Patrick-Murray Administration Announces 27 Grants For Energy Projects At Massachusetts Farms

Posted by jcashman

The Patrick-Murray Administration awarded 27 grants totaling $325,000 to Massachusetts farmers to implement renewable energy systems and improve energy efficiency on farms.

“These grants will give our farmers the resources for economic success and drive our clean energy future,” said Governor Deval Patrick. “They are a step in delivering on our goal to make Massachusetts a leader in the clean energy revolution that is sweeping the world.”

Awarded through the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources’ (DAR) Agricultural Energy Grant Program, funding was provided to farms in the towns of Amherst, Bridgewater, Chesterfield, Colrain, Dartmouth, Deerfield, East Longmeadow, Feeding Hills, Framingham, Granville, Hancock, Hardwick, Hatfield, Ipswich, Nantucket, Orange, Paxton, Rutland, Sheffield, Sunderland, Topsfield, Townsend, Truro, Whatley and Worthington.

“This grant program is an important component of the Commonwealth’s efforts to reduce energy costs and improve efficiency,” said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Rick Sullivan, whose office includes DAR. “I want to thank this year’s recipients who are partners in our progress toward a clean energy future.”

Grants will fund projects such as photovoltaic systems for vegetable and orchard operations, variable speed vacuum pumps for dairies, reverse osmosis machines for maple syrup operations, and thermal blankets for greenhouses.

“These grants not only help farmers realize immediate energy efficiency benefits but also provide economic stimulus to local businesses providing materials and equipment to farms,” said DAR Commissioner Greg Watson.

The Agricultural Energy Grant Program is one of several within DAR’s Division of Agricultural Conservation and Technical Assistance (DACTA). The division’s mission is to provide technical assistance, training, conservation, and funding to promote economically viable and environmentally sound agricultural practices in Massachusetts.

“This program is key in helping farmers adopt cleaner energy practices and reduce energy consumption all across Massachusetts, keeping them sustainable and in step with the Commonwealth’s long-term energy goals,” said Department of Energy Resources Commissioner Mark Sylvia.

The program has funded 120 projects statewide since 2009, providing growers and producers more than $1.6 million to address energy issues on their farms. This year, 38 applicants submitted a variety of energy efficiency and renewable energy projects totaling approximately $750,000 in requests.

“The impact of grants such as this cannot be understated,” said Sen. Marc Pacheco, Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture. “The valuable funding will provide farmers a solid economic benefit and will help us all advance toward a long-term true sustainable development future.

“The Patrick Administration continues to be a leader in energy projects. These grants, which literally benefit every corner of the Commonwealth, are a key to helping our farmers and agricultural sector continue to prosper and remain viable,” said Rep. Anne Gobi, House Chair of the Joint Committee on Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture.

Today’s grant awardees:

Municipality	Farm Name	Project	Award
Nantucket	Bartlett’s Ocean View Farm, Inc.	185.6kW Photovoltaic System	$20,000
Colrain	Coombs Hill Farm	Variable Speed Pump	$8,705
Chesterfield	Crabapple Farm	6.7kW Photovoltaic System	$12,000
Feeding Hills	Don Stepanik’s Farm	Natural Gas Conversion, High Efficiency Boilers	$10,000
Framingham	Eastleigh Farm	Bio-Fuel	$10,000
East Longmeadow	Graziano Gardens	Greenhouse Electronic Controls	$2,195
Bridgewater	Hanson Farm, Inc.	14.16kW Photovoltaic System	$15,000
Hardwick	Hardwick Sugar Shack	Reverse Osmosis	$12,500
Orange	Hunt Farm	54.45kW Photovoltaic System	$20,000
Hancock	Ioka Valley Farm	14.4kW Photovoltaic System	$25,000
Worthington	Just-A-Mere Tree Farm	Reverse Osmosis	$7,500
Worthington	Kinne Brook Farm	10.56kW Photovoltaic System	$10,000
South Deerfield	Long Plain Farm, LLC	Outdoor Wood Boiler	$15,000
Ipswich	Marini Farm, LLC	Biomass Boiler	$5,000
Sheffield	Pine Island Farm Partnership	Digester Heat Recovery	$12,500
Amherst	Potwine Neighborhood Farm	Heat Recovery	$3,000
Paxton	R.H. Robinson Co.	High Efficient Greenhouse	$5,000
Rutland	Schultz Farm	59.4kW Photovoltaic System	$20,000
Townsend	Settlement Farm	39.33kW Photovoltaic System	$5,000
Dartmouth	Silverbrook Farm, LLC	26.6kW Photovoltaic System	$7,500
Springfield	Sixteen Acres Garden Center, Inc.	Greenhouse Shade Screen	$5,400
Hatfield	Szawlowski Potato Farms, Inc.	Cold Storage	$12,500
North Truro	Truro Vineyard	40.5kW Photovoltaic System	$21,850
Granville	Up Hill Farm, LLC	4.8kW Photovoltaic System	$9,350
Topsfield	Valley View Farm	Cheese Cave	$20,000
Sunderland	Warner Farm	9.8kW Photovoltaic System, Walk-in Cooler	$17,500
Deerfield	Williams Farm, Inc.	Steam Hood, Natural Gas Conversion	$12,500

For more information on the Ag-Energy Program, visit www.mass.gov/agr/programs/aegp/index.htm

For information on the Division of Technical Assistance programs, visit www.mass.gov/agr/divisions/ag_technical_assistance.htm

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Posted by jcashman on Oct 24 2012. Filed under Featured - For home page featured article, Lifestyle. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry