Energy Commission Minutes

Minutes of 6/12/2024

June 17th, 2024

Carroll Energy Commission Minutes
Meeting of June 12, 2024
The Carroll Energy Commission mission is to advise, encourage, and facilitate energy conservation, energy efficiency, and clean energy solutions for public buildings and properties, businesses, and resident homes. The Committee shall provide leadership and direction for community education relating to energy and shall propose and explore funding for local energy projects.
These minutes of the Town of Carroll Energy Commission have been recorded by its Secretary. Though believed to be accurate and correct they are subject to additions, deletions, and corrections by the Energy Commission at its next meeting when the Commission votes its final approval of the minutes. They are being made available at this time to conform to the requirements of New Hampshire RSA 91-A:2.

Minutes recorded by Imre Szauter, Secretary

Commission members in attendance: Member Vern Amirault, Member and Select Board Representative John Greer, Vice Chair Imre Szauter, and Chair Bill Vecchio. Member Brian Mycko absent and excused.

Members of the public in attendance: Bobbi Amirault, Greg Couture, Melissa Elander (Clean Energy NH), Cathy Fulkerson, John Gardiner, Michael Gooden, Greg Hogan, Lorrie Hogan, and Rena Vecchio.

Presenters from Community Power Coalition of New Hampshire (CPCNH): Madelyn Bradley and Henry Herndon.

The meeting was called to order at 4:02 p.m. by Chair Vecchio.

Chair Vecchio invited all attendees to rise and join in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Chair Vecchio stated he would entertain a motion on the May 8, 2024 meeting minutes. Member Amirault motioned to accept the minutes as written. Member Greer seconded the motion. With no discussion, the motion passed with 4 AYES and 0 NAYS.

Under New Business, Chair Vecchio opened the CPCNH presentation by introducing the Carroll Energy Commission members. He read the Carroll Energy Commission mission statement, which includes supporting residents and businesses in town with regard to energy efficiency and savings.

Chair Vecchio provided background information on the CPCNH community power program (https://www.cpcnh.org) that forty-five New Hampshire communities will have adopted by the end of 2024. He then introduced Madelyn Bradley and Henry Herndon from CPCNH, and turned the floor over to them for their presentation.

Madelyn Bradley welcomed attendees and provided the CPCNH PowerPoint presentation, a copy of which is attached at the end of these minutes. Both Madelyn Bradley and Henry Herndon answered questions during the presentation from attendees.

At the end of their 30-minute presentation, they opened the floor to additional questions. Several attendees asked about how CPCNH was structured, how they obtained favorable bulk energy prices with savings passed on to consumers, and details about their website.

With no more questions from attendees, Chair Vecchio thanked Madelyn Bradley and Henry Herndon for making the trip to Carroll and for their presentation.

Chair Vecchio motioned to take a 10-minute recess. Vice Chair Szauter seconded the motion. With no discussion, the motion passed with 4 AYES and 0 NAYS. A recess was declared at 4:43 p.m.

Chair Vecchio restarted the meeting at 4:55 p.m. by thanking attendees for attending the CPCNH presentation and inviting them to remain for the rest of the Energy Commission meeting.

Under Old Business, Chair Vecchio opened a discussion on the status of the Affinity LED Lighting street light conversion project, approved by voters under Warrant Article 11 at the March 12, 2024 Town Second Session. Vice Chair Szauter confirmed that the required 50% deposit payment had been received by Affinity LED Lighting and that the next step is scheduling a physical inventory of all street lights in town.

Once the inventory information is gathered, it will be compared to the Eversource Energy inventory that forms the basis for the town’s current street light contract. Any differences will be investigated and resolved; a final report will be provided to the town for review. Consultation with Police Chief Tadd Bailey, Fire Chief Jeff Duncan, and Public Works Director Scott Sonia will take place and any issues resolved before submitting to the Select Board a recommendation to accept, accept with modification, or reject the report. If accepted, Affinity LED Lighting will proceed with the necessary steps to complete the project by September 30, 2024.

Under Old Business, Chair Vecchio opened a discussion on town solar PV (photovoltaic) arrays, a topic introduced at a previous meeting during a discussion on future Energy Commission projects and priorities. He noted a recently-announced NH DOE (Department of Energy) Municipal Solar Grant Program, with details provided by Melissa Elander of Clean Energy NH (CENH), that invites municipalities to apply for a grant to help offset the cost to taxpayers of qualified solar PV array systems.

Chair Vecchio also reminded attendees that changes to the federal tax code under the IRA (Inflation Reduction Act of 2022) allow government entities such as the Town of Carroll to apply for certain clean energy tax credits under a program called Elective Pay. He reported that grants, such as those from the NH DOE Municipal Solar Grant Program, and IRA Elective Pay funds are “stackable,” meaning that they can be combined, possibly along with other funding sources, to further reduce a project’s cost to taxpayers.

