Towanda, Wysox Municipal Authorities granted ARRA funds for energy effeciency improvements

TOWANDA - The Towanda Municipal Authority and the Wysox Township Municipal Authority have been awarded federal funding through a Pennsylvania state program which could make the sewer system more energy efficient.

The $413,760 grant comes from the Pennsylvania "Conservation Works!" program, according to Towanda Municipal Authority Manager Tom Fairchild. To that grant amount, Towanda and Wysox will match approximately $100,000 in additional funds, Fairchild said, for a total estimated project cost of around $517,200.

The Towanda Municipal Authority is in partnership with the Wysox Township Municipal Authority for the project, Fairchild said. Because the involves multiple municipalities, it is eligible for more funding under the grant program.

According to a press release from Congressman Chris Carney, more than $22 million was awarded statewide through the Pennsylvania "Conservation Works!" grants program, which was set up to disburse funding appropriated by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Applications were submitted in July and August for the program, which covers cities, towns and boroughs with fewer than 35,000 people and counties with fewer than 200,000, provided grants to projects that would create jobs, start within six months and finish by May 31, 2011, the release stated. According to the release, the one-time grant is projected to create four jobs and save 5,212,620 kilowatt hours of electricity.

A consultant working on the project estimated that the project could result in an energy use reduction of around 30 percent and energy-cost savings of around $22,000 a year for the authority, Fairchild said.

One of the improvements planned in the project is the installation of a solar panel array on one of the main pump stations in Wysox, Fairchild said, because the pump station is in the open and receives adequate sunlight, making it an "ideal candidate" for a solar-operated pump.

Another component of the project is to conduct a wind study at the authority's two wells in North Towanda, to determine if it would be advantageous to place wind turbines there to operate the well pumps, Fairchild said. If the study shows that the site is a good place for wind turbines after a one-year analysis, he said, the authority would likely apply for additional funds to construct turbines at the well sites.

Another component of the project include installing a geothermal heat pump at the authority's waste water treatment plant that would capture heat from the plant's effluent and use that energy to heat the buildings. An aeration system at the treatment plant would also be replaced, he said, with a more energy-efficient system.

As part of the project, an energy audit will also be completed on the authority's treatment plant, to see if there are any other ways to save energy at the site, Fairchild said.

Jim Lenox, secretary/treasurer of the Wysox Township Municipal Authority said cutting energy costs is important because of the rising costs of energy, and that with cost estimates of utilities increasing in the next few years, all consumers would be looking for ways to conserve energy use.

Now that the money has been awarded, Fairchild said, the authority will begin to look into hiring a consultant to begin the process and will likely begin to execute a grant contract with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection before the end of the year. Upon receipt of that grant contract, the authority would move to final design and implementation of the project sometime next year, he said.

Brian Bishop can be reached at (570) 888-9652; or e-mail: bbishop@thedailyreview.com.

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