Curbing Carbon Output

Towns across Fairfield County are heating up efforts to cut their carbon footprint and reduce global warming.

One way for towns in the region to curtail carbon dioxide emissions involves taking stock of greenhouse gas emissions. Volunteers collect data from every structure within town limits. The information helps town officials both chart policy progress and encourage residents to curb carbon output.

The impetus for the inventory stems from the 1997 Kyoto Protocol. Although the U.S. isn't a signatory of the protocol, towns across the country are supposed to submit yearly reports.  During the next few years, 10 percent of households in each town must reduce emissions by 20 percent.

 "Every municipality needs to measure their emissions so they can reach the 80 percent reduction by 2050," said Patrice Gillespie who sits on Wilton's Conservation Commission. "That's an Obama goal and it's also a local goal."

A $4.1 million U.S. Department of Energy "Neighbor-to-Neighbor" grant awarded to 14 Connecticut towns will help area households attain those goals, said Kimberly Lake, chair of Westport's Green Task Force.

Westport completed its inventory of greenhouse gas emissions a couple years ago. Due to Interstate 95 and the Merritt Parkway, emissions were high, but the biggest use of energy was in homes, according to Lake. Progress has been made in the last several years, said Lake, and the "Neighbor-to-Neighbor" project beginning this fall is the next big push.

"A lot of town are focus on food and land preservation, and this is kind of a different challenge," she said.

Although Westport's inventory is finished, some towns in the region are behind others due to the tedious and time consuming nature of such an undertaking.

For example, Wilton hasn't made significant progress on the inventory. Last spring's Go Green Festival consumed a lot of energy but it still lacks a designated person to coordinate a team of volunteers.

But that doesn't mean Wilton isn't curbing CO2 emissions. Wilton's Energy Commission was instrumental in securing the Neighbor-to-Neighbor grant, which ultimately will help the town reduce emissions.

By contrast, Ridgefield completed its inventory.

Dwayne Escola, who runs Northeast Smart Energy, a solar installment company, also sits on Ridgefield's Energy Action Committee. Escola spent the better part of year collecting and estimating data. He used Google Earth to get information on buildings square footage. And he determined whether a building used oil or natural gas. Then he compiled all the data.

"You have to be persistent to get that kind of information. Greenhouse gas inventories are a technical bear and you need a concerted effort to coordinate the town volunteers," said Escola, a certified carbon reduction expert from National Association of Engineers.

When Westport conducted its survey, it discovered between 2 and 4 percent of the emissions come from town properties and schools. The rest comes from residential and commercial properties.

In addition to performing greenhouse gas inventories on the municipal level, the state of Connecticut is participating in a market-based effort to reduce emissions. The state joined 10 others in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, RGGI. The initiative requires Connecticut to cap CO2 emissions from the power sector 10 percent by 2018.

Through auctions states sell emission allowances and invest proceeds in energy efficiency, renewable energy and other clean energy technologies.

This is of course highly contested among politicians and industry. At one time, cap-and-trade, was viewed favorably on both sides of the aisle. Now many oppose it, calling it "cap–and-tax."

Still, efforts to promote energy efficiency continue.

Although Darien, Fairfield, New Canaan, and Norwalk aren't part of the federal grant, they too are exploring ways to encourage energy efficiency.

Darien has explored LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards. Darien Library became the first LEED gold-certified library in all of New England.

In Fairfield green building and clean energy initiatives are becoming more commonplace, with both summer and winter farmers markets happening.

R.A.C.E., Ridgefield Action Committee for the Environment, encourages residents to employ simple steps to reduce CO2 emissions. Using a clothesline instead of the dryer, eating less red meat and buying local produce are some of the organization's suggestions.

All these efforts ranks Connecticut as one of the top states regarding lowest per-capita carbon dioxide use, according to The American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy. It's one of four states — New York, Massachusetts, and Delaware — reporting a decline in carbon dioxide emissions.

However, taking a greenhouse gas emission inventory is but a first step. Escola said ultimately even more commitment to alternative energies is needed.

"We need to reduce our dependency so some future son or daughter doesn't have to go to war," Escola said. "Fewer tankers coming to the shore full of oil to me means fewer wars to fight and fewer Americans have to die."