Net Metering In Massachusetts

Mass. homeowners can now sell back electricity

By STEVE LeBLANC, Associated Press Writer Steve Leblanc, Associated Press Writer – Mon Nov 30, 5:49 pm ET

BOSTON – Homeowners tired of paying high electricity bills can now turn the tables by selling excess electricity back to power companies at more lucrative rates.

The hitch? Homeowners need a way to generate power on their own, either by installing solar panels on their roofs or planting wind turbines on their property.

It's called "net metering," and beginning Tuesday, property owners can submit the applications needed to begin earning credits on their electricity bills if they generate more energy than they need on any given day or week.

To sweeten the deal, the state's 2008 Green Communities Act requires utility companies to pay their customers for the excess electricity at a retail rate rather than a lower wholesale rate.

Property owners still would need to be connected to the utilities-owned grid for cloudy days or during the dark, cold winter months when they likely will use more energy from a power company than they would produce on their own.

"Your utility is tracking how much energy you are buying and how much energy you are delivering back," said Ann Berwick, the state's undersecretary for energy. "You'll have meters tracking it in both directions."

The law also lets customers allocate their credits to other customers, allowing those without the ability to generate solar or wind power to take advantage of the change.

The benefits aren't limited just to homeowners. The law lets businesses and even cities and towns sell excess electricity back to utilities. Several municipalities are moving ahead on solar and wind turbine projects.

Before the change, net metering was limited to solar arrays or wind turbines capable of generating just 60 kilowatts or less, and customers were able to sell their power back to the grid only at the wholesale rate.

Under the new law, customers who own wind turbines or solar power installations up to 2 megawatts — even larger for municipal and state installations — can sell excess power back to the grid at the higher retail rate.

The state is working on another plan to bring down the cost of electricity — this time by saving power rather than increasing energy production.

The state Department of Public Utilities is weighing proposals requiring electric and gas utilities to ramp up their energy efficiency efforts.

That includes providing incentives for energy consumers to buy high efficiency lights, appliances, heating and air conditioning, and insulation and air sealing.

The changes also call on the utilities to boost their outreach efforts, especially to minority communities and small businesses.

Like net metering, the focus on energy efficiency is part of the Green Communities Act. The proposed changes are designed to help reverse the state's electricity demand.

Currently that demand increases at a rate of about 1 percent annually. Under the changes — set for final approval by the end of January — that demand would decrease by about 1.4 percent a year.

That's enough of a savings for the state to meet 30 percent of its electricity needs through improved energy efficiency, rather than additional power generation, by 2020, officials said.

A similar set of natural gas efficiency programs are expected to save $1.2 billion in energy costs over the next three years.

Gov. Deval Patrick said the changes will save electric and natural gas customers up to $6.5 billion over the next three years while creating new jobs.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091130/ap_on_bi_ge/us_renewable_energy_massachusetts

July 02, 2008 - For immediate release:

Governor Patrick Signs Energy Bill Promoting Cost Savings, Renewable and Clean Energy Technology

Legislation will hold down electric bills, promote the development of renewable energy, and stimulate the clean energy industry

BOSTON – Wednesday, July 2, 2008 – Governor Deval Patrick today signed the Green Communities Act, a comprehensive energy reform bill resulting from close collaboration with House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi, who filed the bill in 2007, and Senate President Therese Murray, who led the Senate to pass its version in January.

“Today, Massachusetts has taken a giant step forward toward a clean energy future,” said Governor Deval Patrick, who signed the bill at a ceremony at the Museum of Science. “This legislation will reduce electric bills, promote the development of renewable energy, and stimulate the clean energy industry that is taking root here in the Commonwealth.”

“This new law puts Massachusetts in the lead nationally in crafting bold, comprehensive energy reform," said House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi. "This law will spark a significant increase in the use of renewable energy that will significantly curtail our use of fossil fuels, improve our environment and save us all money in the long run. Working together, we in the House, Senate and Patrick administration have much to be proud of."

“With the cost of energy skyrocketing, this legislation comes at a critical time and puts Massachusetts at the forefront of clean energy policies and the development of alternative fuel sources,” Senate President Therese Murray said. “With this landmark legislation, the Commonwealth will tip the scales away from fossil fuels in favor of more efficient and affordable energy alternatives. Emerging technologies and conservation are major parts of this effort, and Massachusetts will lead the way.”

