Regional Planning &
Economic Development
in the Northeast Kingdom
ENERGY UPDATE March 2024
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Health Equity in NEK Regional Planning
March 12, 10-11:30am (online)
Northeastern Vermont Development Association Join NVDA, Northern Counties Health Care and NEK Collaborative for an online Health Equity in Municipal Planning listening and sharing zoom event. This is part of a series of focus groups being planned throughout the Kingdom to ensure everyone has a fair and just opportunity to attain their highest level of health. A grant from the Vermont Department of Health enabled the Regional Planning Commissions, including NVDA, working together in collaboration with health partners, to draft a Health Equity Toolkit. Health Equity is achieved when everyone has a fair and just opportunity to attain their highest level of health. This Toolkit serves as a guide for communities to introduce the concept of health equity and incorporate it into municipal planning documents and bylaws.
How to Develop a Thermal Energy Network
March 13, 12-1pm (online)
Several Vermont energy committees are exploring how they can bring Thermal Energy Networks to their towns, using geothermal and waste heat to provide clean heating and cooling. We’ll hear how energy committees and others are taking steps to bring this solution to their communities, showing how it can be applied in a variety of ways and provide multiple local benefits. We’ll also introduce a new toolkit from Energy Action Network’s TENs Team: How to Develop a Thermal Energy Network. This resource can help you get started, then walk you through selecting a site, considering ownership models, understanding current financing opportunities, and using best practices for a Thermal Energy Network project.
VT "Hardy by Design" - Request for Projects
March 15 deadline
In May of 2024, AIA Vermont will be hosting "Hardy by Design" a resilient design charrette event, and they are asking towns throughout the state to submit projects that might benefit from architectural design input at this event. Architects will provide an afternoon of pro-bono design input to towns, non-profits, or community groups who have ideas for resilient community development projects, and would benefit from architects' input. Similar to the Affordable Housing Charrette held in 2022, this event expands the scope of project types to be inclusive of, but not limited to affordable housing, and will seek to help communities who have been impacted by recent flooding events to build and/ or rebuild with a focus on resilience.
Getting Ahead of Flood Risks
March 19, 12-1:30pm (online)
Please join Northern Forest Center for the next event in their Building the New Forest Futureseries - Getting Ahead of the Flood Risk: How Communities can Proactively Mitigate for Floods. Many communities in the Northern Forest have already experienced devastating floods. In this webinar, they will gather leaders from around the region to discuss what communities can do before they experience flooding, through proactive work to build resilience and mitigate future disasters.
Weatherization Pays You Back - FREE event!
March 19, 5:30-7:30pm (Fellowship Hall, Greensboro UCC)
Join local energy experts for a panel discussion, followed by 1:1 Q&A sessions, to hear tips and ideas on how to improve the comfort of your home while reducing energy bills. This event is sponsored by $ave Energy NEK, a group of volunteers from several local towns, including Albany, Craftsbury, Greensboro, Glover, Hardwick, and Stannard. Childcare and food are provided. Prizes to be won!
EAN New Dashboard & Related Events
March 15 & March 20
Check out EAN’s newest interactive dashboard, which visualizes data about Vermont’s energy progress at the local level. You can read more about this new dashboard (which replaces an older energy dashboard) in the Profile and Data Download sections below. EAN also invites you to join a webinar that will feature both the new local energy progress dashboard and EAN’s Vermont GHG emissions dashboard on March 15, 12-1 pm. Register here.
On March 20, 5-7pm, join EAN at Hugo's Bar and Grill in Montpelier for their next Leveraging Change Speaker Series event. This event will share information about How the Grid Will Need to Evolve As We ‘Electrify Everything.’ Speakers Rebecca Towne (Vermont Electric Co-op), Serge Abergel (Hydro-Québec), and Sarah Adams (ISO-NE) will each share information, and Kerrick Johnson from VELCO will moderate the conversation. There will be light food available and plenty of time for networking. Please register in advance for this in-person event.
Home Solar Workshop
March 28, 12-1pm (online)
What are the benefits of solar energy? How can you save money on home energy projects with current & upcoming incentives? Join Financial & Energy Coach Erik Schultz for this informative online learning session.
New IRA Resources from Clean Energy Group
Solar + Battery Storage Projects
The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) updated and expanded the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) for solar and battery storage projects in three major ways:
1) Nonprofits with no tax liability can now apply for Direct Pay reimbursement equal to the full value of the tax credit.
2) Storage-only projects are now eligible for the ITC.
3) The ITC now includes several ‘bonus credits’, which can significantly increase savings for projects serving low-income and underserved communities.
These changes to the ITC will expand access to solar+storage for nonprofits, states, local governments, and Tribal Nations, bringing the benefits of clean, resilient power to communities across the country. Clean Energy Group has outlined these changes in a blog post and series of fact sheets.
Weatherization Repayment Assistance Program (WRAP)
March 27, 12-1 pm (online)
Join VECAN and Vermont Housing Finance Agency for a webinar on the Weatherization Repayment Assistance Program (WRAP). Important and needed investments, like weatherization, often come with upfront costs but can reduce energy costs significantly over time. This program is intended to help mitigate some of the upfront cost challenges by providing customers an easy, affordable way to pay back home weatherization upgrades over time – not all at once. Learn about the benefits of WRAP, who in your community qualifies, and how you can help community members take part in the program. We'll hear from Mia Watson, the Special Programs Manager at VHFA.
NEK Energy Network Meeting
March 12, 11-12:30pm (online)
Join us for the next quarterly convening of the NEK Energy Network where NEK Energy Committees and partners collaborate, share best-practices, challenges, resources and more!
MERP Mini-Grants Closing!
May 31, 2024 ($4,000)
If your community hasn't already, be sure to secure this $4K grantfor local education, outreach, & capacity-building. Contact Carter Finegan, NVDA MERP Coordinator, for assistance/Q&A.
Northeastern Vermont Development Association | PO Box 630, 36 Eastern Ave. Suite 1, St. Johnsbury, VT 05819
