On April 21, as part of the Earth Day Activities in Washington, D.C., the Department of Energy awarded $452 million of their Recovery Act funds to programs that encourage energy retrofit projects in 28 states across the U.S. and Virgin Islands to make homes and businesses more energy efficient.
Vice President Joe Biden announced that the Recovery Act investment will encourage cooperation between state and municipal entities, private sector businesses, and non-profit organizations to retrofit entire neighborhoods with energy saving strategies. It is anticipated that these pilot programs could save up to $100 million per year in energy costs one implemented and create 30,000 new jobs in the process.
The Retrofit Ramp-Up projects are part of DOE's $80 billion Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program and represent the competitive portion of the funding. As the programs progresses, participants will develop "best-practice" guides to assist future projects adopt and implement the building retrofit strategies that have been proven effective in reducing energy cost. A complete list of states and organizations slated to receive these funds can be accessed through the DOE press release.
