News

Ojibwa Building Supplies and White Earth Community Service Center sail toward wind energy

The TWN Wind Power company has completed two wind projects at White Earth Nation, located in Northwestern Minnesota. The two sites, Ojibwa Building Supplies in Waubun and White Earth Community Service Center in Naytahwaush, are now benefiting from wind energy. “White Earth Nation is thrilled to have our two new wind turbines fully commissioned and adding to our clean energy efforts.

Discomfort and inefficiency remedied with Breckenridge City Hall boiler replacement

Citizens in the city of Breckenridge, Minnesota were seeing alarmingly high heating and cooling costs in their City Hall, and sought to rectify the problem by applying for an Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The building would vary in temperature drastically from being too hot to too cold and back again.

March Madness: The Elite Eight Energy Efficient NCAA campuses

The signs of March Madness are everywhere: brackets litter office desks, smart phones buzz in a melody of score updates, the squeaking chirps of fast moving feet on wood floors echo from every sports bar and restaurant.

Heating the Midwest Conference April 24-26: Connecting leaders to expand the biomass industry

Local governments in Minnesota are taking action on solar with new resources

Are you a part of a local government unit that wants to adopt solar energy? Good news! The U.S. Department of Energy’s SunShot Initiative has created a new website, the SunShot Solar Outreach Partnership (SolarOPs) that helps local governments adopt solar energy by providing timely and actionable information.

Managing more wind power in Minnesota: An update from the Midwest Independent System Operator

If you didn’t know, the Midwest Independent System Operator or MISO is responsible for delivering cost-effective electric power to Minnesota and 14 other states in the U.S., as well as parts of Canada. MISO and its members attempt to strengthen the transmission network while bringing benefits to their consumers.

One way they do this is through adding forms of renewable energy to the power grid.

Wind energy in Minnesota - Image from NREL

Show me the money: Our family adds up energy costs and savings for 2012

Hi. I’m Jeff Vetsch and my family (the Mill Pond Minimizers) is going head to head with another Minnesota family (the Prairie Penny Pinchers) to see who can save more energy in the CERTs Family Energy FACE-OFF — and we need your help! I recently sat down and added up our household energy bills for 2012.

CFLs in the bathroom (left) and ice damming on our roof (right)

Kristi Loobeek joins Clean Energy Resource Teams as new CERTs Communications Intern

CERTs is happy to welcome Kristi Loobeek on board as our new Communications Assistant. Kristi helped out at the CERTs 2013 Conference on Feb. 21 at the registration table and in the future will be working on maintaining the CERTs blog, writing press releases, and being a helping hand with all things related to communications.

Kristi is currently a senior at Concordia University, St. Paul.

CERTs Welcomes New Intern: Kristi Loobeek

New online tool helps homeowners decrease energy loss, or 'Heat Bleed'

In these cold Minnesota winters, it’s important to know all your options when it comes to energy and heating savings. The Energy Response Corps has taken the initiative to create an online tool to evaluate how much energy your home is losing due to Heat Bleed.

New Online Tool, Plug, Helps Homeowners Decrease Heat Bleed

Stewardship a cornerstone for City on the Lake: White Bear Lake shares sustainability practices

White Bear Lake, a city located just 10 miles northeast of downtown Saint Paul, calls itself the land of lakes and legends. Once a popular resort area attracting visitors from all along the Mississippi River, White Bear Lake still brings in tourists with its small-town charm and big-city attractions.

Elk River provides energy education, outreach and audits with Project Conserve

Elk River was named Energy City in 1997 when the Minnesota Environmental Initiative chose it from over 30 other communities to act as a geographical focal point for the demonstration of efficient and renewable energy products, services, and technologies. Given this status, the city is continuously striving to act as a model for energy efficiency and create new and challenging energy saving goals.

Hopkins heats up their city's savings with an energy efficient boiler

The City Hall in Hopkins, Minnesota is a busy place—it houses Community Services, Planning and Economic Development, Engineering, Finance, and after a 20,000 square foot renovation in 2006, the Police Department. With so many important city functions under one roof, it’s a priority to keep the building operating smoothly, especially in a region known for temperature extremes.

No such thing as the bus rider blues: Linden Hills Power & Light's Public Transportation Initiative

Linden Hills Power and Light has quite the green report card. Originally created with the goal of shrinking the community’s local carbon footprint, Linden Hills Power and Light (LHP&L) has utilized education efforts, community engagement and organizing to promote sustainable habits and energy conservation.

