At the last Board of Selectmen’s meeting Henry MacLean, chairman of the Alternative Energy Committee, gave an update on the efforts of the Alternative Energy committee to enable Milton to qualify as a Green Community. Once qualified, Milton would be eligible for $8.1 million in state grants for local renewable and energy efficiency projects.

MacLean reviewed the five criteria a town needs to meet to qualify. These criteria are (as posted on Mass.gov Green Communities Grant Program Site):

Criterion #1: Provide as-of-right siting in designated locations for renewable/alternative energy generation, research & development, or manufacturing facilities

• Guidance for As-of-Right Siting of Renewable or Alternative Energy R&D or Manufacturing Facilities
• Model As-of-Right Bylaw for Large-Scale Photovoltaic Installations
• Model As-of-Right Bylaw for Use of Wind Facilities

Criterion #2: Adopted an expedited application and permit process for as-of-right energy facilities

• Guidance for Expedited Permitting Options – revised 3/26/10

Criterion #3: Establish benchmark for energy use and developed a plan to reduce baseline by 20 percent within 5 years

• Sample Energy Reduction Action Plan Outline – revised 05/04/10

Criterion #4: Purchase only fuel-efficient vehicles

• Guidance and Model Policy for Purchasing only Fuel Efficient Vehicles

Criterion #5: Set requirements to minimize life-cycle energy costs for new construction; one way to meet these requirements is to adopt the new Board of Building Regulations and Standards (BBRS) Stretch Code

The first two criteria are related to zoning and are intended to accelerate the development of green initiatives by reducing the time to implement. Right of use would obviate the need for a special permit process as is currently required for the construction of the wind turbine at Quarry Hills. This will require articles be presented before Town Meeting. A special Town Meeting is being scheduled for September. The Selectmen also agreed to add two more members to the committee to help keep this moving forward expeditiously.

The state recently awarded 35 Massachusetts cities and towns with the designation of “Green Community.” MacLean hopes that Milton will meet the criteria to apply for the next round.

Following is a brief article from Mass.gov on the communities awarded Green Community status.

Municipalities compete for Green Community Grants