LEDs to light way to energy savings in Easthampton
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EASTHAMPTON - Easthampton may be a shining example for the rest of the state when utility workers begin installing high-efficiency LED streetlights on Main Street Monday morning. Easthampton will be the first municipality in western Massachusetts, and the second in the state, to begin a large-scale installation of LED streetlighting to reduce energy use.
Mayor Michael Tautznik said the project could save the city $36,700 annually in reduced energy and maintenance costs.
Just over a year after the city was designated a Green Community by the state, 469 of the city's current high pressure sodium streetlights will be replaced by light-emitting diodes, or LEDs. The new bulbs are more energy efficient, cause less light pollution and can last 10 to 15 years longer than the current lights, Tautznik said.
Green Communities Deputy Director Megan Lusardi said most of the 74 municipalities that have been designated Green Communities are using their grants for energy conservation and efficiency measures in municipal buildings, but innovative projects such as Salem's and Easthampton's may inspire more communities to follow their lead.
"One great thing about the Green Communities program is that the communities have to do annual reports, so we can monitor their savings and report on what's working," she said.
The majority of the $223,000 project is being funded with a $170,000 Green Communities Grant from the Department of Energy Resources, which the city received after being named one of first 35 Green Communities in the state. The Western Massachusetts Electric Co. also contributed $52,700.
Tautznik said that while most Green Communities use their grants to retrofit municipal buildings to reduce energy consumption, Easthampton officials were looking for a project that would create "more meaningful change."
"The compelling reason we wanted to do it is for the energy savings, but we also wanted something that could be used as an example for other green communities," Tautznik said. "Maybe this will help other communities that are considering LED lighting, but aren't sure about doing it yet."
Lusardi said that five other Green Communities in the commonwealth are considering similar high-efficiency streetlighting options, most of them using LEDs. Salem completed its roughly 350-light installation in December, making it the frontrunner, Lusardi said, and the other five eastern Massachusetts communities are in various stages of development. In Boston and Watertown, small installments of LEDs are being tested out.
"We think it's a great use for the grant," Lusardi said. "We don't have any numbers from Salem yet, because they only finished in December, but they say that their utility bills demonstrate significant reductions and conservation."
A bright idea
Last week, the city received the first shipment of 128 LED lights, purchased from LED Roadway Lighting Ltd. of Nova Scotia. The shipment includes the 88-watt lightbulbs that will replace the existing street lights on Routes 10 and 141, which use 3½ times as much wattage.
Another 341 44-watt LEDs are due to arrive soon and will replace the 70-watt bulbs along another 31 city streets, including East, Ferry, Hendrick, Parsons and Park.
Tautznik estimated the replacement, to be completed by Westfield-based Utility Services of New England, will take four to five weeks.
The 44-watt lights have already been tested out on a few city streets, including Mechanic Street, Fairfield Avenue and a section of Holyoke Street near Vadnais Street.
Tautznik said the lights are "dark sky compliant," so they do not contribute to light pollution.
"The LED lighting is very direct, meaning that it will light the sidewalks and streets but not people's lawns and houses," he said.
Tautznik said the LEDs are estimated to save 175,000 watts, which would reduce the city's energy costs by $23,700 each year at current energy prices. With the estimated $13,000 in maintenance savings, the city stands to save about $36,700 per year.
In the most recent round of Green Communities awards announced on July 19, Shutesbury, Deerfield, Middlefield and Granby were among the new designees.
To qualify as a Green Community, a municipality must meet five clean energy benchmarks, which include adopting zoning or bylaw ordinances meant to encourage and expedite permitting for green energy projects; establishing a municipal energy-use plan to reduce consumption by 20 percent in five years; purchasing only fuel-efficient vehicles for municipal use; and requiring that all new residential construction more than 3,000 square feet and all new commercial and industrial real estate construction reduce their life-cycle energy costs.
Rebecca Everett can be reached at reverett@gazettenet.com.
