, HVAC and shell improvements to raise Energy Star Portfolio Manager or LEED EBO&M score.
• Reduce motor fuels use for non-transit activities.
• Provide transit passes at 50% or more off the regular price and/or provide parking cash-out options for local government employees.
• Streetlights operate at 75 lumens/Watt or higher.
• Stoplights are LEED or functional equivalent.
• Municipal electricity purchases are at least 5 percentage points higher in renewable content than the statewide renewable portfolio standard requires. Calculation may include self-generated power and purchased offsets.
Measuring Government Energy Use
• Complete EPA Energy Star Portfolio Manager spreadsheet for government energy use. Or, score existingbuildings with LEED EBO&M.
• Calculate annual government fleet use of motor fuels, in gallons of petroleum and biofuels, beginning with the fifth year before entering the program.
• All new and renovated municipal buildings must meet LEED Silver or greater.
More Sustainable Communities Strategic Options:
