Roanoke County administration representatives and citizen members of the “RC Clear” committee – the County’s answer to Roanoke City’s “Clean and Green” group – are looking at ways to get the public more engaged on carbon footprint reduction issues. The group, which meets monthly, toured the new fleet service center building recently.
The facility on Hollins Road meets certain LEED standards, meaning it was designed with energy efficiency and conservation in mind. County vehicles are serviced at the 5.5 million dollar building, which opened in November and replaced a much smaller facility located in Salem.
RC Clear then heard a presentation from Billy Weitzenfeld with the Floyd-based Association of Energy Conservation Professionals, concerning consumer education on energy efficiency and the merits of weatherizing homes.
Weitzenfeld said a multi-pronged approach works best when it comes to getting residents and businesses excited about spending money up front to reduce their carbon footprint and energy costs. He also said that to some extent, people may be “fatigued” with green issues at this point, so finding ways to make the movement more mainstream and practical are important.
“It starts with an [energy] audit,” said Weitzenfeld, who formerly headed up those programs. He praised the audits done locally by TAP for low-income residents, who can then get federal grants to weatherize homes. “Use that as a model,” he suggested to county officials on hand. Several at the meeting said they would like to see more grant money made available for middle class families that cannot afford expensive upgrades either.
“Follow-up to field audits performed is crucial,” added Weitzenfeld, “as a way to judge their effectiveness.” In other words, did people replace windows, seal leaks, install more efficient furnaces, etc. after receiving their audit? The RC Clear committee has just $50,000 to work with and must determine the best way to spend that money. It was noted that much more money has been allocated elsewhere for similar “go green” efforts.
Weitzenfeld said the county might want to consider holding workshops for those that want to conduct energy audits. The Association of Energy Conservation Professionals has also produced a DVD that extols the merits of energy audits and weatherization; in many cases older Roanoke homes can be seen being tested and renovated.
Many are curious about how long it may take to recoup any investment they might make to go greener. It begins by selling the sizzle: “You have to get people excited [and] show people that this stuff works,” said Weitzenfeld.
By Gene Marrano [email protected]