Community Energy Challenge incentives now cover up to 30% of project costs!

Good news for Whatcom residents who want to save energy and money! 

Financial incentives available through the Community Energy Challenge residential program can now cover 30% of project costs or $1,500 - whichever is more.

For a limited time, all eligible CEC residential projects have access to a cash incentive totaling 30% of the total cost of each tier (excluding tier 4--windows). The original incentive amount of $1,500 is available to projects in the case where 30% of the cost of the project is less than that amount. 

There is also an exclusive low-interest loan available to qualified participants interested in financing their energy efficiency projects.

After you have an energy assessment, a Home Energy Advisor can help you navigate the available incentives for your project to create the most cost-effective plan for completing your energy efficiency upgrades. 

It's never been easier to save energy and money, increase the value and comfort of your home, and reduce pollution in Whatcom County!

Questions? Contact communityenergychallenge@oppco.org

Another Proud Participant

We got some great feedback from Flip, a resident of the Columbia Neighborhood who participated in the residential program and is recommending the Community Energy Challenge to her friends and neighbors. Thanks for sharing your story!

We've just completed an energy conservation upgrade on our house through the Community Energy Challenge.  I cannot recommend this program highly enough! They help you make your home more energy efficient, and find every grant & rebate possible to help you afford it. It is Federal Stimulus funds that actually help Main Street.

One: it helps put out of work construction workers back to work, and retrains them to become experts in an important field.

Two: It makes our community less reliant on power plants. The cheapest way to save energy is through conservation.

Three: It improves our local housing. Our house is definitely warmer and more comfortable now after major insulating and some leak sealing as well. The CEC paid careful attention to things that would not have occurred to me, like maintaining air quality after sealing leaks, and excluding rodents.

Four: It saves money on heating, and it's affordable. They have supported loans so more people can afford to get this work done. The program is also aimed at middle-class people, so you don't have to prove you're broke to qualify.

One million square feet of local business space assessed!

 Here at the Community Energy Challenge, we're all about the numbers. The CEC is working toward the goal of helping Whatcom County save $1,000,000 in energy costs by providing affordable energy assessments to local businesses and homes. So far we've assessed 330 homes and completed projects on 80, finding potential savings of $200-$400 or 20-30% of annual energy costs per home. As for local businesses, 59 have signed up so far and we are finding the potential for an average of $500-$1,000 in annual savings per business, or 3-5% of energy costs per year.

Commercial Conservation Services, the division of the Community Energy Challenge that serves local businesses, has recently reached another exciting numerical milestone. Our Commercial Conservation Specialist, Martin Selch, has assessed over 1,000,000 square feet of local business space.

Introducing new, even lower interest rates on all CEC loans

We are very happy to announce that all Banner Bank loans for Community Energy Challenge projects now have interest rates between 1.00%-3.00% for individuals¹ and 1.50%-3.00% for businesses².

As a key element of making energy efficiency accessible, affordable and easy, the Community Energy Challenge provides preferential term financing through the use of a loan loss reserve fund. Using a grant from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), the CEC was able to buy down interest rates on loans for energy efficiency improvements through our partner Banner Bank. This provides participants with an exceptionally cost-effective way to finance their projects and extends financing to those who might not otherwise be eligible, reducing the interest paid by borrowers.

City of Bellingham offers water saving rebates

The Community Energy Challenge and the City Water Conservation Program have teamed up to offer rebates to city water customers participating in the CEC. The rebates, up to $150, apply to certain water conserving fixtures, drip irrigation systems, or rainwater catchment systems. They are intended to make it easier for participants to save water as they save energy and to educate about the relationship between the two. “Pairing these two programs recognizes the important link between energy and water use,” said Anitra Accetturo, Water Conservation Specialist. “Conserving water conserves energy, and conserving energy conserves water,” said Accetturo.

Case in point, a recent study looking at the energy used by the city’s water and wastewater treatment systems found that for every 100 cubic feet of city water that is saved, $0.37 in energy and chemical costs are saved. As Bellingham works to meet the state mandate of a fully metered water system, homeowners reducing their water use can benefit from lower water bills and help reduce the energy and chemical costs associated with supplying drinking water.

For more information about the rebate program, contact Andrea at AHood@cob.org.

Breaking down barriers to efficiency

With all of the focus on developing new energy sources to reduce American dependence on finite foreign fossil fuels it’s easy to forget that there is an easy, inexpensive, emissions-free way to increase energy availability: energy efficiency. The beauty of efficiency is that on some level we all have individual control over it; anyone who has saved money by turning down their heater thermostat can attest to this. On a national scale, it is estimated that the US could reduce energy consumption by 23% across all sectors by implementing a comprehensive efficiency strategy.

CEEP legislative report highlights CEC and similar programs

A report on Community Energy Efficiency Pilot (CEEP) programs released last month by the Washington State University (WSU) Extension highlights the efforts of the Community Energy Challenge and seven other Washington State energy efficiency programs to develop innovative ways to provide services to their communities. All of the programs highlighted in the report received grants administered by WSU and funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) with the mandate to "develop and implement pilot programs providing community-wide urban residential and commercial energy efficiency upgrades."

The legislature set forth the following goals for participating programs:

– Increase public outreach on energy efficiency.
– Grow the retrofit industry and workforce with family-wage jobs.
– Expand delivery of energy efficiency services and incentives to those immediately above low-income thresholds.
– Test whole neighborhood approaches and other innovative approaches.
– Provide creative energy efficiency financing options.

The Community Energy Challenge is highlighted for creating local jobs and the report includes a quote from a participating contractor who said "I would likely not be in business without the Community Energy Challenge." Another quoted contractor credits the work generated by the CEC with allowing him to hire two new employees. The report also mentions North Fork Brewery, a local business that has saved an average of 7.5 percent of their energy costs with recommendations made by the CEC and is in the process of installing solar panels.

Other pilot programs include City of Ellensburg, Clark Public Utilities, Puget Sound Energy & UCONS L.L.C., Snohomish County Public Utility District, Sustainable Living Center, SustainableWorks, and Thurston County Economic Development Council.