Plainfield, NH

Contact Info

Call the Town Office: 603-469-3201
Email the Committee

Energy Committee Members

Evan Oxenham, Co-chair
Steve Ladd, Co-chair
Jennifer Lenz
Ron Eberhardt
Nick Cohen

Key Resources

Energy Committee

The Plainfield Energy Committee was organized to encourage energy conservation, energy efficiency practices and to promote the use of renewable energy in homes, businesses and public buildings through education and community outreach.

The Energy Committee is open to any and all interested Plainfield residents. The group is fluid and evolving and people can be involved just for one specific project or for all of the work that is done. Contact Evan Oxenham or Steve Ladd if you want to participate.

Our committee works with various organizations such as the UNH Pollution Prevention Program, the EPA, Vital Communities, and local energy providers to promote energy sustainability. Major projects include benchmarking the energy use in Plainfield's municipal buildings, school, and libraries, energy conservation improvements at the Town Office, and Solarize Cornish-Plainfield.

Plainfield Community Power

To learn more about Plainfield Community Power and comment on the PCP Energy Aggregation Plan, click here

The first public meeting to present the PCP Energy Aggregation Plan was held on Thursday, Jan 27, 2022.
*** To view the recorded proceedings, click here ***
*** To listen to the recorded proceedings, click here ***
*** To see the presentaion, click here ***

Energy Survey

The Plainfield Energy Committee is conducting a survey to gather input on our current energy usage and future needs in order to help us with our towns energy planning. We would appreciate each Plainfield household taking a few minutes to complete the questionnaire so that we may better understand how our town uses and values heating and electricity resources.

The survey will remain anonymous unless you specifically request more information. Please complete the survey here

You can view the responses collected as of Dec 21, 2021 here

During the worst of the COVID pandemic, we suspended all in person presentations but continued to keep you informed by webinars and other special presentations. We started a new Did You Know series on Connect Cornish where we present interesting and useful information on a range of energy topics, which we will continue. You can find the complete series here

We also cosponsored two ButtonUp zoom webinars with useful tips on energy conservation and how to weatherize your home to be more comfortable and save on heating costs. The slides from the webinar can be found here.

You can also find the Electricity 101 presentation here and the notes on the DIY Electric Bike workshop here

We're looking forward to continuing with live presentations in 2022!

Current Events

Please check back at this site for cancellation in the event of inclement weather.

CONTINUES!

Click here for a summary of past events.

Plainfield Energy Committee Update

Brad Atwater, our town's Facilities Manager, with funding from Liberty and Eversource Utilities has initiated updated Energy Audits on four of our seven municipal buildings. The last audits were done almost ten years ago, and these new audits will help us better understand how well our energy efficieny updates have worked and steer us in a more informed future directions. These audits can be found by clicking on the links below:: Meriden Town Hall (Town Offices) 2020; Meriden Fire Station 2020; Plainfied Fire Station 2020; Philip Read Memorial Library 2020

Plainfield Passes Warrant Article to Commit to 100% Renewable Energy by 2050.

It is becoming increasingly evident that our current energy path is not sustainable. The Plainfield Energy Committee now was the town's commitment to implement an ambitious yet attainable energy plan that would entail moving Plainfield toward 100% renewable energy by 2050 in all sectors, including electricity, heat and transportation.

The future of energy is in renewables. Change is already happening, and the technology is advancing at a rapid pace. Let's get on board, be prepared for what is coming, and not find ourselves left behind. Please contact one of the energy committee members if you would like to help our town MOVE TOWARD A 100% RENEABLE ENERGY FUTURE.

For more information click here

Plainfield Selectboard signs a "Resolution in Support of Climate Action by the Town of Plainfield".

We are pleased to announce that the Plainfield Selectboard has signed a "Resolution in Support of Climate Action by the Town of Plainfield". The Resolution states:

WHEREAS, climate change poses a major threat to the health and livelihood of New Hampshire’s communities and towns, with impacts as wide-ranging as increased flooding, drought, reduced water supply, forest fires, habitat loss, and the ever increasing inroads by invasive species; and
WHEREAS, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reports that 2015 was the warmest year since recordkeeping began, and that all ten of the warmest years on record have occurred since 1998; and
WHEREAS, climate change, if unchecked, will have ever increasing impacts on human health, natural systems, wildlife and infrastructure, creating mounting costs for individuals, communities, businesses and local governments; and
WHEREAS, climate change has had a disproportionate impact on low income families and the most disadvantaged members of our communities; and
WHEREAS, the solutions to climate change present economic opportunities in clean energy, efficient technology, and low-carbon products and services, all of which can create jobs across New Hampshire and in our town; and
WHEREAS, cities and towns have a major impact on carbon emissions through land use planning, transportation systems, building codes, and services such as providing clean drinking water, wastewater treatment plants, and building energy use, and
WHEREAS, city and town governments have both a unique opportunity and responsibility to implement programs that result in real emissions reductions; and
WHEREAS, many local and regional entities are transitioning to low-carbon energy sources, and New Hampshire businesses can be leaders in providing energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies and services;
NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Select Board of the Town of Plainfield is committed to taking such local actions as are within its purview to limit global temperature rise below 2 degrees Celsius, the target set forth in the 2016 Paris Climate Agreement; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Select Board of the Town of Plainfield stands ready to join with other communities and towns across the state, to provide the leadership and resources at the local level that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, protect our most vulnerable residents from the impacts of climate change, and reap the benefits of the transition to a clean energy economy.

It will be placed in the town records and is available for public viewing at the Town Office.

Current Projects

Ready for 100 - How can you help?

The Plainfield Energy Committee is looking for new members to help accomplish our mission to encourage energy conservation, energy efficiency practices and to promote the use of renewable energy in homes, businesses and public buildings through education and community outreach.

Now that our town has voted to commit to 100% Renewable Energy Usage by 2050, we are looking for people to serve on our R100 transition and implementation team. You will help establish our near and long term goals, devise strategies for realization, build local coalition around 100% transition and work with our town administrator, selectboard and other town committees to implement our plans. You will help continue with our educational seminars and workshops and maintain and expand our relationship with other local communities and organizations.

Please contact Evan Oxenham or Steve Ladd if you would like to contribute to making Plainfield energy independent and ready for 100% clean energy in the future.

The Plainfield Energy Committee is an adhoc advisory committee comprised of volunteers and work with other Plainfield town committees and the Select Board to promote thoughtful use of our energy resources.

Energy Saving Resources

We continue to update and add to our online energy conservation information. Check out this valuable information under the Key Resources links at the top of this page.

Past Projects include:

Are You Ready for Solar During the first haf of 2016, the Plainfield and Cornish Energy Committees embarked on a second round of Solarize Plainfield-Cornish with educational forums, a vendor expo, open houses and continuing support and advice for home owners wishing to install PV Solar systems in 2016. Materials and references from the seminars can be found here

In April 2015, the Plainfield and Cornish Energy Committees Installed NH's 39th Public Electric Vehicle Charging Station .

Solarize Cornish-Plainfield During the summer of 2014, Plainfield 12 Plainfield households added a total of 107 kW of PV solar energy production.

Energy Report The 2009 Community Energy Challenge Final Report.

2009 Town Building Energy Audit Report This is the 2009 Energy Benchmark report for the five town buildings. Detailed reports from 2011/2012 can found below.

Clean Energy Success Stories

Weatherize Upper Valley results
Are You Ready For Solar
: The second round of Solarize Plainfield Cornish was a big success with 18 new households adding a total of 79kW of PV Solar in 2016. Addtionally, another 100kW of solar generating capacity was added as a commercial venture in Cornish. Although the net metering regulations have changed as of Sept 1 of this year, generating your own electricity is still a worthwhile endeavor. Contact one of our committee members if you would like more information on going solar.
Town Hall Energy Conservation: With the help of two Moose Plate grants for over $22,000 we have completed the restoration of the Town Hall windows.; Seven small windows and 8 large windows have been fully restored, and storm windows are installed on the first floor. This work will provide a long term solution to maintain the historical significance of the building while providing enhanced energy conservation.; The NH Division of Historical Resources has published their five year preservation plan which includes the work we've done on our town office building (see page 43 of this document).; We now have data to validate that the energy improvements at the town hall started early in 2013 have dramatic effect on the heating efficiency of this building. Using data compiled since 2007, we see that we used 34% less oil in the past 2 years compared to the previous years. The calculations are based on the number of gallons used per heating degree days over the year, so the variations in temperature are accounted for. We attribute this savings largely to the installation of an indoor/outdoor furnace sensor, programmable thermostats, removal of an unused door and insulating that space, and insulation of hot water pipes. You can see the detailed analysis here or download below in the Reports section.

Town of

Plainfield
, NH

-- choice white pines and good land