Lower Energy Costs
Under the new law, the state will make energy efficiency programs compete in the market with traditional energy supply. Utility companies (NSTAR, National Grid, Western Mass. Electric, etc.) will be required to purchase all available energy efficiency improvements that cost less than it does to generate power, ultimately saving money on consumers’ electricity bills.

Utility companies will offer rebates and other incentives for customers to upgrade lighting, air conditioning, and industrial equipment to more efficient models, whenever those incentives cost less than generating the electricity it would take to power their older, less-efficient equipment.

Existing efficiency programs have already shown savings at 3 cents per kilowatt-hour versus 9 cents for power generation. Customers who take advantage of these incentives will save money as they reduce how much energy they use. The incentives will encourage more efficient energy use, lowering the overall demand on the system and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Promoting Renewable Energy
The Green Communities Act promotes renewable energy in a number of ways. The law requires utility companies to enter into 10- to 15-year contracts with renewable energy developers to help developers of clean energy technology obtain financing to build their projects. The agreements will target Massachusetts-based projects.

The law also makes it possible for people who own wind turbines and solar-generated power to sell their excess electricity into the grid (“net-metering”) at favorable rates, for installations of up to 2 megawatts (up from 60 kilowatts currently).

The measure also authorizes utility companies to own solar electric installations they put on their customers’ roofs – a practice that was previously prohibited – up to 50 MW apiece after two years. If utilities take full advantage of this new opportunity, it will poise Massachusetts to meet Governor Patrick’s goal to harness 250 megawatts of installed solar power by 2017.

Making State and Municipal Power Greener
A new Green Communities program comes into effect under the new law, offering benefits to municipalities that make a commitment to efficiency and renewable energy. The state Division of Energy Resources, which is expanded and elevated into the Department of Energy Resources, will now include a Green Communities Division to provide technical and financial assistance to municipalities for energy efficiency and renewable energy efforts. The program will receive $10 million in funding from a variety of sources, including emissions allowance trading programs, utility efficiency charges, alternative compliance payments generated by the Renewable Portfolio Standard, and the Renewable Energy Trust Fund.

In addition to these provisions, the new energy law doubles the rate of increase in the Renewable Portfolio Standard from 0.5 percent per year to 1 percent per year, with no cap. As a result, utilities and other electricity suppliers will be required to obtain renewable power equal to 4 percent of sales in 2009 – rising to 15 percent in 2020 and 25 percent in 2030, and more thereafter. In addition, the Massachusetts Renewable Energy Trust Fund, which is administered by the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, comes under the direction of a new governing board chaired by the Commissioner of the Department of Energy Resources.

The law also requires the State Board of Building Regulations and Standards to adopt, as its minimum standard, the latest edition of the International Energy Conservation Code as part of the State Building Code. This will keep Massachusetts building standards at the highest international levels of energy efficiency.

The Green Communities Act gives final legislative approval to the Commonwealth’s participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). Substantially all of the emissions allowances issued under the program will be auctioned – in accordance with the policy announced by Governor Patrick in January 2007 – allowing the proceeds to go toward reimbursing municipalities that lose property tax receipts as a result of RGGI mandates, funding Green Communities, providing no-interest loans for municipal energy efficiency projects, and promoting energy conservation.

“With this legislation, Massachusetts takes its rightful place as a national leader in energy reform and environmental protection,” said Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs Ian Bowles. “This legislation will help businesses and residential consumers fight rising energy costs, reap the benefits of renewable energy, and grow our clean energy industry.”

http://www.mass.gov/?pageID=gov3pressrelease&L=1&L0=Home&sid=Agov3&b=pressrelease&f=080702_bill_energy_clean&csid=Agov3

Rain Gardens

A little piece of a greener world
Rain gardens are planted at Habitat building site in D.C. to cut runoff pollution

By Miranda S. Spivack
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Sarah Fulton once worked as a social worker, trying to help clients change their ways, but now that she's retired, she is trying to create tiny ecosystems that could help change the world.

Fulton is one of three volunteers who last month helped plant a rain garden at a Habitat for Humanity townhouse development in Deanwood in Northeast Washington.

