Media Release

ALACHUA COUNTY, FL - Recently Alachua County Manager Randall H. Reid participated in a webcast hosted by the International City/County Management Association (ICMA) with the support of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The subject of the webcast was, "How do we make an energy efficient, resource resilient, and sustainable local community?"  The webcast's focus was the need for sustainable communities and Alachua County's and Austin Texas' best practices were highlighted in the presentation.

The webcast discussed how currently, local governments have unprecedented funding opportunities to implement energy efficiency programs through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009.  A wealth of no-cost, easily accessible resources, tools, and leading practices are available from the EPA ENERGY STAR program and local government practitioners to assist local government to measure, track, finance, develop policies and implement their energy efficiency programs. 

The webcast also pointed out that typically, 30 percent of the energy consumed in commercial and industrial buildings is wasted. Tools such as ENERGY STAR's Portfolio Manager can help local governments identify how to reduce energy in existing buildings by 10% with little or no investment costs. The ENERGY STAR Cash Flow Opportunity Calculator is another unique tool that helps address three critical questions about installing energy efficiency projects:

1. How much new energy efficiency equipment can be purchased from the anticipated savings?
2. Should this equipment purchase be financed now or is it better to wait and use cash from a future budget (i.e., avoid paying interest)?
3. Is money being lost by waiting for a lower interest rate?

Click here to watch the recorded webcast.

Some visitors may have to install "WebEX Client" to view the presentation.

For more information on this subject, visit the following websites:

Alachua County
http://www.alachuacounty.us/government/sustainability/

ENERGY STAR
www.energystar.gov/government
www.energystar.gov/ia/business/government/Menu_of_Offerings.pdf  

Austin Energy
www.austinenergy.com/ 

ICMA
www.lgean.org
www.icma.org 

For more information, contact the Alachua County Communications Office at 352-374-5226.