HeatSmart Ulster•Sullivan (HeatSmart U•S), a state-supported community campaign to help our local home and business owners increase energy efficiency and choose clean heating and cooling systems. Read Catskill Mountainkeeper's press release launching our campaign!

Catskill Mountainkeeper and Sustainable Hudson Valley Launch HeatSmart Ulster•Sullivan

New Community Campaign to Weatherize Buildings and Install Clean Heating & Cooling Systems in Sullivan and Ulster Counties

 October 29, 2018, Livingston Manor and Kingston—Starting today, building owners can sign up for energy efficiency improvements that will make their buildings more comfortable and put their properties on track to choose clean heating and cooling systems, through HeatSmart Ulster•Sullivan. Energy efficiency improvements help lower energy bills and reduce harmful greenhouse gases and air pollution, while making homes and businesses more comfortable year-round.

A collaboration of Catskill Mountainkeeper and Sustainable Hudson Valley, HeatSmart Ulster-Sullivan is one of eight community-led campaigns in New York funded by the New York State Energy Research & Development Authority (NYSERDA) Clean Heating and Cooling Communities Campaign initiative. HeatSmart Ulster-Sullivan will play a key role in achieving Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s clean energy goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent by 2030.

HeatSmart Ulster-Sullivan makes it easier for building owners to navigate their choices to improve energy efficiency and install more efficient heating and cooling systems, such as ground-source (geothermal) and air-source heat pumps. These latest technologies are designed especially for cold climates like New York’s, and will make buildings more comfortable while dramatically cutting energy use.

Knowing that these systems work best in a well-insulated building, the campaign begins this fall with intensive education on building science and energy efficiency—the ways to optimize performance of renewable heating and cooling technologies.

HeatSmart Ulster-Sullivan is proud to work with two local contractors, Energy Conservation Specialists and the Hudson Valley Green Energy Group, that were competitively selected and will help customers better understand their building and energy efficiency needs.

“This process of energy retrofitting our home and business has a huge impact in our local economies because it encourages a local specialized work force that provides an amazing service of making your homes much more resilient to the extreme weather we are currently experiencing. The dollar savings are real and now they are kept here, in our local communities, to be invested here for the benefit of all of us,” said Luis Hernandez of the Hudson Valley Green Energy Group.

Melinda McKnight of Energy Conservation Specialists said, “We are delighted to be a part of the HeatSmart US campaign to create energy efficient homes that are ready to install Air Source Heat Pumps. This is vital to achieve the goals set forth by Governor Cuomo to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and limit the impact of NYS residences on the climate.”

HeatSmart Ulster-Sullivan will aid consumers in making the transition to clean heating and cooling by walking them through the process of improving energy efficiency in their homes, planning and selecting clean heating and cooling systems and contractors. The HeatSmart campaign will also educate consumers about available financial incentives that make the transition to clean heating and cooling technologies more affordable.

HeatSmart Ulster-Sullivan will hold local events to inform and sign up residents and businesses in Sullivan and Ulster Counties throughout the next 2.5 years. For more information, visit the website: http://www.renewableny.org/heatsmart

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