Toward Zero Waste presentation this Wednesday

For our third Recycling Q & A, we are pleased to host Christin Walth, Project Manager for Toward Zero Waste Communities (formerly, Toward Zero-Waste Newburyport) and Stephen P. Lisauskas, Vice President of Government Affairs and Regional Vice President of Municipal Partnerships for Waste Zero.

Assembly Room, Belmont Public Library
Wednesday, February 3
7 – 9 PM

Are you…

Concerned about curbside recycling?
Wondering how to limit waste?
Concerned about more incinerators in Massachusetts?
Wanting to learn more about composting?

Christin will share best practices for helping communities and residents eliminate as much of their trash as possible.

See for yourself!

Solar Open House
Saturday, February 6
10 AM to 4 PM

Drop by and ask questions of Belmont residents who have solar rooftop panels to supply electricity to their homes and see how their panels work. Belmont Goes Solar is sponsoring free open houses this coming Saturday:

207 Claflin St, Belmont, from 10:00 am - noon
64 Livermore Road, Belmont, from 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Please check for location and time updates at BelmontGoesSolar.org

Belmont Goes Solar Update

As of Jan. 28, 200 Belmont homeowners have requested a free solar assessment and 27 households have signed contracts through the Belmont Goes Solar program. If you’re considering solar rooftop panels to provide electricity for your home, don’t delay. Direct Energy Solar (BGS’s preferred installer) will give an additional $500 discount for the first 30 signed contracts and that’s in addition to a generous community discount that’s available only until April 30, 2016. And, if BGS achieves 100 installations, Direct Energy Solar will donate $25,000 toward a solar system for a Belmont town building or school.

Going solar helps the environment, and saves the owners and the town money.

On the website, check out FAQs, view a video about the program’s benefits and learn about other upcoming free events. For more information or to request a free solar assessment of your home or business, visit: BelmontGoesSolar.org or call 800-903-6130.

Heat Pumps: The Right Heating & Cooling Choice for the Savvy Environmentalist

Belmont Light’s Energy Grant Program is currently offering Belmont residents special discounts on heat pump systems. Heat pumps are highly efficient mechanisms that can both heat and cool your home by moving heat from one space to another. Because they move heat rather than generating it, modern heat pumps can warm and cool your home using only a fraction of the energy consumed by conventional heating and cooling systems and appliances. Depending on what fuel source you presently use to heat your home, converting to a heat pump could help reduce your annual energy consumption—and your carbon footprint—by 50% or more. If you heat with oil, you could save hundreds of dollars each winter (even with today’s low oil prices).

Inquire about Belmont Light’s heat pump grants today by visiting www.BelmontLightEnergyGrant.com or calling Sagewell, the program administrator, at 617-963-8141. Grants range from $500 to $1,500, depending on the size of heat pump system installed. Heat pumps grants are available to homes currently heated with any fuel type.

Local Environmental Action 2016

Toxics Action Center and Massachusetts Climate Action Network will host the annual conference at Northeastern University on March 13th.

The 2016 Keynote Speaker is Jane Kleeb from Bold Nebraska.

Jane Kleeb lives in rural Nebraska with her husband Scott and three daughters. She founded Bold Nebraska organizing a group of farmers and ranchers that call themselves "Pipeline Fighters.” Protecting the land and water touched a deep nerve with Nebraskans whose family roots are tied to the pioneers and homesteaders that built the state of rich prairie and was at-risk with the Keystone XL tarsands pipeline.

Jane has deep experience working in communities from after-school programs with AmeriCorps, to young voters in her role as the head of Young Democrats of America and ensuring eating disorders was included in the Mental Health Parity bill. Kleeb is a regular guest on MSNBC, Fox News and was dubbed the Keystone Killer by Rolling Stone magazine.

Why Belmont Goes Solar?

With education and financial incentives, Belmont Goes Solar* paves the way for Belmont homeowners and businesses to evaluate their potential for solar electricity. The group met with several installers and negotiated a discount price, in a similar manner to neighboring towns. Free information sessions and events are available to guide you through the process, as well as Solar coaching from knowledgeable volunteers.

Work with the installer selected by Belmont Goes Solar and act fast to get the best discounts:

A 20% (or more) discount from Direct Energy Solar, the installer carefully selected by Belmont Goes Solar, will expire in April 2016.
The first *30* signed contracts with Direct Energy Solar will receive an additional $500 discount.
The 30% Federal Tax Credit requires systems to be in service by December 31, 2016. Don’t delay; installers will be booked ahead due to this deadline.

