Who is a member?
Our members are the local governments of Massachusetts and their elected and appointed leadership.
A new tool being offered through the state’s Green Communities program can help communities analyze their energy use and find opportunities for savings.
MassEnergyInsight is a free, Web-based tool that provides customized, easy-to-use reports on energy use, cost and emissions for all municipal operations. The reports cover all facilities, streetlights and vehicles, as well as all fuels (electricity, oil, natural gas, propane and gasoline).
“The establishment of a use baseline for cities and towns is huge,” said Seth Pickering, the Green Communities coordinator for the southeastern region of Massachusetts. “Cities and towns will be able to target their least-efficient buildings, track their costs, and employ conservation and efficiency measures.”
Some of the benefits for municipalities include the ability to:
• Measure and benchmark energy use
• Find energy waste and save money
• Establish conservation programs
• Use data to demonstrate their efforts to reduce their community’s carbon footprint and save taxpayer dollars
• Qualify for Massachusetts Green Communities grants
In the past, many municipalities have found it difficult to collect and analyze their energy data. While MassEnergyInsight requires manual collection of some data, such as building dimensions and oil and propane use, the program has made the process much easier.
“I feel that we have really built something that cities and towns will find useful,” said Green Communities Director Mark Sylvia. “This system will enable them to understand their costs, how their buildings behave, and how energy really works.”
Municipalities will be able to use the data to make intuitive reports, draw comparisons of use, emissions and costs, and compare use by department, building type, and individual building focus.
Since February, 90 municipalities have signed up for the program and completed the required training. Green Communities is continuing to train local officials, both in-person and through webinars.
For more information, visit massenergyinsight.net.