Spring 2009 Edition

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IN THIS ISSUE:

• Earth Day Roundup
• A breakfast of hope and support
• Big year for energy retrofits
• CET certifies first LEED Platinum homes
• ReStore success in 2008
• The BEST schools around
• Staff news at CET

Earth Day Roundup

We were out and about in late April with Earth Day happenings. In the Berkshires, our Earth Day Textile Drive, in partnership with Goodwill Industries, collected close to 22,000 pounds of goods for reuse and recycling. Volunteers from Boy Scout Troop 1, students from Berkshire Community College, senior citizens from RSVP and several Pittsfield community members helped with the collection.

Our wine tasting at Guido’s in Great Barrington was a success. Friends new and old joined us in sampling ten organic wines from environmentally sensitive vineyards, as well as a delicious selection of the marketplace's hors d’oeuvres. Eco-prizes, donated by Guido's and CET, included a mountain bike, bottles of wine, reusable tote bags and compact fluorescent light bulbs.

We shared information at Greenfield Greenfair, GoGreen - Agawam’s Energy Fair, Berkshire Community College, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and other Earth Day events. We also presented on Energy Star and LEED to builders in Northampton.

A breakfast of hope and support

More than 300 people from all walks of life gathered at the ReStoring Hope Breakfast in Springfield recently to listen to the heartfelt stories of homeowners and employees whose lives have been improved by the ReStore. After breakfast, many of the guests generously offered their financial support for the ReStore's capital campaign. The donations will be used to purchase a new and larger facility at 83 Warwick Street in Springfield, which will be renovated with utmost attention to energy and the environment. The new ReStore will have ample parking and more interior space for storage and display of home improvement goods (windows, doors, and much, much more!) This new space will allow us to double the amount of useful \materials kept out of the landfill. Our goal is to be open and ready to serve twice as many people by early 2010. Want to take a tour of the current and future ReStore? Contact John Majercak at 413-586-7350 ext. 28.

Big year for efficiency retrofits!

In 2008, CET’s energy analysts conducted 3324 energy audits on behalf of National Grid, WMECO and Berkshire Gas Companies. When the price of home heating oil spiked last fall, demand for audits followed suit. These energy audits resulted in air sealing and insulating work on 493 homes. Though it was a slow year for new construction, CET still certified 137 ENERGY STAR and 3 LEED homes. For more information on home energy audits and air sealing, call MassSAVE at 1-866-527-7283. For more information on ENERGY STAR and LEED, contact Megan McDonough at 413-586-7350 ext. 21.

CET certifies first LEED Platinum homes

We are excited to announce that CET certified its first LEED Platinum homes. Platinum is the most prestigious certification award available from the US Green Building Council. In New Milford, CT, CET certified a house built by Picton Brothers, LLC which combines energy-efficient construction with good indoor air quality and sustainable design. Closer to home, we certified the first LEED Platinum home in western MA. Marie Stella’s Ashfield home makes use of old, reused, recyclable and/or locally purchased building materials along with a unique air transfer technology, solar PV and passive solar. The red oak trees that grew on the footprint of the house are now part of the home. Marie’s large raised bed organic garden will be quenched by rooftop water collected in a cistern. CET worked closely with Marie and her builder, Terry Estes, to help the home achieve the Platinum rating. Since the inception of LEED for Homes in 2005, CET has provided inspection and verification services to residential new construction projects that want to achieve certification through the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System™. For more information about LEED for Homes, contact Megan McDonough at 413-586-7350 ext. 21.

ReStore success in 2008

More than 10,000 bargain hunters scoured the ReStore Home Improvement Center for serious treasures in 2008. And collectively, they seriously saved $800,000 buying reclaimed building materials like windows, doors, tubs, sinks, lighting fixtures and more. Hundreds of tons of materials were kept out of regional landfills and given new life instead. Our free pickup service collected many donations from homeowners and we deconstructed four entire houses and soft stripped 22 pre-renovation projects. Our deconstruction team increased our capacity to harvest used and surplus building materials in 2008, helping us reach more than $400,000 in sales. For more information about the ReStore, contact John Majercak at 413-586-7350 ext. 28.

The BEST schools around

Our 2009 Berkshire Bank Berkshire Environmental School Teams, including Muddy Brook Elementary in Great Barrington, Egremont Elementary in Pittsfield, and Nessacus Middle School in Dalton, are getting their hands dirty, turning off lights and reusing materials. The fourth graders at Muddy Brook are vermicomposting (that’s composting with worms!) their classroom food waste. At the end of the school year, they plan to donate the finished compost to the Project Sprout students at nearby Monument Mountain High School, for the campus garden.

In Egremont the fourth graders are developing a scale model Sustainable Box City that showcases renewable energy and uses recycled materials. Sixth graders at Nessacus are turning off the lights and organizing a classroom competition--who can save the most energy? Chris Vreeland of Precision Decisions LLC conducted a solar site assessment, and CET assisted the district business manager in applying for an energy audit of all municipal buildings in the district through the MA DOER Energy Assistance Program. For more information on the BEST Program, contact Cynthia Grippaldi at 413-445-4556 ext. 25.

Staff news at CET

Rob Tocchio is CET's 2009 AmeriCorps*VISTA member based in the Berkshires. He coordinated our recent Textile Drive and is helping with waste reduction, recycling, environmental health and many other projects throughout his year of community service. Contact Rob at 413-445-4556 ext. 30.

CET would like to welcome our newest staff members! Andrea Gauvin is working with customers at the ReStore to keep used building supplies out of the landfill. Sam Arthur, Sarah Oakes and Amy Craven are helping customers in the MassSAVE program schedule home energy audits and contract for air sealing and insulation work. Chuck Miller, a building scientist and home construction expert, provides training and project management.

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For over 30 years, CET, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, has worked to improve the economy, ecology and health of western Massachusetts. Visit www.cetonline.org to find out more about our programs and to make a secure online donation to CET. Your tax-deductible contribution will help sustain our community work.