The Green Energy Committee and the Town of Lincoln are sponsoring the Lincoln Energy Challenge (LincolnEnergyChallenge.com), a new residential initiative to help reduce overall energy use and save money on energy costs. The ultimate goal is to decrease Lincoln’s residential energy use 10% by 2020. This might seem small, but in fact will take a significant community-wide effort starting now!
Thanks to government incentives and advances in technology, many new energy-saving options have become available. Volunteers from the Green Energy Committee have examined these options, many in their own homes, and want to share this knowledge with other residents to:
- Reduce home energy consumption;
- Increase use of ‘greener’ sources of electricity particularly solar and wind; and
- Consider rooftop solar panels or community solar options.
As a first step, the Green Energy Committee and the Town of Lincoln have selected Next Step Living (NSL), the largest provider of home energy assessments in New England, to coordinate outreach to our residents and offer free assessments. The Green Energy Committee conducted a competitive bidding process to select NSL to implement the program. The goal is for 300 Lincoln residents to complete a no-cost home energy assessment by April 2017 and to implement home improvement projects like air sealing, insulation, and furnace, boiler or appliance upgrades with the help of state incentivized rebates. While many homes may have had energy assessments, residents are encouraged to get a revised assessment if more than two years have passed.

To schedule your own no-cost Home Energy Assessment, call 800-769-2864 or visit www.LincolnEnergyChallenge.com. For questions email Sue Klem, Lincoln Green Energy Committee member, at susan.m.klem@gmail.com. Members of the Lincoln Energy Challenge are Sue Klem, Jennie Morris, Lynne Smith, John Snell, and Bill Stason.