Andover Leading As A Clean Energy Community
Andover, Massachusetts is a leader in finding and using clean energy solutions through harvesting solar energy, building cleaner buildings, moving towards more electric vehicles and maintaining our shared land. In addition organizations throughout Andover work to raise the awareness of how individuals and businesses can improve use of resources. Check out these highlights and join in!
Town Sustainability Coordinator
Helping to coordinate and inspire Climate Action for the town is Andover’s Director of Sustainability, Dr. Joyce Losick-Yang, who develops and administers program and policy initiatives to advance Andover’s sustainability work.
Losick-Yang is leading an effort to understand the sources of Andover’s greenhouse gas emissions and how individuals, companies and the town can reduce them and save money in the process. Working with Andover WECAN members, she completed the town’s first Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory and hosted the town’s first Climate Summit in April 2022. She lead the effort to develop a Climate Action and Sustainability Plan.
Check out the town’s sustainability work!
Solar Investment
Andover residents and businesses have installed 9.9 megawatts of solar energy across almost 600 arrays. 9.9 megawatts is more than just a number— it’s turning lights on, charging electric vehicles, keeping food cold in a refrigerator. And in many cases, it’s energy that pays for itself.
Those nearly 10 megawatts of installed solar arrays can produce about 13,000 megawatt hours of energy in a typical year. That’s enough to power commuting to Boston for a year for 3500 Andover electric vehicles. Or run 26,000 refrigerators for a year. So keep solarizing Andover!
In 2022, Andover was awarded $500,000 toward rooftop solar on Sanborn Elementary! Planning is underway for this new renewable energy project. Thank you Joyce Losick-Yang for keeping this moving forward!
At town meeting 2023 the town approved a solar power purchase agreement for both West Elementary School and Bancroft School!
Over half of Andover’s municipal energy comes from solar power, according to Dr. Losick-Yang. In 2020, the town used 6.2 million kWh of renewable electricity generated from a combination of the Palmer Solar Farm plus additional renewables from the Basic Utility minimums.
Sustainability Resolution
At Town Meeting 2023, the town overwhelmingly supported Article 28 Andover Sustainability Resolution! By passing this resolution, Andover Town Meeting communicated to Andover town government that we are ready to develop and implement a meaningful Climate Plan, set priorities in policy, programs and purchasing, and establish Andover as a climate action community working to create a more resilient and sustainable future!
LEED Building Awards
Andover has 9 buildings in town with LEED certification including:
The Snyder Center at Phillips Academy— LEED Platinum certified the highest LEED designation
Atria Marland Place— LEED Gold certified
The Wellness Center at Phillips Academy— LEED Gold certified
IRS Center Modernization— LEED Gold certified
Bancroft Elementary school — LEED Silver certified
23 Frontage Road — LEED certified
MassDOT Maintenance Facility Andover— LEED certified
Raytheon — LEED certified
Phillips Electronics (since sold to Atlantic Management Corporation) — LEED certified
Source: Green Building Information Gateway
In addition, there are many more buildings that have received energy star designation including Andover High School. And the new West El is striving to be LEED silver certified.
Andover Green Advisory Board
The Andover Green Advisory Board (AGAB) provides support and advice, that contribute to practical environmental solutions, to town boards and departments in Andover. In early 2022, the AGAB and the Town Manager set the following sustainability goals for the Town. Achievement of these goals will be evaluated annually, and new sustainability goals set near the start of each fiscal year.
Secure Select Board approval for CPACE. CPACE (pronounced “C”-pace), Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy, is a financing mechanism to allow commercial property owners to finance energy improvements for existing buildings over a long term.
Apply for funding to mitigate climate risks to address issues such as flooding, emergency shelter and public health risks
Quarterly meetings with the AGAB and the Planning Department regarding Master Plan inputs and sustainability bylaws.
Adopt a Complete Streets policy
Adopt a comprehensive tree policy
In addition AGAB would like the Town to establish a program to help residents to convert to heat pumps and adopt a Net Zero Energy Stretch Code.
Find out more about AGAB and attend their meetings.
Street Lights
All of Andover’s street lights use energy-saving LED lighting, using less power and saving 75% over the non-LED energy costs!
Renewable Electric Sources
Andover has had a power purchase agreement supplying town and school buildings with about 50% of their electricity from renewable sources since 2018. This has saved taxpayers about $1,000,000!
In September 2020 Town Meeting passed an article giving the Select Board authority to initiate community choice aggregation. The new Andover Community Power will bring residents the option of more renewable electricity than National Grid provides. You can learn more about Andover Community Power and help dislodge it from the Department of Public Utilities (DPU) where’s it’s been languishing since the summer of 2021.
Electric Vehicles
More and more residents are investing in cleaner transportation by purchasing electric vehicles. In 2023 500 registered vehicles I Andover were Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) and 234 registered vehicles were Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEV). These 734 vehicles were 2.6% of all registered vehicles in Andover. If you are interested in an EV, check out Drive Electric! to get started.
In addition the Andover police purchased two hybrid Ford Interceptors in 2020. Lieutenant Chuck Edgerly verified fuel efficiency savings. He confirmed the hybrids use only half of the gasoline as conventional vehicles. Assuming 80,000 miles driven over 3 years, and an average of $2.50 per gallon, the net savings on fuel use is roughly $11,000 over 3 years. Even though the Ford Interceptors cost about $4,000 more than the Ford Explorers (non-hybrid model), the net savings to the town is $7,000 over three years per hybrid vehicle. The police department is looking to add to its clean fleet with hybrid and electric models as older vehicles come up for replacement.
Climate Summit and Sustainability Fair
Andover held its first Climate Summit April 2022, hosted by Andover’s Sustainability Office and Andover WECAN, over 100 people attended. Read the Andover Townsman article on the Summit.
In September 2022, Andover WECAN hosted Andover’s first Sustainability Fair as part of Andover Day with more than 30 vendors!
Environmental Education
Andover High School has a sustainable garden and has an environmental sustainability internship course (ESIC) where high school juniors and seniors spend a year working with local organizations on issues from designing municipal choice aggregation to writing blogs on climate action to investigating invasive plants and the impact of road salt on our waterways.
These efforts are in no small part to Andover High teacher Melanie Cutler who was one of just 10 educational professionals honored with a Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators award in the entire country in 2020!
Andover Community Garden
Did you know that Andover has not one, but two community gardens? Andover Community Garden educates folks about organic gardening and provides opportunities for folks to grow and harvest vegetables, herbs and flowers within a welcoming community setting.
Garden plots are open to all residents of Andover and surrounding towns who join the Association.
For more information see AndoverGarden.com.
Open Space
Local organizations in town have protected open space for decades and more is being done each year. AVIS manger more than 30 reservations comprising more than 1,200 acres in the Town of Andover. Andover Trails is dedicated to enjoying and promoting access to our treasured outdoor resources. The Andover Conservation Commission aims to protect Andover’s natural resources. As of 2021, there are over 2,200 acres of protected land that are held in the care and custody of the Andover Conservation Commission.
Green Communities Designation
Andover was one of the inaugural Green Communities designated in 2010. Now 286 Massachusetts cities and towns are recognized by the State Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs Green Communities Program. This designation represents our commitment to find clean energy solutions and apply conservation to reduce our energy use by at least 20%. Through 2020 Andover had been awarded over $1,000,000 in Green Community grants.
Shawsheen River Dam Removals
The Town of Andover is working with the Massachusetts Division of Ecological Restoration and other partners to restore the ecosystem of the Shawsheen River while enhancing its value to the communities of its watershed.
Local Organizations Leading the Way
Local groups have focused on the pressing need to create local change and take climate action. Some of these groups where you can be involved are:
Andover Village Improvement Society (AVIS)
The Shawsheen River Watershed Association
Check them out and see how you can get involved!