Earlier this week we told you about State incentives for heat pumps including geothermal heating and cooling, an efficient, comfortable and green option. In addition, the City of Rye has been working with Sustainable Westchester to bring forward two programs – community solar and grid rewards.
Community Solar – Go Green & Save
Community solar allows you to subscribe to solar energy from a local community program. You don’t have to place solar panels on your home and you still received your bill from Con Edison. But by subscribing to a community solar project, you save 10% on your Con Ed rate and the amount you purchase each month from the community solar project is applied as a credit to your Con Ed bill.
Sign up takes 5-10 minutes and you will need to upload a copy of your recent Con Ed bill. Currently Sustainable Westchester is offering community solar credits from projects in Ossining and Hawthorne (as of Wednesday, there are spots for approximately 140 additional subscribers before these particular projects are filled).
“The City is excited to help support Sustainable Westchester’s Community Solar and Demand Response Programs, two ways that residents may choose to diminish our collective carbon footprint and, possibly, their own electric bills,” said Rye Mayor Josh Cohn. “We thank our Sustainability Committee for bringing these programs forward. This initiative dovetails well with the City’s own effort to review its facilities for better use of solar energy.”
The Ossining community solar project is a 873 kW system is located on two parking lots at Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers, a Catholic Society of priests and brothers dedicated to missionary work overseas in over 20 countries. The parking lot canopy PV system is the first canopy and community solar system in the Town of Ossining and will pay annual lease payments to Maryknoll for 25-years and will enable over 100 local community members to receive guaranteed savings on their electric utility bill, all while supporting a local clean energy project.
You can sign-up for community solar here.
Here is an explainer video:
Grid Rewards – Reduce & Peak & Save
GridRewards empowers eligible energy users in Westchester County to receive cash rewards from participating in Con Edison’s demand response programs, while also educating you via the GridRewards app on your energy consumption. Signing up involves downloading the GridRewards app at SustainableWestchester.org/GridRewards (available to download through Google Play or the App Store).
When a household’s energy saving action earns revenue, it is logged and paid out in the form of a check to the participant. Cash is distributed to participants before the end of the calendar year. While each participant is encouraged to reduce as much energy as possible during demand response events, there are no penalties for opting out of an event.
You might be requested to adjust your thermostats, dim lights, avoiding electric hot water heating and shifting dishwashing and laundry activities to a later time of day.
“We can’t delay climate action,” said Patti Capparelli, Rye Sustainability Committee Chair. “These programs give Rye residents the opportunity to take immediate action to support clean energy and reduce emissions.”
