MABEP has been following the energy efficiency stuff the fed and state has been working on. They're a new trade association I helped incorporate last summer, but they're still getting their act together. So far they haven't come out with a lot that the public can use, except for the following classes being provided for free in Portland in conjunction with the Maine Indoor Air Quality Council. If you're serious about learning how to weatherize yours or others' homes, this is a great opportunity.
January 29, 2010: Keeping Foundation Warm and Dry
February 12, 2010: The Building Shell
March 5, 2010: Ventilating New & Existing Homes
Info and signup:
http://www.efficiencypros.org/meetings.htmlIf you need a good do-it-yourself guide to follow, there's one on the Energy Star site. I do wish that it gave a bit more info on what gives the best bang for the buck and more on maintaining air quality. It's a nice tool to make yourself an improvement checklist.
http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=diy.diy_indexThe energy professionals in MABEP comprise of many different types of energy auditors, insulators, suppliers, architects, alternative energy providers and government people. We now have 160 members, mostly from the southern part of the state. The clients of these people are mainly the well-to-do and CAP agencies on behalf of the low-income folks. We have some very smart people in this organization, and it's my hope that more people from around the state will get involved.
Mission:
http://www.efficiencypros.org/mission-statement.htmlJoin:
http://www.efficiencypros.org/join.htmlInitially, we were excited about the 9M federal grant that dbjc describes, as it isn't contingent on income guidelines. Once I got into the guts of the program, it turned out to be less exciting. A big chunk of that went to administration, and farmed out to a call center run by some friends of the state government -- actually the people that work for them are bill collectors doubling duty as incoming call takers. The contract for the program was won by Consolidated Services Group (CSG) that runs similar programs in 22 states. They are working in Maine under the name Maine Home Performance.
The program offers up to $3,000 in assistance, but there's a big catch -- the end result must save the homeowners 25%. For many, that will mean an additional outlay from their own pocket in thousands of dollars in order to meet that savings goal. Basically the theory is that once you button up a house tight enough, you need to provide positive ventilation (read this as buy an expensive air exchanger) in order to keep air quality in your house up and mold down.
Please don't let my negativity on this program discourage you from checking it out if you think you might benefit from it. There will be some households that will qualify and be helped a great deal from it. See:
http://www.efficiencymaine.com/residential_programs_mhp.htmFor low income, the state is receiving $42 million in stimulus money -- that is, it's a one-time deal. I don't have the details about that other than it will be administered by the local CAP programs (like KVCAP and Penquis).
Help for low-income that don't mind the government red tape:
http://www.mainehousing.org/ENERGYPrograms.aspx?oProgramCategory=4http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/me/ (see bottom of page)
I do like the grassroots approach you folks have been describing above a lot, and these things will likely not be answered fully by the government or trade associations like MABEP. There's also some good local community efforts, like the subsidized energy audits that were done in Dexter. See:
http://www.dextermaine.org/energycommittee/index.html
