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Meeting Minutes
Thursday, August 19th, 2010
6:30 pm
120 Washington St.
Salem, Ma
In Attendance: Adam Segal, Cindy Keegan (Chair), John Hayes, Jenna Ide, Jeff Barz-Snell
Members not in attendance: Rob DeRosier (V. Chair), Rick Nye, Nick Lewis, Jeff Brandt
City Staff: Paul Marquis (Salem Energy Manager & RETF/ City Liaison)
Public: None
Administrative business
- July meeting minutes approved w/ changes
General Business
- Topics discussed included final purchases under the Clean Energy Choice grant, the Green Communities-funded weatherization barnraising program to be kicked off on 10/10/10 in observance of the 350.org Global Climate Action Work Party and issues relating to the proposed wind turbine at Winter Island.
- Clean Energy Choice expenditures-
- Paul Marquis noted that he had found the old banner and suggested that the Task Force assess its condition to decide whether or not it should be replaced. The Task Force unanimously agreed that the banner was in decent enough condition to continue using it.
- Members discussed ways to reallocate the funds that were slated for banner replacement and a small (approx. $15) uncommitted surplus, totaling about $175.
- Ideas suggested included the purchase of more Kill-a-Watt meter to commit to programs like the weatherization program, printing and associated expenses for education and outreach materials, renewable energy kits or educational tools for the elementary schools, and an educational photovoltaic demonstration kit.
- The Task Force unanimously agreed to spend the remaining funds in the following manner: 2 additional Kill-a-Watt meters at about $20 each, $30 – 40 for education & outreach materials, and the balance for educational kits.
- Weatherization barnraising program-
- Paul Marquis briefed the members regarding general program framework.
- There was a general discussion regarding developing basic promotional materials and getting the word out. Cindy Keegan offered to develop a basic flyer design. Paul Marquis will develop a description for the program coordinator that will be hired to help lead the program.
- Jeff Barz-Snell suggested trying to enlist Alan Hanscom, the web coordinator for Salem Alliance For the Environment (SAFE), to help in getting the word out.
- Members discussed the issue of identifying a good candidate home for a ‘tune-up’ weatherization to get team leaders up to speed. Members Jenna Ide and Cindy Keegan offered up their homes for consideration. Paul Marquis noted that they would be seriously considered if they met the desired technical qualifications.
- Winter Island wind project-
- Cindy Keegan expressed the view that the public education campaign associated with Winter Island should begin with a general discussion of wind energy, rather than focusing specifically on Winter Island. This would serve to dispel misconceptions about wind energy before any public discussion or debate begins.
- The members began a general discussion about the practical issues associated with a potential installation including historical preservation requirements such as whether or not the turbine would be visible from an historic site, permitting issues- particularly with respect to land ownership/ jurisdictional issues, Conservation Commission involvement, and potential utility interconnection problems.
- Regarding the interconnection issue, member Jenna Ide suggested that the process can be “hard and long” and that it would be wise to address this early and suggested that there is a particular person at National Grid who could help with navigating this process.
- Jeff Barz-Snell echoed the idea about addressing the issue directly with the utility early in the process.
- There was a brief discussion regarding funding mechanisms. Several members expressed the idea that in the long term it might be more favorable to the City to secure financing on its own rather than underwriting the project through a power purchase agreement (PPA). Jeff Barz-Snell noted that he was unaware of any municipality that had successfully implemented a project via a PPA. Jenna Ide said that she could point members to a good bond calculator that the state has been using. Paul Marquis suggested that as a city official who would be involved in the decision making regarding the project financing, he would like to see a side-by-side comparison of financing via a general bond issue versus a PPA. Jeff Barz-Snell offered to share an ROI spreadsheet that he was developing.
- The discussion returned to ownership/ jurisdictional issues. Jeff Barz-Snell noted that the City may not own Winter Island outright, and that while the Park & Recreation Commission has some general authority at Winter Island and had approved the met tower there, approval of the wind facility itself may not be at their sole discretion.
- Jenna Ide and Jeff Barz-Snell noted that land ownership issues, particularly with respect to transfer of public land, are often one of the primary sticking points with projects of this sort. Jenna noted that a PPA for a project on public land can be difficult and that at the state level, this had never taken place. She further noted that the fact that Winter Island is largely park land could make issues here particularly difficult. Jeff added that there may also be issues associated with the Plummer Estate and the City.
- Jeff Barz-Snell suggested to Paul Marquis that he should pursue information regarding these potential ownership issues as early as possible. Paul Marquis agreed.
- Jeff Barz-Snell noted that if interconnection issues prove to be difficult it could potentially add 15 – 20% to overall project cost.
- Cindy Keegan noted that the FAA may need to be engaged given the proximity of the project to Beverly Airport. Several other members pointed out the fact that the nearby Dominion power plant smoke stacks were higher than the proposed wind turbine.
- Jenna Ide noted that transport of project materials and equipment could be a potential issue and explained that temporary roadwork is often employed.
- Jeff Barz-Snell informed the members that SAFE had already begun informal meetings in neighborhoods in the vicinity of Winter Island to try to begin building support for the project and suggested that the Task Force needed to think about its potential role here.
- Paul Marquis suggested that the project proposal need a local ‘rock star’ or champion who is a respected member of the community and that Jeff Barz-Snell might be a good candidate.
- Jenna Ide suggested that a good way to build public support in the community was to demonstrate the financial savings to the City and its residents.
- Jeff Barz-Snell suggested looking to Hull as a model of success. He noted that with respect to potential noise from a wind facility, which might be of particular concern to Salem residents, the two turbines already in operation in Hull have had virtually no noise issues associated with them, and that with at least one of the units, it was in close proximity to a residential neighborhood.
- A member asked about the generating capacity and cost of the unit being explored at Winter Island. Jeff Bar-Snell answered that the preliminary results of the feasibility study seemed to strongly suggest that a 1.5MW unit represents the optimum size and that the cost of this would be about $4.2M. He also noted that the simple payback period would be relatively short if the unit were to help the City avoid $500K in annual electricity cost as expected.
- Jenna Ide noted that one of the state projects with which she is associated has a 2MW capacity at a cost of $10.5M, but that this cost includes a five year maintenance contract. She suggested that the City might consider rolling a maintenance agreement into its own program.
- Paul Marquis had earlier forwarded the preliminary feasibility report from Meridian to a few members of the Task Force but promised to forward it to the rest of the members.
- Paul Marquis suggested that a wind turbine at Winter Island might create sound issues for the paying campers there, but several members pointed out that ambient noise levels due to the nearby power plant and sewage treatment facilities, and the wind itself, were often much higher than the expected noise from a turbine.
Votes taken
- Clean Energy Choice grant expenditures- unanimous votes to keep existing banner and apply surplus funds to alternative uses as noted above
Action items arising from discussion
- Paul Marquis- Make final purchases associated with Clean Energy Choice grant
- Cindy Keegan- Develop weatherization flyer
- Paul Marquis- Develop weatherization program coordinator job description
- Jeff Barz-Snell- Forward Winter Island ROI spreadsheet to Task Force members and Paul Marquis
- Paul Marquis- Forward to Task Force members preliminary Winter Island feasibility report from Meridian Associates
- Jenna Ide- Direct Task Force members and Paul Marquis to the bond calculator that the state uses.
- Paul Marquis- Begin to research legal ownership issues at Winter Island
No deadlines were established for Action Items
Agenda items not discussed
- 10/2/10 NESEA Green Building Open House planning
- Green Salem Business Challenge update
Meeting Minutes recorded by Paul Marquis
Meeting adjourned at 8:38 pm
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