Sustainable Options & Activities

Numerous cleaner and green options for energy supply and use exist in and around communities on Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, and Nantucket. Some options are already seeing increasing application:

• More efficient light bulbs, heating systems, appliances, and other equipment are being used in residential, commercial, municipal, industrial, and institutional settings.
• Solar energy systems and additional cleaner and green technologies are helping meet on-site energy needs in a growing number of locations.
• Green homes and buildings are generating much of their own energy, and sustainable design practices are being applied by institutions, communities, and homeowners.
• The number of hybrid vehicles is growing, biodiesel is available for purchase on the Cape and Vineyard, and cleaner-fueled buses are being used for public transit.
• On local roadways, highly efficient light-emitting diodes are replacing conventional traffic signals, and small, off-grid solar photovoltaic systems are powering signs, lights, and call boxes.

These applications are likely precursors of things to come. Consider the following examples:

• Wind energy projects are being pursued throughout the region, promising to begin to reduce local reliance on fossil fuels for electricity supply.
• Cleaner and green technology installations are drawing in investments from state and federal funding agencies and from the private sector.
• Communities are looking at energy from an integrated perspective, with the towns of Barnstable and Falmouth setting the pace by trying to reduce their bills and control emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases.
• Martha's Vineyard is pursuing organized efforts to become "a renewable energy island," and coordinated efforts are under way to get the entire region to look "Beyond Cape Wind" toward a sustainable energy future.

For each of the cleaner and green options listed below, an overview is provided, along with information on the potential of the local resource and on existing and proposed projects in the Cape & Islands region:

• Consumer Solutions
  • Conservation & Efficiency
  • Cleaner/Green Power & Heating
  • Cleaner/Green Power Purchasing
  • Cleaner/Green Transportation
• Wind Energy
• Solar Energy
• Ocean Energy
• Bioenergy
• Cleaner Fuels
• Hydro Energy
• Geothermal Energy
• Green Buildings
• Integrated Infrastructures

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Last updated 01.15.06

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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