Green Power and Renewable Energy Wellesley

Wellesley- where Green Power and Renewable Energy meet Sustainability

By Rama K Ramaswamy

Way back in September, 2012, Wellesley was credited with the honor of being named, “the first Green Power Community in Massachusetts, and the second in all of New England” the criteria being, Wellesley’s municipal government had to commit to a 5% renewable energy source as part of its total power needs (for more information: Wellesley’s Environmental Protection Agency Award). When compared to participation rates from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (2010), this placed Wellesley’s participation rate as third in the country after Palo Alto, CA and Portland, OR for voluntary renewable energy programs, thanks largely to the town-appointed Sustainable Energy Committee, POWER TO CHOOSE; by the first half of 2012, Wellesley’s rate-payer participation was 11.8%. Phyllis Theermann, one of its founders and media-relations contact, is also involved with Wellesley Green Schools (WGS) and on the leadership team for Wellesley’s Sustainable Energy Committee (WSEC). Along with fellow Wellesley residents, and environmentally conscious parents, Sue Morris, Jess Stanton, and Sara Bua, the idea to foster environmental awareness has spread to include a parent leader in every elementary school and active representatives with student groups at the middle and high schools as well. In 2014, for the third consecutive year, Wellesley Public Schools was again represented at the Annual Green Difference Awards where over 25 different schools, groups, administrators, teachers, and volunteers from across the state that helped “green” their academic communities were recognized and credited for their efforts; Theermann, this time, along with the town of Wellesley, received an Outstanding Commitment to Environmental Education Award, presented by Gina McCarthy of the United States EPA.

As of this Spring 2015, Theermann and Ellen Korpi, currently Chair of WSEC, report that, “Wellesley has eight times as many solar-powered homes, plus its first solar-powered local business, than it did before the town’s Sustainable Energy Committee’s ‘More Power To Choose Sun Program’ started a year ago; only eight Wellesley homes were powered by solar when the WSEC kicked-off the initiative last March, compared to nearly 70 systems that have been installed since.” Theermann, MBA, says she began paying attention to “what chemicals were in our food, what we cooked/ ate with, and what we put on our bodies” when her family began having allergies and adds, “the real turning point for activism {for me} was while watching a documentary 8 years ago. It asked: “what will you tell your children 20 years from now when they say, ‘so you knew about climate change and didn’t do anything about it?’ I couldn’t let that be me. I had never really thought about it much before, but became motivated.”

When asked, what she thinks is a motivating factor in getting Wellesley residents to go solar, she says the following, “the town program’s discounted price on solar systems (around 30% below the state average) as well as town, state, and federal incentives really encouraged Wellesley residents and a business to go solar.”

Success metrics provided by WSEC include the following:

1. 681 thermal images requested

2. began with 8 private homes and 4 townhouses in the Linden Square area. In 2014, 75 solar contracts were signed (64 with Astrum Solar).

3. total solar Kilowatts contracted is approximately 0.5 Megawatts

4. 159 in-home assessments of energy efficiency completed

5. 31 full “weatherizations” have been completed in Wellesley

6. up to 17.7% or more return on investment and on average, a payback period of five to seven years on most homes

This winter continues to be a challenging one with no respite in sight from freezing temperatures and seemingly glacial, ice-damns; but Theermann says the following, referring to the brand new solar panels on her roof, “I am watching the meter on my solar app right now and feeling pretty good that on this bitter cold, yet sunny day, I am producing some of my own, clean energy.”

The Sustainability Challenge is still open to accepting student submissions- the deadline is March 1st, 2015. Video submissions will have a chance to be aired on TV by Wellesley Media Corporation and the winner will be announced and awarded at the Wellesley STEM Expo on March 28th, at Wellesley High School (10 am-2 pm). Students: submit your video via following directions on this link: sustainablewellesleyvideocontest.