BRIGHT IDEA HELPING LOW INCOME FOLKS REDUCE COSTS, SAVE ENERGY AND REDUCE GREENHOUSE GASES

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1 BRIGHT IDEA HELPING LOW INCOME FOLKS REDUCE COSTS, SAVE ENERGY AND REDUCE GREENHOUSE GASES Chuck Marshall Board of Directors, PA IPL Wayne Central Baptist Church, a charter congregation of PA Interfaith Power & Light info@paipl.org

2 BRIGHT IDEA SUMMARY GOALS: Cut greenhouse gas emissions and help lowincome neighbors. MEANS: Place of worship buys and donates compact fluorescent lamps to a center that serves lowincome clientele. That center designs a program for free distribution of the CFLs to their clients.

3 MOTIVATION OF CENTRAL BAPTIST CHURCH Ecology Mission Group since 1990 Ecology Worship service every year Seek to reduce greenhouse or climate change gases from CBC buildings and encouraging congregants GOAL: to be a carbon-neutral church Audit, new boiler (93% efficient), 48 solar panels (producing about 12,000kWH/year), 7 programmable thermostats, house energy audit party, sale of CFLs and LED lamps

4 COMPONENTS OF CBC S BRIGHT IDEA PROGRAM Budget: Fair trade table sells CFLs and LEDs at slight mark-up Budget Partnering with other places of worship Relationship with Home Depot Center with low income clients Commitment by Center to distribute CFLs

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6 BUDGET 480 $1.75 per lamp = $840 when bought in boxes of 12 CFLs per box buying large boxes provides discount 3 ways to fund the CFL giveaway Ecology mission group budget Sales of $2.50 to congregants Recruit partner places of worship to contribute (Baptist Church of Great Valley and MLUC)

7 HOME DEPOT Sign up with Contractor Services Submit sales tax exemption form Call-in order of 96 CFLs; watt equivalents and 48 of 60-watt equivalents Pick up and pay for order and deliver to center (in CBC s case: the Bernardine Center in Chester, PA)

8 SELECT SERVICES CENTER Pick low-income neighborhood and identify service centers Discuss Bright Idea and how the center might distribute CFLs Agree on delivery location, time of day and frequency Bernardine Center asked clients to show a utility bill as verification of ownership or lease responsibility Bernardine Center gave one CFL per person, per month

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10 TRACKING RESULTS CBC asked Bernardine Center to survey people who installed CFLs. Number of CFLs installed # 100 watt vs. 60-watt equivalents # hours previous bulbs burned CBC team referenced EPA emission factors to calculate CO 2 emissions before and after

11 HIGHLIGHTS OF PROGRAM MLUC started 5-6 years ago in North Philadelphia on a street in poor neighborhood MLUC then connected with Bernardine Center CBC assumed program after a lapse of 3 years CBC has taken 672 CFLs to Bernardine Center in past 16 months Energy savings for first 128 CFLs at an average of 6.9 hours per day per bulb saves 30,184 lbs. CO 2 per year CO 2 reductions by these first 128 CFLS are equal to growing 11.2 acres of mature U.S. forests for a year, or saving 1,541 gallons of gasoline. Bright Idea is on track to reduce yearly emissions even more than the solar panels on CBC s roof!

12 RESOURCES Estimate emissions saved by switching to CFLs: contact PA IPL for a calculator that will take you from bulb wattage to carbon savings Find emissions for the basic energy mix in your zip code: Carbon emissions equivalents calculator: Estimate the electricity cost reduction for the recipient:

13 CONTACT INFORMATION Central Baptist Church of Wayne, PA PO Box 309 Wayne, PA Chuck Marshall Pennsylvania Interfaith Power & Light