Just a few weeks ago, representatives from more than 170 countries meeting in Dubai for the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference known as COP28 reached a surprising agreement. They signed a global pact that for the first time called for “transitioning away from fossil fuels in energy systems, in a just, orderly and equitable manner.”
That message sounded very familiar. In 2018, Marblehead Town Meeting voters overwhelmingly approved an article sponsored by Sustainable Marblehead which set a similar goal of “using 100% carbon-free energy in Marblehead, including in electricity production, building energy use and transportation, and moving with fiscal responsibility and all deliberate speed to achieve this goal.”
Not only did our small New England town reach consensus five years earlier than global climate negotiators, Marblehead set a deadline for achieving carbon neutrality by 2040, did the hard work of measuring our carbon emissions and articulating our vision for the future, and developed a Net Zero Roadmap that charts the course for our clean energy future. Not bad in five short years.
During this time, Sustainable Marblehead has worked hand in glove with the town, conducting the town’s first Greenhouse Gas Inventory Report and serving on the town’s Green Marblehead Committee for the past four years. Special thanks go to Eileen Haley Mathieu and John Livermore, our two representatives on the GMC, for their dedication to this important work.
Additionally, at Town Meeting in May, despite tight budgets, voters gave our town administrator the authority to hire a full-time sustainability coordinator who will help town departments reduce their energy costs while also securing the grant funding necessary to implement our Net Zero Roadmap plan. Word is that we have some great candidates and should have someone in place in early 2024.
The town is also looking for more opportunities to go green. Recently, when the Water and Sewer Department needed a new truck, the town elected to purchase an all-electric Ford Lightning. According to Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer, who drives an electric vehicle himself, “During the annual budget process, if we are asked to replace a municipal vehicle, we will look to see if an EV exists that meets our needs and if so, we will choose that path.”
The Ford Lightning boasts a powerful electric motor and has an estimated range of more than 300 miles on a single charge. It can tow heavy loads and haul cargo while also having the capacity to generate electricity via its 220-volt and 110-volt electrical outlets and power buildings and pumps during emergencies. EVs have lower operating and maintenance costs and produce no tailpipe emissions.
The town is also looking to add more EV chargers for residents who are unable to charge at home and visitors who may want to charge their electric vehicles while they’re in Marblehead shopping or dining. Currently, there are eight public chargers, two each in the Light Department parking lot on Commercial Street and in the Mary Alley Building parking lot, and four on Roundhouse Road at the end of Anderson Street. More chargers are needed to help reduce our reliance on gas-powered vehicles which currently account for 29% of our carbon emissions.
We’ve also seen increased activity on the part of the Marblehead Municipal Light Department and Light Commission to purchase more carbon-free electricity and potentially produce our own electricity by installing solar panels on town buildings like the new Brown School which was constructed with a solar-ready roof.
This is critically important since electrification of buildings and transportation only helps reduce emissions if the electricity we use comes from carbon-free sources. Currently, 43% of our electricity is carbon-free, but with a new contract to purchase hydroelectric power just announced and a new nuclear power contract in the works, we should reach 50% by 2030.
As Light Commission Chair Lisa Wolf remarked in a recent interview with the Marblehead Current, “There’s an increased sense of urgency that I don’t think has been there before. Most people do understand the urgency now.”
Amen to that.
Petra Langer is board chair of Sustainable Marblehead, a nonprofit community organization working to reduce waste and pollution and help the town reach its goal of carbon neutrality by 2040.
