Woodbury Energy Committee Meeting July 20, 2011 DRAFT MINUTES
(copied from http://www.woodburyct.org/meetings/energy/EnergyCmte%207-20-11%20Minutes.pdf to a graphics program, saved as a tiff file, imported into MS Office Document Imaging, optical character recognition applied, text copied then pasted here)
Attendees: Richard Anderson, Linda Zukauskas, Norman Sherman. Gary Numberger
Absent Roger Plourde (out of town, on vacation, absence approved by chair)
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
The committee unanimously approved minutes of the last meeting.
CORRESPONDENCE
Linda gave each committee member a copy of the Woodbury Library Long Range Plan. She passed along the compliments of Library Director Pat Lann who appreciates the professionalism of the Energy Committee and asks their input on the plan.
In other correspondence. First Selectman Jerry Stomskl updated the committee on the status of the air sealing and ductwork project.
At the 6/23/2011 BOS meeting, the selectmen awarded ECS a contract for air sealing for $11,626.00 and a contract to Paparazzo Sheet Metal for the dud work for $10,756.00 as per the recommendation of the
PBC.
The additional 400ft of pipe insulation will be out for bid.
Linda Anderson has notified.
You may contact the individual contractors to see what their schedule are for performing the work, such as insulating, sheet metal and/or duct blasting.
Please let me know If you need additional Information.
Linda commended Roger for his help in getting a rebate from CL&P, In the amount of $1373. She also thanked Chair Chris l.aus for using the specs from the bidder who won the heat pump RFQ and prepared the CL&P paperwork.
She noted that this rebate is not time-sensitive but the money that the town might get for installing new ductwork is dependent on getting informatIon to CL&P and a memorandum of understanding in place (gfuç work begins.
ACTION ITEM: Linda and Roger wIll wai’* to gather the results of the duct blast test to get the CL&P money in place.
PRIVII.EGE OF THE FLOOR
There was none.
UNFiNISHED BUSINESS:
ARRA Block Grant Update— Linda I
Referring to the memo referencing the EC’s recommendation for an HVAC Plan, Linda said that Ron Judson had not gathered information at the time of the iast PBC meeting and the PBC will not meet 7/27 due to a lack of a quorum. Linda will follow up on this at the August PBC meeting so this doesn’t fall through the cracks. She noted this doesn’t have to be a huge project for one person as the Information does esist somewhere and it’s a matter of just pulling It together.
The committee also noted the new school administration would need to be brought in to the project. Gary asked who was administering the work for the air sealing and ductwork.
V ACEON ITEM: Undo wilifoilow up with Jerry and task If his office is expecting anything from the EC
Linda confirmed that the duct blast test would come first to get results for the CL&P monies. Roger has said he has materials he can use to convert the duct hiatt test so the data needed to apply to CL&P.
The committee discussed the removal of air tanks. Chris had sent an email saylnw.
The PBC has taken the position that the risk of fire by cutting with a torch or saw of the oid air tanks in the Shove Attic is real and unacceptable. We therefore have recommended to the First Selectman that the air tanks stay in place and the air sealing of the front attic floor be performed around the tanks. Since trapped air itself is a great insulator perhaps the loss of efficiency wont be great.
Richard followed up with Jerry and was toid that Jerry had asked about insurance and received a blank stare from an estimator.
in response to Gary’s question, Linda clarified that PBC said they would ask ECS to include a layer of hard insulation to bring the floor of the attic up to RE or Ri. This was to be added to the approved bid; removal of tanks was never going to be something the town would ask of ECS.
Gary noted that the issue is no longer about money but risk of fire.
Linda said that, without paying for tank removal, there would be more money left in the EECBG. She had received approval from OPM to use some of the EECBG funds forthe removal of the air tanks.
Richard noted the tSB is done and there is insulation in Boyd. After working on Shove, the work is done in this project and he asked what more can be done for the buildings.
Linda said the town does not need to spend the whole EECBG.
Richard asked if the work of the EC would be done soon and didn’t see a “hard, physical” direction for the committee. He did see a direction for an education component.
Linda noted that while other energy committees/commissions in other towns are using grants and other funds so Implement innovative technologies such as wind and solar power, the Woodbury EC thinks these are not worth the Investment until the technology improves.
She aiso noted that Newtown is converting fleet vehicles to natural gas and Newtown and Woodbury both have a gas line running through their towns. It might be another project to consider.
Gary said he’d attended a Newtown Sustainable Energy Commission and one of their projects involved kids in updating their web site. He suggested the Woodbury EC might do something like that.
Norman said the EC could educate itself and offer that information to the public, comparing different energy alternatives available. He cautioned that some good items might not be readily available, either locally or time-wise (I.e., not fully developed).
Richard said he would like the EC to “see some results,” noting that the EC has a diverse background and has done some good work.
He asked if it would be wise to iook at window replacements as another project. The EC has done the attic (A) and basement (B) work and the conditioned space (C) is the next logical area to address.
Gary noted that his study showed exterior storms to be the best solution but not nearly as effective as insulation.