Solar is a win-win for residents, businesses and the environment. Act Now! For more information or to request a free solar assessment, visit: www.BelmontGoesSolar.org

*Belmont Goes Solar is a volunteer group of Belmont residents knowledgeable and enthusiastic about solar. The group is supported by the Board of Selectmen, and formed by members of the Belmont Energy Committee, Mothers Out Front, Sustainable Belmont and Belmont Light. After a rigorous selection process, Belmont Goes Solar chose Direct Energy Solar as Belmont’s installer partner due to price, installation capacity, and deep experience in community solar programs.

Easy Peasy...Volunteer!

Volunteers are still needed to help with the campaign. If interested, email: volunteers@belmontgoessolar.org.

Are you part of a local organization, house of worship or business? Do you have a Green Committee? Help spread the word about Belmont Goes Solar with your newsletter, social media or flyers. Contact volunteers@BelmontGoesSolar for information and materials.

Opening on Belmont Energy Committee

The Belmont Energy Committee currently has a vacancy for a position to be filled by a Belmont resident. The town committee is charged to work with the Belmont community to reduce its carbon footprint 80% by 2050. Interested parties should fill out a volunteer application on the Town’s website and email it, along with your resume, to the Belmont Board of Selectmen at selectmen@belmont-ma.gov.

Winter Walk Day is February 3rd!

Of course, with a winter like this, every day could be called winter walk day. This Wednesday, join in the spirit of your younger neighbors and take a walk on Massachusetts Safe Routes to Schools Winter Walk Day. You know what they say, "use it or lose it"!

Save the Date

Merchants of Doubt

Screening:
March 6, 2016 at 2 PM
Beth El Temple in Belmont

Sponsored by the Union of Concerned Scientists and Mothers Out Front. Information tables for related organizations will be open at 1:30 PM.

Belmont Stormwater Working Group

Next Meeting:

Monday evening February 22: A retrospective discussion to review 2014-2015 -- what's gone well, what's disappointed or surprised us, and what we should do differently in 2016. New people and perspectives are encouraged to join in!

Monday evening March 14: Guest speaker, Julie Conroy, MAPC Senior Environmental Planner, who will discuss municipal financing of stormwater projects, including how to set up a stormwater utility fee. Ms. Conroy gave a presentation on Stormwater Funding as part of a Mass Rivers Alliance workshop series this fall. An explanation of Belmont's current funding sources was included as part of the January 11 presentation of Belmont's sanitary sewer and storm drain rehabilitation program by Glenn Clancy to the Belmont Board of Selectmen. A Belmont Media Center video of that meeting is now available (the sewer presentation starts at minute 22:42). We look forward to understanding additional financing options the town could consider using.

These meetings will be from 7:00-9:00 p.m. at the Assembly Room of the Belmont Memorial Library, 336 Concord Avenue. Please know you can always check the library events calendar closer to these dates to confirm our public meetings.

Questions? Working group contact is Anne-Marie Lambert, ammlambert [a] gmail.com

At the Belmont Stormwater Working Group Dropbox location you can find earlier presentations, minutes from previous BSWG meetings. Here, and on the stormwater tab of the Belmont Citizens Forum web site, you can also find other storm water-related material.

Even if you can't install solar, you can still make the switch to clean energy...

When you participate in Mass Energy’s "Make the Switch" to clean energy, you purchase renewable energy and send a strong message that Massachusetts households want more renewable energy. Your donation is 100% tax deductible.

To get started, go to http://info.massenergy.org/mothersoutfront and click “Make the Switch”. When asked to choose a utility, Belmont residents should select “My utility is none of these”. Because Belmont has a municipal utility, residents won’t have their clean energy purchases embedded in their utility bill. Instead, they can offset their estimated monthly electricity consumption – or any amount of their choosing – through Mass Energy’s New England Wind Friends program. From the New England Wind Friends page, select “Click here to sign up” and complete the form to set up a monthly payment. The site has a feature to help you estimate your monthly payment, which for the average household ranges from $12 to $23.

Helping Belmont to be an environmentally responsible community

Sustainable Belmont is an all-volunteer organization, originally formed as a task force by Belmont's Vision 21 Implementation Committee. We hold regular discussions, workshops and presentations to enable the community to be environmentally sustainable. Meetings and events are open to the public. You can reach Sustainable Belmont members by email: sustainablebelmont@gmail.com

Kind regards from, Kate Bowen (Chair); Darrell King (Vice Chair) and John Kolterman (Adviser)

Copyright © 2016 Sustainable Belmont, All rights reserved.

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