At the development, volunteer construction crews have been using environmentally sensitive building methods and materials as much as possible. The goal is to create an affordable green community of 53 houses on what had been 4.3 vacant acres off Central Avenue near the Prince George's County line.

Installing rain gardens, instead of using more traditional methods of managing storm water, is one way to meet Habitat's goals of building green and promoting low-impact lifestyles.

The gardens comprise an array of water-loving plants that filter runoff headed for the region's water supply and the Chesapeake Bay. Each garden is expected to handle about 600 gallons of runoff for every inch of rainfall. Without the gardens, the runoff would go directly into the District's storm sewer system.

"If we only build housing, shopping centers and highways, we don't have plants to soak up water," Fulton said as she explained her growing interest in rain gardens and their effect on the environment. The garden is the second on the site, and Habitat plans to plant more.

Unfiltered storm water runoff, which carries dirt, gravel, chemicals, motor oil, farm runoff and other gunk into waterways, is a leading source of water pollution in the Washington area.

In the District, runoff poses special problems because, as in many older jurisdictions, sewage and storm water mostly run through the same sewers. In a heavy rainstorm, storm water can overwhelm the system and send untreated sewage into local waterways.

Dick Brinker, a developer in Prince George's, was among the first in the nation to use rain gardens, when in 1990 he decided to forgo the usual retention pond and install rain gardens in the Somerset development near Bowie. Subsequent studies have shown rain gardens can reduce runoff substantially. At the Somerset development, an analysis found that the gardens helped the development cut down its storm water runoff by about 70 percent.

"They can be very effective," said Delores Milmoe, a lobbyist for the Audubon Naturalist Society who helped organize the planting at the Habitat site.

A fortuitous phone call from Milmoe to Habitat in early fall connected the two groups at a time when Habitat construction chief Dave Gano was thinking about installing rain gardens. Milmoe, coming out of a long and unsuccessful battle to derail the Intercounty Connector highway in Montgomery and Prince George's counties, was looking for a new project for the society, a leading regional environmental organization.

Habitat spokeswoman Heather Phibbs said her organization, which sells its houses at cost and provides no-interest loans to buyers of moderate means, was pleased to have the assistance.

"Building a green home isn't just about the house itself but the land around it," Phibbs said.

The plants, topsoil and sand for rain gardens at the Habitat site were funded by the District Department of the Environment. Mulch was donated by Montgomery County, as were some plants. A major effort was made to include many plants native to the Washington area because they can do double duty, soaking up rainwater and helping local fauna.

One of the plants selected is turtlehead, which has dense, spiky leaves and white or lavender flowers. It not only loves water but also happens to be the only plant on which the threatened Baltimore Checkerspot butterfly will lay its eggs.

The plants most suitable for area rain gardens such as Habitat's cost $200 to $400 per garden, Milmoe said, depending on where they are purchased. Audubon has helped install many rain gardens of about 35 square feet each at several other sites in the region; the Habitat gardens are a bit larger.

The rain gardens were designed by Habitat volunteer Yungling Mei, a local architect, to run down slopes between two houses. Runoff from roofs and the street will be sent through pipes to the garden, which will absorb as much as possible and send the excess flowing through pipes into a creek that empties into the Anacostia River.

To install the garden, Milmoe enlisted Fulton, Gayle Countryman-Mills, a retired middle school teacher, and Marney Bruce, a volunteer with the Maryland Native Plant Society. They spent about four hours on a misty mid-November day planting and mulching, following a map Fulton drew to show what would go where.

The gardeners offered a primer as they warmed up indoors after their work.

First, determine where water runs downhill; be prepared to dig to about 18 inches; fill with soil mix suitable to the plants selected. Plants should be grouped together. Plants should like lots of water but be able to endure dry spells. If possible, plants should be native to the area.

Once the garden is established, "you don't have to do much except weed," Milmoe said.

If planting a rain garden seems too daunting, there are other ways to slow down and filter runoff, Bruce said, such as directing a house's downspouts away from the street or using a rain barrel to capture runoff, which can be used to water plants.

"It is instant gratification," said Countryman-Mills of her volunteer gardening. And it can be done with minimal intrusiveness. "Nobody has to know you were there."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/01/AR2009120102363.html

Green Development In The 'Burbs

Remaking St. Charles in a shade of green
Developer to test suburban Md. market for energy efficiency

By Lisa Rein
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, November 30, 2009

First came the "green" jobs, green buildings and green energy.

