The City of Biwabik is located in Northeast Minnesota with a population of about 1,000 citizens. As of late, this town has been actively focusing efforts on reducing their electricity usage. They decided to begin with Biwabik City Hall, which had been illuminated with 62 inefficient lights for the past 20 years. A $2,000 Seed Grant from Northeast CERT provided funding for project labor costs.
Originally, the plan was to replace all 62 light fixtures in the facility, but due to the quality of lighting supplied by the new LED fixture they were able to brighten the building using only 52 fixtures. This happy surprise engendered even more savings for the city’s taxpayers. Due to the success of the project, the City of Biwabik is now moving their efforts on to improving the lighting in their Public Works garage and the City Hall parking lot.
When asked what advice he would give others who are interested in a similar project, Dave Sherek, the Biwabik Public Utilities Commission Chairman, said “The project was so smooth and successful we would recommend to go full steam ahead.”
Overall, the facility now offers a much cleaner, whiter light due to the installed LED fixture. Since the City Hall is one of the most visited facilities in the town, the City of Biwabik hopes this will inspire many others to also install energy efficient lighting in their homes!
Project Snapshot:
- Project: 52 LED Interior Light Fixtures in City Hall
- Location: Biwabik, MN
- Activity: Implementation
- Technology: Energy Efficient Lighting
- Benefits: Save electric energy and costs to the city as well as reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
- Total Project Cost: $10,013.92
- NE CERT Seed Grant: $2,000
- Annual Energy Savings: 9,617 kWh
- People Involved: 12
- People Reached: 969
CERTs awards seed grants to community groups for energy efficiency and clean energy projects across Minnesota. We’ve awarded over $1 million in Seed Grants since 2006. Click here to see more Seed Grant blog posts or click here to see more past funded projects. |
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