Contact: Joanna Wilson, Public Affairs, 302-739-9902

Governor Markell joins DNREC Secretary O’Mara
to announce municipal energy efficiency investments in Kent County 

CAMDEN (Feb. 24, 2011) – Governor Jack Markell and DNREC Secretary Collin O’Mara announced today that as part of the statewide Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program, 11 Kent County towns will receive federal grant funds to make improvements to municipal buildings that will save the towns an estimated total of more than $45,000 annually in energy costs. The central Delaware towns receiving grants are Bowers Beach, Camden, Cheswold, Farmington, Felton, Frederica, Harrington, Leipsic, Viola, Woodside and Wyoming.

Projects planned with the EECBG grants include heating and cooling efficiency upgrades, energy efficient lighting replacements, programmable thermostats and solar energy installations, all of which help to reduce energy consumption and lower energy bills. These projects will also provide job opportunities for local HVAC, general and specialty contractors.

“These projects represent a smart investment in our smaller towns and provide an opportunity to strengthen and stimulate the local economy by bringing a variety of work,” said Governor Markell. “These grants will save our local governments money and put Delawareans to work in jobs that make our buildings more energy efficient and help the environment.”

“By focusing on energy efficiency and adopting clean energy, local governments across the state will save energy, save money, reduce emissions and improve their bottom line, both long- and short-term,” added Secretary O’Mara.

For example, the town of Camden, population approximately 3,260, was awarded grants to make lighting improvements and HVAC upgrades to the town’s municipal building, to install a solar power system on the Camden-Wyoming Fire Hall, and to install a solar power system on the municipal building. According to estimates based on these improvements, the town stands to save more than $6,000 annually in energy costs, reduce energy consumption by approximately 39,900 kilowatt hours or 17.4 percent, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 29.7 metric tons – equal to taking six cars off the road for a year or planting 761 trees.

“We are looking forward to all the benefits that these improvements to our town hall and the Camden-Wyoming Fire Hall will provide, especially the positive impact on the environment by reducing our dependence on fossil fuels that pollute. Also, we are very excited about the savings that we anticipate in our annual energy costs. Reducing these costs will help us balance our budget,” said Camden Mayor Richard Maly.

Camden is one of 41 Delaware municipalities statewide that will share $5.46 million in federal grant funding through the EECBG program, receiving grants ranging from $10,000 to $500,000. In addition to making municipal improvements, some towns also opted to offer energy efficiency rebate programs for residents.

Each state, including Delaware, was awarded a portion of $3.2 billion under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and through the U.S. Department of Energy to be divided in the form of grants among its municipalities to reduce fossil fuel energy use and lower emissions by generating a portion of their own energy needs with renewable energy. The Delaware Energy Office has been working with municipal governments throughout the state to distribute Delaware’s share through the EECBG program.

DNREC first offered grants to cover the cost of energy audits to help identify projects that would qualify for additional funding under the program. Municipalities were eligible for awards ranging from $20,000 to $45,000 based on the size of the population. Competitive grants were awarded in amounts ranging from $10,000 up to a maximum of $500,000 per local government.

New Castle County EECBG grant recipients will be formally announced tomorrow, Friday, Feb. 25, in Delaware City, and Sussex County grant recipients will be formally announced on Wednesday, March 2 in Bridgeville.

Vol. 40, No. 62

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