The Maryland Energy Administration (MEA) yesterday announced the award of $750,000 in Smart Energy Community grants across 19 jurisdictions. Grants are awarded for energy efficient measures, renewable 
energy installations, and transportation changes which reduce fossil fuel consumption.
The grants are estimated to yield an annual energy cost savings of $403,000 in savings through local projects such as retrofits to existing buildings to increase energy efficiency. Awards range from $10,000 to $100,000 and funds are provided by the Strategic Energy Investment Fund (SEIF) that receives money through Maryland’s participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI).
From MEA:
Anne Arundel County — $50,000
Funding will assist Anne Arundel County to continue its lighting retrofit project from 2018 that aims to replace outdated fluorescent lighting at the County’s Heritage Office Complex. The building at 2664 Riva Road will have all interior lighting replaced with LEDs, and dimmer switches will further reduce the building’s energy usage. The project is expected to reduce annual electricity consumption by 150,400 kWh and produce annual savings of $15,792 dollars.Baltimore City — $50,000
Baltimore City’s Department of General Services requested funding to support its purchase of 19 electric vehicles (EVs) to replace a comparable number of gas-powered vehicles. The funds will cover the incremental costs of the new EVs. The project will result in an annual reduction of approximately 7,900 gallons of gasoline, and estimated CO2 emissions reduction of 157,000 pounds.Baltimore County — $100,000
Baltimore County sought funding involving two projects: lighting system upgrades, and HVAC upgrades, at its Reisterstown Library. The project is expected to reduce annual energy consumption of approximately 340,703 kWh, which translates to a 50% improvement in the overall building energy efficiency.Garrett County — $15,480
Garrett County will use MSEC funding to replace 81 exterior lights at its health center. The LED project will result in an annual reduction of approximately 60,465 kWh, and a cost savings of nearly $4,000 dollars.Howard County — $100,000
Howard County will use funds on two projects for FY20. The first is to retrofit existing lighting systems at five facilities, including three public libraries, the public safety building, and a soon-to-be renovated
village center. Annual electricity reduction is expected to reach 121,480 kWh or $15,000 dollars. The second project will support the incremental purchase costs of five EVs for its administrative fleet which will replace five gas powered vehicles that will be given to Howard County Fire & Rescue division for occupant extraction training. Reusing these vehicles for vital first responder training reduces emissions significantly as they will no longer be in operation. Expected benefits for these five EVs include fuel reduction of 1,220 gallons of gasoline and cost savings of $7,600 annually.Charles County — $50,000
As part of a larger effort involving an energy services company (ESCO), Charles County will use MSEC funds to supplement the cost of a county-wide lighting upgrade to its many facilities. It is anticipated that the $4.4 million dollar lighting project will reduce annual electricity consumption by roughly 2,346,000 kWh across all county facilities.
View the full list of awards on MEA’s website.
