State and Local Climate and Energy Program
Building a Municipal Energy Conservation Corps
Springfield, Massachusetts
Federal Funding: $491,067
Project Timeline: February 2010 – June 2012
Project Summary
Improving Energy Performance in Municipal Operations and Removing Barriers to Greenhouse Gas Management
Under the direction and supervision of the Department of Parks, Buildings, and Recreation Management (DPBRM), the City of Springfield, Massachusetts, is responsible for maintenance and upgrades of 52 schools, 38 municipal buildings, and 15 parks buildings. Building on a comprehensive energy audit completed in 2007, the city is expanding and accelerating its energy conservation efforts for all city buildings. This project will create jobs while transforming public facilities into models of energy efficiency and conservation, significantly reducing Springfield's greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
Early on in the implementation of the audit recommendations, Springfield recognized the need for preventative maintenance (PM) and formed a four-person PM crew to tackle transformation of the City's facilities into models for energy efficiency and conservation. With the receipt of the Climate Showcase Communities funding, Springfield is addressing energy performance in municipal operations by expanding its four-person PM team to include four additional members. This team will be dedicated to performing PM and detailed energy audits for all City-owned buildings.
Through classroom education, on-site training, creation of new policies and protocols, and transfer of knowledge to all custodial staff, the City will also remove barriers to GHG management. The City's long-term plan is to create an Energy Conservation Corps, which will be dedicated to reducing its "carbon footprint."
The expansion of the PM team will leverage funding from the Energy Efficiency Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) to complete additional recommendations from the initial audit. The City will replace five standard boilers with high-efficiency boilers, install web-based energy management systems in three additional municipal buildings (increasing energy efficiency by 25 percent); and install solar thermal panels, which will be the first application of solar technology by the City. In addition to the new equipment, the expanded PM team will be maintaining and upgrading older, existing systems. The team is performing PM on all electrical, pneumatic, and mechanical systems in each building according to the PM program created by the project director. Through all of the planned activities, the City of Springfield will reduce its GHG emissions by 5 percent to 8 percent.
Community Characteristics
| Population: | 142,000 |
|---|---|
| Area: | 33 square miles |
| Government Type: | City |
| Community Type: | Urban |
| Median Household Income: | $34,090 |
Program Results/Estimated Results
| Expected GHG Emissions Reductions: | 3,629 metric tons CO2e; 5-8% |
|---|---|
| Expected # of City Buildings Addressed: | 105 |
| Jobs Created (as of 8/10): | 4 |
Media Coverage
- Springfield Awarded Energy Grant
, 3/9/2010 - Springfield Awarded $500K for Energy Efficiency Programs , 3/9/2010
- EPA Climate Showcase Grant Awarded , 3/8/2010
- City of Springfield Received Nearly $500,000 in Climate Showcase Community Grant Money, 3/8/2010
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