H1389 – A Tool To Make Asheville Greener
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The NC Legislature, led by sponsors Susan Fisher, Pricey Harrison, and Ray Rapp, passed H1389 late last week. This bill allows counties and municipalities to establish funds to provide low interest loans for energy efficiency retrofitting and renewable energy generation. Back in March, City Council members Brownie Newman and Robin Cape pushed forward a motion which included encouraging the NC Legislature to adopt the legislation.
There is no question that this bill can be a major step forward in making Asheville a sustainability leader. Giving homeowners and business owners the opportunity to improve their energy efficiency is an important stride towards Asheville realizing her environmental and energy aspirations. This fund ought to be established as quickly as possible in order to alleviate the high cost of energy, minimize our environmental impact, and stimulate Asheville’s green economy.
Further, if the national building code requirements stipulated in the House version of the Federal Energy Bill survive the process, then the H1389 fund will be a vital part of achieving energy efficiency improvements of 30% in every Asheville building. Now that we’ve got an additional tool to move further faster, I’m confident that we can become a regional leader in renewable energy maufacturing and installation, green retrofits, and green construction.
The fund itself can be created using “Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Funds and its unrestricted revenue to fund the revolving loan fund.” Councilman Newman said in March,
“If this legislation passes, it will be for all cities in North Carolina and noted that the actual participation is 100% voluntary. From our research, the model can be structured in a manner that is revenue neutral to the property owners who participates by agreeing to a special assessment on the property. Based on programs in other utilities, the property owner’s utility bills will be reduced. This is also revenue neutral to the cities that sponsor these bills, including the cost of administration and staffing of a program. This should not be a financial burden on the City, the participating property owner or even property owners who do not participate in the program.”
Thanks to everyone who fought for and supported H1389. Your efforts will reap rewards for decades to come.
8 Comments
August 10th, 2009 at 7:23 am
For the record, I, too, supported this initiate and voted yes when it came back to Council after further information was provided to us. Further, it is my vision that Asheville becomes more than a regional leader in renewable energy maufacturing and installation, green retrofits, and green construction. We can the city that got it right re: green jobs and sustainable best practices.
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August 10th, 2009 at 8:56 am
Thanks, Councilman Miller, for dropping by.
How do you recommend we become a regional leader in renewable energy manufacturing and installation, green retrofits, and green construction?
What’s the plan?
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August 10th, 2009 at 2:14 pm
Umm… this is good for those who have money… but given the recession – and that it is the poor who consume the most energy (because of the quality of their homes). So, loans are not going to be that great of asset. The North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association reported in 2008 that homes of those living 50% below the national poverty level consumed a disproportionate amount of energy. NC households with incomes below 50% of the national poverty level pay 59.3% of their annual income on their energy bills. Homes built ten or more years ago consume up to 60% more energy than newer homes. And, heating and cooling account for 50% to 70% of the energy used in the average American home.
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August 10th, 2009 at 2:48 pm
Oh boy, a cage match.
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August 10th, 2009 at 3:07 pm
Phillip,
Let’s say that someone borrows $2,500 to reinsulate her home. The reinsulation will cut her heating bill in half and (if applicable) A/C bill in half. The loan can be repaid over as many as 15 years, built into property tax payments, or it can be repaid at a faster speed to cut down on interest rate . If she saves only $50/month in energy costs then she could pay for the loan with the savings in 50 months or less.
If, in fact, “59.3% of their annual income on their energy bills”, and that number can be cut to 29.6% through basic upfits like insulation, then it stands to reason that the poor could benefit more through this program than anyone else. Once retrofitted, homes become more affordable and sustainable in the long term.
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August 10th, 2009 at 10:00 pm
Gordon,
Just checking in after a long day. I have a very specific plan on how the Asheville area can become a national leader in renewable energy manufacturing, best green practices, et al. The just held Mountain Green Conference that the steering committee I served on produced, under the leadership of Phillip Gibson at WWC, is just one of 5-7 “got it right” strategies that move us closer to my vision. That’s the beauty of campaigns…articulating to the voters vision and proven experiences that work. My plan will get us there. Stay tuned. Details on the trail.
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August 10th, 2009 at 10:42 pm
Thanks, Kelly. I’ll look forward to hearing more!
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August 10th, 2009 at 11:24 pm
I think we call this democracy. Thanks guys.
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