T. J. ROYAL
The next steps for Edgecombe County agencies to try to gain federal stimulus funds came in the classroom Tuesday at Edgecombe Community College.
Len Hoey, director of the utilities savings initiative for the State Energy Office, gave a full-day lecture to several area agencies inside the Fleming building.
Tarboro Town Manager Sam Noble, Tarboro Planner Troy Lewis and Edgecombe County Economic Development Director Eric Evans were among the 20-plus attendees who were at the workshop.
During the afternoon session, Hoey said that different private and public agencies "need someone who is going to be passionate about energy conservation" to head up their efforts to attract federal dollars.
Stimulus funding will provide $58.3 million to North Carolina through Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants, as well as another $75.9 million to promote the use of renewable energy resources.
There will also be $132 million made available in the state for residential weatherization procedures.
There will also be $132 million made available in the state for residential weatherization procedures. Of that amount, Martin County Community Action has received $1.029 million to perform weatherization services within Edgecombe County.
In order for a local agency to get considered for the $130-plus million in energy efficiency funds, Hoey said "they can't be shy" about speaking about why, and how, their agency plans to put those dollars to use.
If a local government employs someone who is less than enthusiastic about trying to attract energy efficiency dollars, he pointed out that "insincerity comes through immediately." The designated person "needs to know what a Btu (British thermal unit) is, and what a kilowatt-hour is," he added. A BTU is the amount of heat required to raise one pound of water one degree in fahrenheit. A kilowatt-hour is how much energy a 1,000-watt appliance uses for one hour.
Hoey noted that when it comes to assessing which agencies are meeting their goals for the stimulus funds, their locations, climates and energy needs would be taken into consideration.
He said that currently, the UNC-Asheville campus is the most energy efficient state agency throughout North Carolina. However, a state-funded television station like UNC-TV would not be able to match that campus's energy conservation methods because of the demands of their business, he added.
After the workshop was over, Noble said that "partnering with Edgecombe County or Edgecombe Community College" would be a way for Tarboro, and also the other agencies, to gain some leverage for any funding that could their way from the stimulus.
Hoey agreed with him, that such leveraging would be looked upon favorably when funds are distributed to local agencies.
But Noble said that "it's a moving target" as far as figuring out what kind of regulations are going to be placed on agencies when, or if, they receive funding from the stimulus plan.
He added that the workshop's input will help Town of Tarboro and other agencies develop their own plans for how they would approach the state for funding.
"(The workshop) gave us some direction on what we have to do to capitalize on the program."
