Lenox homeowners urged to ‘GreenUp’

By Claire CoxPrint Story | Email Story
LENOX — The Lenox Environment Committee has launched a campaign to encourage homeowner investments in renewable energy that can result in cleaner air and generate cash dividends for the town. The GreenUp program, offered by Massachusetts Electric Co., will give customers the option of signing on with any of four companies that provide “clean” electric energy created with biomass, solar, wind or hydroelectric power. Every “clean” watt produced replaces an equal amount of “dirty” energy created with coal and oil power, according to program organizers. The committee, fueled by concerns surrounding climate change and pollution, voted on Thursday, Dec. 9, in Town Hall to work with the Selectmen to make Lenox a “green town.” “We have to get the word out,” said Jamie Cuhillane, committee chairman and a waste-management specialist for the Center for Ecological Technology in Pittsfield. Cuhillane said becoming part of the GreenUp program is a simple process. “In the GreenUp program, you make a choice to sign up for clean energy with any of the providers. The idea is that you are telling Mass. Electric that ‘my household wants to buy clean energy.’ You are asking them to buy clean energy for you. It’s all in the grid. It’s out there so that not only your household is getting the wind power.” Raya Ariella, a waste-management-and renewal-energy specialist with the center, added that Mass. Electric customers have received forms with their recent bills listing the four options among GreenUp providers — Sterling Planet, Community Energy, the Center for Ecological Technology and Conservator Services Group Inc. (with Mass. Energy Consumers Alliance). Each service its own mix of clean energy sources, and all provide wind and hydroelectric power. Several produce solar power and energy created by biomass — which is made up of diverse fuels such as timber, agricultural and food-processing wastes — and even sewage sludge and animal manure. Signing up with any of the clean-energy providers brings a monthly charge in addition to the regular Mass. Electric bill. Depending on the number of kilowatts used in a household, the added monthly charge may range from under 1 cent to 1.35 cents per kilowatt. The GreenUp charge, which is listed separately and can be claimed as a nonprofit deduction on tax returns, runs at $10 to $15 a month for an average household. For example, Ariella said, an average household billed for 500 kilowatts would pay a premium of $10 as an investment in clean energy. “First, you have to be a Mass. Electric customer,” she explained in an interview after the meeting. “Once you sign up with one source, it means that you, as a user of electricity, are asking that the electrons needed to produce electricity be obtained from those renewable sources. “The most important thing to do is to GreenUp, reducing the most important amount of electricity produced from dirty, polluting finite fossil fuels. It is best to choose one that represents a diverse mix.” A chart Ariella presented at the meeting analyzed the benefits for the town if 10 percent of the 2,212 Lenox households, using 659 kilowatts a month from December 2003 to June of this year, had signed on to GreenUp. Their investments would have brought a $22,702 dividend to the town for energy-saving-and cost-effective projects such as solar panels for town buildings, solar lighting or solar-powered computer displays. Carter Wilding, a committee member, said that by signing up, a homeowner is buying electrons. “Once they go into the grid that serves all customers, there is no differentiation from other electrons,” he said, “but you know that your electrons are helping the clean producers to get a foothold in the grid.”
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Lanesborough Fifth-Graders Win Snowplow Name Contest

LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — One of the snowplows for Highway District 1 has a new name: "The Blizzard Boss."
 
The name comes from teacher Gina Wagner's fifth-grade class at Lanesborough Elementary School. 
 
The state Department of Transportation announced the winners of the fourth annual "Name A Snowplow" contest on Monday. 
 
The department received entries from public elementary and middle school classrooms across the commonwealth to name the 12 MassDOT snowplows that will be in service during the 2025/2026 winter season. 
 
The purpose of the contest is to celebrate the snow and ice season and to recognize the hard work and dedication shown by public works employees and contractors during winter operations. 
 
"Thank you to all of the students who participated. Your creativity allows us to highlight to all, the importance of the work performed by our workforce," said  interim MassDOT Secretary Phil Eng.  
 
"Our workforce takes pride as they clear snow and ice, keeping our roads safe during adverse weather events for all that need to travel. ?To our contest winners and participants, know that you have added some fun to the serious take of operating plows. ?I'm proud of the skill and dedication from our crews and thank the public of the shared responsibility to slow down, give plows space and put safety first every time there is a winter weather event."
 
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