(Binghamton- NY) The Broome County Legislature will meet this Thursday to vote on a resolution which would implement a “Cost-Effective Energy Improvement” program for future construction of County facilities, any major renovation of County facilities, and energy saving operational practices and management of existing county facilities.

 

The resolution was developed by Broome County Legislator Jason Garnar in conjunction with the Broome County Public Works Department, and is a major recommendation that the Broome County Energy Advisory Board made several months ago. It is just one of a number of “green” initiatives recently passed by Broome, which include the purchase of Hybrid buses, establishing a policy requiring the county to purchase “Energy Star” products, and removing the sales tax on solar panels purchased within the county.

 

“We have executed many energy efficient upgrades within county facilities,” said Broome County Executive Barbara J. Fiala. “This year alone, we have replaced lighting within the county office building, installed motion sensor controls in offices and installed a new white energy saving roof at the Broome County Veteran’s Memorial Arena. While we have implemented green practices in our facility maintenance and construction projects, this legislation assures that green practices will continue in the years to come.”

 

If passed, the legislation will require the county to use best practices in energy efficiency when constructing new or renovating current county owned facilities. In addition, the county Public Works department will also be given the authority to establish energy saving operational practices and management. The county will incorporate various design principles from several standards, including NYSERDA and the Department of Energy “Energy Star” guidelines for Energy Management and Green Building Design. The county will conduct a feasibility study for each individual project and will implement the energy-efficient design if the study determines that it is cost-effective.

 

“In this economy, with government budgets stretched to the max, we need to become as energy-efficient as possible”, remarked Legislator Garnar. “This legislation is a victory for taxpayers because not only will it ensure that future county building construction and operations will be “green”, but perhaps more importantly, it will result in a substantial savings to the taxpayer as less energy will be used”.