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It's easy being green [Brattleboro Reformer, Vt.](Brattleboro Reformer (VT) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Aug. 25--BRATTLEBORO -- Three local businesses are being recognized by Brattleboro Climate Protection for their efforts to reduce energy and water usage and to make their operations more environmentally friendly. Dutton Berry Farm, Holton Home and World Learning will each receive a Sustainable Business Award for 2009 during the Brattleboro Selectboard meeting on Sept. 1. The Sustainable Business Awards are given annually to Brattleboro-area businesses that are reducing their carbon footprints while promoting local food production, using recycled materials and reducing their solid waste. Dutton Berry Farm, owned by Paul and Wendy Dutton of Brookline, operates three farm stands selling locally grown produce: in Newfane, Manchester and the newest stand in West Brattleboro. The recently completed building, designed by architect Bruce Landenberger of Newfane, was designed with highly insulated walls and roof and a high efficiency ground source geothermal HVAC system, which provides cooling to two walk-in coolers, an air-conditioned work room and refrigerated produce display units. The geothermal system also supplies radiant heating and domestic hot water. The building takes advantage of natural lighting, which is supplemented where necessary with high-efficiency fluorescent lighting. And Dutton Berry Farms is preparing for the future by reinforcing the roof of its Brattleboro farm stand for the potential installation of photovoltaic solar collectors. The award was a surprise to the Duttons. "We weren't expecting anything like it," said Wendy Dutton, who said sustainability fits right into Duttons' farming philosophy. "We want to do as much as we can to be more self-sufficient," she said. And, she added, saving on energy hopefully means Dutton can eventually pass the savings on to their customers. Holton Home, a residential care facility for seniors, has been operating in a building more than 100 years old. The building's attic and basement is being "super-insulated" to prevent heat loss. Holton Home is also installing an air-to-air heat exchange system. A new 5,000-square-foot addition will also be super-insulated with a heat recovery system, and will boast a large array of solar thermal panels to provide domestic hot water needs. Recently, Holton Home converted all of its dryers to gas, installed fluorescent fixtures, started a compost bin and installed sensors to turn off unused lights. It's not just about protecting the environment, said Cindy Jerome, Holton Home's administrator. It's also about saving money to keep its services affordable for seniors. "We want to continue to give excellent care at the lowest possible cost," she said. "This is one way to invest in that as we go forward." At World Learning, a non-profit organization that offers international education and development programs, most of its regular light bulbs were replaced with compact fluorescents and more than 1,200 fluorescent light fixtures were replaced with high-efficiency ballasts and lamps, preventing 55 tons of carbon dioxide per year from entering the atmosphere and saving about $12,000 annually. Andrew Martyn, Sr., World Learning's facilities manager, designed and installed a wood pellet boiler that heats two buildings, saving 1,241 gallons of heating oil annually. In addition, World Learning has cut its solid waste production by two-thirds by composting food waste and cardboard at the Martin Farm in Greenfield, Mass. The compost is then returned for use in two community gardens that grow vegetables for students, staff, townspeople and the local food bank. Paper towel dispensers in the dormitories have been replaced with hand towels, saving $3,000 annually and avoiding 2 1 2 tons of waste. The school installed low-flush toilets that are saving approximately 510,000 gallons of water annually, and switched to environmentally friendly cleaning products campus-wide, improving the overall health of the staff and students. Brattleboro Climate Protection is a non-profit organization that works closely with the Town of Brattleboro to develop effective local solutions to global climate change. Bob Audette can be reached at [email protected], or at 802-254-2311, ext. 273. To see more of the Brattleboro Reformer or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.reformer.com. Copyright (c) 2009, Brattleboro Reformer, Vt. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |