Energy audits aim to save money for Haverhill taxpayers

HAVERHILL — The city will undertake a major energy audit of its public buildings in an effort to save taxpayers money, Mayor James Fiorentini said.

Everything from drafty windows to water heaters will be inspected by teams of energy experts from National Grid and the state's Department of Energy Resources — at no cost to Haverhill, he said.

Fiorentini said new, comprehensive energy audits were a recommendation of the city's Energy Task Force. He said it cost more than $5 million this year to heat and power Haverhill's public buildings, and that the upcoming audit is expected to point out areas where energy can be conserved.

City Hall will undergo the most extensive survey, the mayor said, and that study will be conducted at no cost to the city. The cost to inspect other public buildings in the city will be paid for though a state energy efficiency grant that state Rep. Brian Dempsey lobbied for.

"If you own a home, you might have taken some steps to conserve energy, such as insulating leaky doors or windows, turning off lights when you leave a room or keeping the heat a few degrees lower than you'd like it," Fiorentini said.

The city launched an energy initiative in 2003 that resulted in annual savings of more than $60,000 through the installation of energy efficient lighting in City Hall, areas of Haverhill High, and Consentino, Whittier and Hunking middle schools.

Maintenance Director Jeff Dill said the cost of the lighting replacement project was partly paid for with National Grid energy rebates and the balance was paid off with two to three years of energy savings.

"The new audits will be far more comprehensive and instead of targeting certain projects as we've done in the past," Dill said. "They'll come in with a team of engineers who will review everything, including windows, roofs, heating systems and controls, lighting, water heaters and more. Then tell us what we can do to reduce costs by making some capital improvements. If we wanted to do this kind of audit before, we would have had to pay for it."

Fiorentini said the audit should outline what fixes or upgrades are needed to save energy and any associated costs might be paid for through a stimulus package that has been proposed by President-elect Barak Obama.