How green is your community? A step-by-step Minnesota sustainability program is helping cities

As Minnesota cities face tighter budgets, the need for money-saving innovations without cutting services, grows rapidly. One place to find savings is through sustainability, which is where a state program aimed at a number of factors—from improving energy-efficient public buildings to innovative waste-collection systems—is helping. Introducing: Minnesota GreenStep Cities.

City of Oakdale takes steps toward sustainability with energy-saving initiatives

The City of Oakdale (Metro CERT affiliate since 2008) is a regional leader in civic sustainability thanks to the leadership of its City Council and Environmental Management Commission (EMC). In 2008, the EMC took the first step by committing to quantify the city’s carbon footprint and use that information to seek opportunities for emissions reductions.

Neighborhood Energy Service worked to save energy in the homes of St. Paul residents

In 2009, the Center for Energy and the Environment (CEE) received a grant from the Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund to run a comprehensive neighborhood-based energy efficiency program in eight cities across Minnesota.

Neighborhood Energy Service worked to save energy in people's homes

Boilers, controls, and lighting renew Chisholm city buildings

The City of Chisholm’s 100-year-old City Hall Complex was in need of efficiency upgrades. Heat was not being dispersed evenly or efficiently throughout the building and lights were out-of-date and inefficient.

New LED Lighting Saves Thousands for Kandiyohi County Recycling Center

Kandiyohi County Recycling Center in Willmar, Minn. has reduced its energy load by 10,000 Watts due to replacing its high-pressure sodium lights with energy-saving LED lights. The cost of replacing the bulbs totaled $22,000—which will be paid back with decreased energy usage in about five and a half years.

Grand Marais and Ely Look to the Future of Biomass Fueled Heating Systems

Two northern Minnesota cities—Grand Marais and Ely—are looking to change the way they heat their homes and buildings. “We’ve got biomass coming out of our ears,” said Dave Olsen, a member of the Ely Alternative Energy Task Force; and it is with this biomass that the two communities would switch from fuel oil or propane to wood-burning district heating systems.

A warm welcome to Kelly Changalov, our new Metro CERT Intern

Metro CERT is happy to welcome Kelly Changalov on board as our new Intern. Kelly was a huge help at the CERTs 2013 Conference, chaperoning the charter bus on February 21st, and in the future will be helping with the Metro Affiliate Program, Splash Campaign, and events.

Fritz Ebinger joins CERTs to work on farm energy efficiency and rural solar

CERTs is very excited to announce its newest team member, Fritz Ebinger. Fritz will be working as The Minnesota Project’s Clean Energy Program Manager on farm energy efficiency and rural solar development initiatives.

Fritz has nearly 10 years of experience working with a variety of stakeholders on sustainable rural development matters.

Touring Energy and Resource Efficient Buildings on the North Shore

02/12/2013

Over 25 attendees joined Northeast Clean Energy Resource Teams (NE CERT) on a cold and blustery October 25th to learn about renewable energy, energy efficiency, and local food projects on the North Shore. The tour included visits at the Finland Community Center, the Finland Fire Hall, Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center, and Victus Farm of Silver Bay’s Eco-Industrial Park.

Local Governments gather in Saint Paul to learn about how they can reduce barriers to solar energy

Last week, over 40 city planners, permitting, and zoning staff from cities all over the metro area attended a workshop to learn more about solar development best practices as part of the Minnesota Solar Challenge that is funded as part of the U.S. Department of Energy Rooftop Solar Challenge.

CERTs Releases Complete 2013 Conference Agenda with Session Descriptions & Speaker Names

At the CERTs 2013 Conference, a half day of in-depth workshops and an evening reception on February 20th, 2013 will be followed by a full day of sessions, networking time, and exhibits on the 21st. With the conference less than three weeks away, we’re excited to share with you the full agenda for both days of the conference, complete with workshop and session descriptions and speaker names.

Get a sneak peek at Workshops happening at the CERTs 2013 Conference

There are already 300 people registered for the CERTs 2013 Conference, with many more joining each day. We hope you’ll choose to come, too—but we know you want to find out what you’ll get out of the program! The CERTs Conference is two days—February 20-21, 2013. It’s taking place at the River’s Edge Convention Center in St. Cloud, MN.

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