Fourth Annual Energy Day Held Tomorrow at Grange

By IAN FEIN

Should the Vineyard tax large energy users as a way to fund more
renewable energy projects?

That question will be a topic of discussion at the fourth annual
Energy Day tomorrow, when the building inspector from Aspen, Colo., will
talk about a similar energy initiative that was enacted in his seasonal
community.

The forum is set to begin at 10 a.m. as part of the day-long fair at
the Grange Hall in West Tisbury, which will feature educational booths
and vendors, as well as a solar car race at noon.

This year's fair comes as the economic and environmental costs
of energy decisions are of increasing concern to Island residents and at
the forefront of the national consciousness, but it is also a time when
the Vineyard nonprofit group dedicated to energy education and advocacy
finds itself at a crossroads.

Energy awareness is at an all-time high, but the group's
federal funding is set to expire this fall. The Vineyard Energy Project
is facing a financial crisis.

"The question is, where should this go?" said Kate
Warner, director of the Vineyard Energy Project, which operates with a
small board of directors and is a co-sponsor of the Energy Day events
tomorrow. "It seems like our service is proving valuable to this
community, because as fuel prices increase, more and more people are
calling us for information and assistance. And we want to help anyone
who calls here with an energy question. But how that is going to happen,
at this point, remains unclear."

Since it formed a few years ago, the Vineyard Energy Project's
outreach programs have promoted efforts to make the Island more energy
independent. It helped secure 14 solar demonstration sites across the
Vineyard, and also commissioned a private consultant to study the
Island's energy resources and author a 10-year energy action plan.

But as of Sept. 1, the organization's largest source of
funding will run dry.

"This is not an optimistic thing for us," Ms. Warner
said.

The Vineyard Energy Project took root almost four years ago when Ms.
Warner received a U.S. Department of Energy grant from the Million Solar
Roofs program. Through the federal program since then, she has secured
almost $200,000 in funding for education and planning efforts on the
Vineyard. But the Million Solar Roofs program has been eliminated for
the coming year, and almost all of the regional Department of Energy
offices will be closing next June.

With almost 150 solar systems on the Island already, Ms. Warner said
the group will continue to work toward its goal of 500 solar roofs by
2010, as well as its larger aspiration to produce a majority of the
Vineyard's energy from renewable sources. But now the Vineyard
Energy Project – which also relies on private donations and other
grants - will be doing so without a solid source of funding,

"We've applied for some grants, and will continue to
apply for others. We're committed to continuing to work,"
Ms. Warner said. "But we need help."

Ms. Warner suggested that if the Vineyard is serious about its
energy future, and the work of the organization is seen as a public
service, then the Island should look to Aspen - another seasonal
community with large second homes - as a model for local funding
mechanisms.

Five years ago the city of Aspen enacted stricter green building
codes and developed a renewable energy mitigation program, where
property owners with homes over 5,000 square feet are required to either
install renewable energy systems in their homes or pay an extra tax into
an energy fund that promotes other sustainable projects in town. The
fund has collected more than $2 million in fees.

Aspen building inspector Stephen Kanipe will explain the program
during the Energy Day forum tomorrow.

The energy user fee, as implemented in Colorado, may require an act
of the Massachusetts state legislature before it could be enacted on the
Vineyard. But Cape and Islands state senator Robert O'Leary has
said that the Island could develop a similar program through the broad
powers of the Martha's Vineyard Commission.

If they established an energy district of critical planning concern
(DCPC), Vineyard towns would likely be able to exert regulatory
authority over energy use and possibly create a funding mechanism for
renewable energy projects elsewhere on the Island. Ms. Warner suggested
that energy user fees could be administered by an organization, such as
the Vineyard Energy Project, which would distribute them for renewable
projects or outreach efforts.

Ms. Warner said she thinks the Aspen model is a good one to follow
on the Island.

"It gives people choice, it encourages what we would want to
encourage, and it seems fair," she said.

The other sponsor of the Energy Day tomorrow - the Cape Light
Compact - is a regional public organization that also is involved
in educational outreach about energy. But Ms. Warner noted while the
Compact is funded through electricity bills and is focused on
electricity efficiency, the Vineyard's long-term energy future
will need to address other types of energy as well.

"Electricity is a good place to start with, because its cost
is so high as of late," she said. "But I think we will find
the Vineyard needs to do more about all types of energy use."

Ms. Warner said that although Vineyard residents may hesitate to
create a user fee program here, she believes it would prove to be in
their long-term interest.

Currently, less than one-tenth of one per cent of the
Vineyard's energy is produced on the Island, with the rest coming
from the mainland, either by boat or underwater cable. Ms. Warner said
the less the Vineyard depends on mainland energy, the better for the
Island economy.

"The less energy we use on Martha's Vineyard, the more
we have to share around - for everybody," Ms. Warner said.
"It's going to cost people in the short run. But in the long
run, they will be so happy that the Vineyard has planned for the future.
There's nothing more responsible than that."