Chair Vecchio reviewed previous discussions regarding potential locations for one or more solar PV array projects on town-owned property. He invited Energy Commission members to focus on one potential project to get the town started on generating clean energy to offset Eversource Energy charges to the town. Chair Vecchio cautioned that a solar PV array size limit of 60 kW is one condition of the NH DOE grant program, so choosing an appropriate location to maximize production and energy cost reductions would be wise.

Chair Vecchio mentioned that an evaluation completed in 2023 determined that the Carroll Town Hall was a suitable location for an array of about 25 kW, while the Public Safety building was a suitable location for an array of about 50 kW. In both cases, the annual power production from each array was estimated to cover the annual Eversource Energy charges for those locations.

Chair Vecchio suggested that with an application deadline of August 1, 2024 the NH DOE Municipal Solar Grant Program provides only a few weeks to complete a rather significant application in order to be considered for a grant. He suggested using the Public Safety building as the first choice for consideration, due to the age of the structure (only 4 years old), the southern exposure of a significant portion of the roof, and the approximately 60 kWh of power the building used in 2023. This Eversource Energy account is second only to the pump house in terms of power consumption and cost.

Member Amirault commented that the NH DOE Municipal Solar Grant Program contains provisions that prioritize economically disadvantaged communities; the Town of Carroll doesn’t fall into that category. Melissa Elander commented that no community is guaranteed funding under this grant program, disadvantaged or not. Member Amirault and Melissa Elander confirmed other provisions of the grant program, such as duration of time needed to seek voter approval, the ability to stack a grant under this program with IRA Elective Pay funds (if qualified), and up to 100% of a project’s cost if the project is small enough and a grant is awarded.

Chair Vecchio asked if it is realistic to be able to complete the entire grant application with supporting documents by the August 1, 2024 deadline. Melissa Elander replied that she thought it was, especially since these kinds of grant opportunities don’t happen very often and could provide a significant source of funding for awarded projects.

Member Greer asked Melissa Elander about the IRA Elective Pay provision. She outlined how the process works, including the preregistration requirements for completed, in-service projects. She also stated the process is complex but rewarding, because the town submits documentation for the total cost of the project without regard to other sources of potential funding such as grants.

Additional discussion took place regarding aspects of a solar project and the value that it brings to the community, the grant application, and the steps the Energy Commission would need to complete quickly in order to meet the August 1, 2024 submission deadline.

Energy Commission members felt the need to schedule a special public meeting to review what information is available, what is needed, and who should be responsible for providing it. Members agreed that Tuesday, June 18 at 5:00 p.m. would be appropriate; Vice Chair Szauter agreed to request the meeting be posted with an agenda specific to this project.

Chair Vecchio encouraged members to consider moving forward with a NH DOE Municipal Solar Grant Program application for a solar PV array on the Public Safety building.

Vice Chair Szauter made a motion to submit a NH DOE Municipal Solar Grant Program application by the August 1, 2024 deadline to partially offset the cost of a solar PV array of approximately 50 kW to be placed on the Public Safety building, based on a to-be-updated proposal from an original proposal received in October 2023 from Barrington Power. Chair Vecchio seconded the motion. With no additional discussion, the motion passed with 4 AYES and 0 NAYS.

Under Other, Chair Vecchio called for topics to discuss. Member Greer asked about a solar PV array installation to cover the energy consumption at the pumphouse.

Melissa Elander asked about the NH DES (Department of Environmental Services) water system audit discussed at a previous meeting. Vice Chair Szauter replied the Town of Carroll is on the waiting list, possibly for an early summer audit, as confirmed by Sharon Nall at NH DES.

Lorrie Hogan provided information on the Town of Littleton’s efforts to install a solar PV array on its capped landfill. The town has entered into a PPA (Power Purchase Agreement) with Kearsarge Energy for a 3.85 MW solar PV array installation on about 5 acres of land under a 20-year lease arrangement. One difficulty she identified was a zoning issue related to permitted uses, a topic she suggested our Energy Commission should investigate if ever discussion takes place on using town land around the transfer station.

Melissa Elander provided an update on the Eversource Energy battery storage program. The current proposal is to fund 50% of the cost of a battery storage installation, with a cap of $200,000, for qualified projects at public safety facilities. She asked if the Town of Carroll was still interested in participating in the study hosted by CENH. Melissa Elander further discussed a $200,000 fund being established by CENH to assist towns offset the cost of qualified battery storage installations. Lastly, she asked if she could capture a brief video segment (with no audio) of the Energy Commission meeting tonight for use with promotional materials related to the battery storage program. Members agreed to her recording video of the meeting.

With no additional agenda items for discussion, Chair Vecchio entertained a motion for adjournment. Member Amirault motioned to adjourn. Member Greer seconded the motion. With no discussion, the motion passed with 4 AYES and 0 NAYS and the meeting was adjourned at 6:04 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Imre Szauter, Vice Chair and Secretary