Now Southern Maryland will get a green city, where residents will live in energy-saving homes, shop in energy-saving stores and walk under energy-saving streetlights as a new plant next door generates carbon-friendly solar power.

This is the vision to revitalize St. Charles, a planned community of 12,000 homes and 5 million square feet of offices, stores and industrial parks in Waldorf now showing its age.

American Community Properties Trust, a developer, will announce plans Monday to double the community's size while reducing its carbon footprint through green design and, officials hope, technology that could create thousands of green jobs.

"What we're trying to do is reinvent the balance of the community," said Steve Griessel, the company's chief executive. "When the green thing first started, people said, 'We're going to put green icing on the cake.' We want to build the thing from the ground up as a green cake."

The first homes in St. Charles rose 40 years ago. It was to be the next Columbia, a planned community offering neighborhood schools, playgrounds, walking paths, lakes and a shopping center. Griessel said he hopes the new niche will revive a development that, despite Charles County's rapid growth, has become stagnant.

American Community Properties, Southern Maryland's biggest developer, has struggled with flat housing prices and losses that led to a corporate restructuring last year, and Griessel said he expects home prices in St. Charles -- now from $235,000 to $400,000 -- to remain depressed. By going green on such a large scale, "we want to put ourselves on the map," he said.

The question is whether a smaller carbon footprint will sell in a middle-class bedroom suburb 22 miles from Washington.

"This is not a handful of people in Takoma Park," said Malcolm D. Woolf, Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley's top energy adviser, referring to the Montgomery County neighborhood known for its progressive views. "It's a market test of the economic power of sustainability in a conservative part of Maryland, a mainstream community."

The state is offering no financial support to the developer, although O'Malley (D), who has made conservation a centerpiece of his energy policy, is scheduled to speak at the announcement Monday.

The green city would dovetail with another developer's plans to build a 10-megawatt solar facility in St. Charles. The $35 million plant on 75 acres would be built by Competitive Power Ventures, a Silver Spring company that also has proposed a natural gas plant on a neighboring site in St. Charles's industrial area. The company is trying to secure financing for both projects.

If all three projects come to fruition, the future for those living in St. Charles would look like this: low-flush, low-flow toilets and showers; better-than-normal insulation; recycled carpets; and government-certified, Energy Star-rated appliances. Energy-saving windows would also be in every home, alongside "smart" thermostats that allow the utility company to lower the air conditioning by a few degrees when energy demand is peaking and prices are highest, Griessel said.

And the homes, starting with a neighborhood scheduled to break ground in January, will bear the country's most recognized seal of approval for green buildings, the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, stamp. Barrels will collect rainwater to irrigate yards and flush toilets. Over 10 years, the technology will result in lower heat and electricity bills in the 9,100-acre community, which has approval for 11,000 more homes, townhouses and apartments and 5 million square feet on 4,000 remaining acres, Griessel said.

Griessel said home prices will not rise to compensate for the cost of new technology; the developer is cutting costs on the front end. American Community Properties will harvest the soil and trees it removes from building lots before they are graded, selling them to recycling companies that will use them for erosion control and roadbeds in St. Charles and elsewhere.

New office and retail space will get the same treatment. And public spaces will enjoy their own sustainable features, with farmers markets, community gardens and streets lit by light-emitting diodes, a technology that's becoming the standard for green lighting.

The developer, working with the Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative, also plans to market energy-saving thermostats to owners of existing homes. It's a chance for the utility to target St. Charles for a series of conservation measures the state is requiring of all utilities, including audits and rebates on energy-saving appliances.

"We'll do a recruitment campaign in St. Charles, and the developer is helping to facilitate it," SMECO President Austin J. Slater Jr. said. If the Public Service Commission approves, the utility will test smart meters, which tell customers exactly when their rates are highest, in 1,000 new homes in St. Charles.

American Community Properties officials said they hope to create 20,000 green jobs for those building the new city. Workers could be trained through a program for the energy industry launched this year by the College of Southern Maryland.

"There's a lot of potential there," said the college's president, Bradley M. Gottfried.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/29/AR2009112902439.html