Linda said the remainder of the EECBG funds should be around $10,000 so the EC could start a window project and Gary said it might be possible to supplement such a project with other funds.
Richard expressed concerns that the PBC or Historical Commission might not be on board and Gary said that while exterior storms are not the most attractive solution, they do protect the original windows and it should please the Historical Commission.
Linda said the library is relatively new and the committee said it makes more sense to work on older buildings where the return on investment is higher. She added that the hot air rises in the atrium, trapping and overheating the rooms on the second floor overlooking the first. It might make sense to install fans to push the hot air away and recalculate it below.
V ACTION ITEM: The members will think about a direction and discuss it at the next meeting.
CT Clean Energy Grant of $2,000 Update — Linda Z.
There was no discussion.
Comparison of Energy Alternativea — Norm S.
Norman explained that the rush on naturai gas has pushed the Industry to drill father (from 1000 to 1500 feet) to reach the gas. in the past, production costs were significantly lower than sales, indicating a large profit margin. Today, the production costs have risen to the point where the margin is very smaii.
This trend has been present for three to four years.
Norman noted that pockets of gas are isolated as opposed to a continuous area as found in oil fields.
He concluded that natural gas might not be the “silver bullet” to energy woes.
The committee also discussed the problems with fracturing the earth to release gas. It has poisoned wells in nearby homes, to the point where people can Ignite the water coming from their faucets because it is so full of flammable (and poisonous) material.
Norman also showed graphs so indicate that the reserves are not ask large as claimed by gas companies.
He cautioned that there is methane hydrate trapped in ice and there are concerns that global warming might release these icy deposits of methane gas, which is 20 times more harmful to the global warming effect than carbon dioxide.
Energy Committee Meeting, Wednesday, October 15, 2010 7 p.m. Shove Building – Linda Z. – Linda Z.
Recycling Plan
History of Town Buildings
– Gary N., update on exterior storms
Comparison of Energy Alternatives
– Norm S.
Energy Committee Web Page –
Linda Z.
o
Consider adding electricity resources to our web site: http://www.cl-p.com/vpp/vpp.aspx
Education Opportunities
Next seminar date
Discuss ways to increase participation
–
Collaboration
Roger’s meeting w/Jay Hubblebank
Meter the Town Hall (Roger)
–
NEW BUSINESS:
SECOND PRIVILEGE OF THE FLOOR
ADJOURNMENT
Respectfully submitted,
Linda Zukauskas- Chair
From http://www.voicesnews.com/articles/2010/08/25/community_news/doc4c73f1b7235dd151211134.txt
Energy Committee Schedules Energy Conservation Seminar
Published:
Wednesday, August 25, 2010 7:10 AM EDT
WOODBURY — An energy conservation seminar, sponsored by the Energy Committee, will take place at 7 p.m. Thursday, September 2, at the Woodbury Public Library, 269 Main St. South.
Energy Committee Chairman Linda Zukauskas said the committee has been working to identify energy and cost savings in town.
The town was recently awarded a $52,954 grant as part of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, administered by the state Office of Policy and Management.
A portion of the grant was spent on a Saturday, July 31, energy audit of the Shove and Boyd Buildings. The audit was conducted by Energy Conservation Specialists of Connecticut, LLC, for $2,200.
Energy Conservation Specialists’ staff volunteered to conduct a visual inspection of the Woodbury Public Library, the press release stated.
ECS did not advise a blower-door test due to the presence of vermiculite, said Ms. Zukauskas. Vermiculite is a natural mineral that can contain asbestos.
The energy audit was primarily conducted to identify air filtration: how air moves in the building. The building was made airtight, then the air was sucked out of the building by a fan.
Measurements of the pressure in the building were taken and compared to what the pressure levels are supposed to be, in order to identify how much air is leaking.
The Boyd Building showed air leakage, particularly where a space was made to put a mechanical device through. The space was bigger than the mechanical device, so air is leaking through the space.
The Shove Building showed air leakage through ducts.
“To have a healthy building, you need to exchange one-third the volume of air in the building every hour,” said Ms. Zukauskas.
“The Shove Building is exchanging at least three times that amount and that’s unnecessary.”
She said Energy Conservation Specialists were thorough and knowledgeable and a comprehensive report is expected soon.
Once that arrives, Ms. Zukauskas said the Energy Committee will share the report with the Public Building Commission.
The Energy Committee is seeking to spend the remainder of the grant on making the buildings more energy-efficient by insulating and replacing the leaky duct work, said Ms. Zukauskas.
The committee is always seeking volunteers, she said.
“The Energy Committee is seeking support for a long-term plan and we’re seeking interested parties who may want to be part of the Energy Committee,” she said.
“We want people to bring their expertise, because we’re a small committee and there is a lot of work to be done and a lot of money to be saved.”
The Energy Committee meets at 7 p.m. the third Wednesday of every month in the Shove Conference Room, 281 Main St. South.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
CORRESPONDENCE
PRIVILEGE OF THE FLOOR
UNFINISHED BUSINESS:
ARRA Block Grant Update
CT Clean Energy Grant of $2,000 Update