Renewable Energy
What if we thought about energy the way we think about food? Locally-sourced, responsibly harvested, with our dollars staying in our community. Middlebury sits in a unique position close to abundant supplies of wood, solar, wind, and hydro. This is doable, and it's up to us to do it.
Better Energy Projects for Us
Over the last few years, Middlebury has engaged in several community-scale renewable energy projects. The Town partnered with ACoRN Energy Co-op and installed a 150kW solar array at the police department. In June of 2014, we installed solar hot water panels for the town pool. The new Town Offices received a Net-Zero certification, which means in our case that locally-sited solar arrays dedicated to the new building will generate more energy than it will consume over the course of a year. We've explored the possibilities of biomass, biogas, wind, and restoring hydropower at the Middlebury Falls. We've made promising initial steps toward renewable energy for Town facilities, and we're just scratching the surface of what's possible.
Individuals and businesses in Middlebury have also made significant progress with renewable energy. According to the Vermont Community Energy Dashboard, Middlebury has 172 solar energy sites consisting of 25 ground-mounted PV sites, 119 roof-mounted sites, and 28 solar hot water sites with a combined electrical capacity of 4.7 megawatts and heat capacity of 2.7 MMBTUs (or million British Thermal Units). There are also several wind, hydro, and biomass sites listed. The Dashboard also lists some Middlebury community energy actions and stories.
| 150 kW solar array at the Middlebury Police Station |
Solar heating for the Town Pool | New Town Office is Net-Zero |
