With a meeting tonight (Wednesday, Sept. 29) in South Kitsap, Kitsap County will launch a weatherization program for homeowners.
Part of the program involves helping middle- and lower-income homeowners pay for energy efficiency audits. The audits, county officials presume, will help homeowners identify low- to no-cost ways they can save money on energy bills. Another aspect of the program helps homeowners get low-interest loans for larger projects.
The meeting is at 6 p.m. at the Park Vista Retirement Community, Olympic Dining Room, 2944 SE Lund, Port Orchard.
People in the neighborhood got notice from the county, but the meeting is open to anyone. There will be meetings in Central and North Kitsap in October and November.
As to where money for the program is coming from, the county in 2009 received $2.23 million from the U.S. Department of Energy in the form of an Energy Efficiency & Conservation Block Grant. The county, in its grant application, proposed a variety of energy saving endeavors involving resource conservation, “green” building techniques and promotion of local food production.
The county was able to divert funds to the weatherization program when other projects came in under cost.
The $253,259 saved on those projects will go to help moderate-income homeowners pay for energy audits, required to qualify for weatherization loans. The audits, which cost $600 to $750, identify ways homeowners can reduce energy costs.
Puget Sound Energy customers can already get a $350 rebate per audit. Cascade Natural Gas customers are not eligible for rebates. The grant money would provide up to $200 per household toward the audit for customers of both utilities.
Many of the cost-saving measures identified through the audits would be minor, yet result in long-term savings, said Autumn Salamack, the county’s resource conservation manager. Homeowners could apply for low-interest loans, made available through a stimulus-funded loan guarantee pool, to cover more costly weatherization projects.
For more information on the homeowners’ weatherization program , e-mail asalamack@co.kitsap.wa.us. or call (360) 337-5670.
