Fayetteville receives energy efficiency, conservation block grant

FAYETTEVILLE — The city of Fayetteville has been awarded $724,900 by the U.S. Department of Energy through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Acts Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant.

Mayor Lioneld Jordan said John Coleman's work and dedication to the citizens of Fayetteville and the city's goals for a strong sustainable community made this grant possible. Coleman is the city's sustainability coordinator.

Modeled after the long-standing Community Development Block Grant program, $3.2 billion in EECBG funding is being allocated to cities across the country to increase energy efficiency, conservation and renewable energy efforts. Cities with populations more than 30,000 can pursue direct funding from the Department of Energy while smaller cities have the opportunity to apply for funding through their state energy offices.

Fayetteville will allocate $150,000 toward LED street, pedestrian and trail light projects and $39,900 towards a solar panel installation on the new District Court Building. Another $250,000 will be used to continue energy efficiency upgrades on municipal buildings.

In 2010, the city will unveil a $250,000 community revolving loan fund targeting nonprofit organizations. This fund will allow nonprofits to receive funding for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects on their facilities at zero percent interest, and then use part of the energy savings to pay off the loan. This loan method will allow the city to impact more organizations during a longer period of time.

Finally, $35,000 will be allocated toward developing a greenhouse gas emissions inventory for city operations and the community of Fayetteville as well as grant administration. This money will assist city officials in better understanding energy use throughout its operations and how to target future efficiency projects. It will also provide necessary data for grant reporting requirements that include energy savings per federal dollar spent, renewable energy capacity installed, greenhouse gas emissions reduced, jobs created and funds leveraged.

For more information on the city's sustainability efforts, go to www.sustainability.accessfayetteville.org or blog.accessfayetteville.org/