An Athens County project is a semifinalist in an energy conservation competition, which boasts a $5 million prize for the winning community.
A statewide series of public forums on renewable energy will make their sixth and final stop in Athens from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at the Athens Community Center.
Ohio’s Energy Future Tour is a free and open forum that is a collaboration among businesses, trade associations, nonprofits and local governments. Its goal is to give citizens an opportunity to offer insights into the positive impacts of green energy on local economies.
Athens County Commissioner Chris Chmiel, who will deliver the opening remarks at the event, said the tour is concluding in Athens because of efforts by the community to strive for energy efficiency through groups such as UpGrade Athens County, a project by the Southeast Ohio Public Energy Council.
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UpGrade Athens County was formed through an energy competition hosted by Georgetown University in which communities across the country were invited to compete for a prize of $5 million by improving and setting energy conservation and sustainability standards.
Chmiel said Athens County is currently among the remaining semifinalists and will be involved with the project for about a year and a half. He said representatives from the Southeast Ohio Public Energy Council and UpGrade Athens County will be at the forum.
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Chmiel said the goal of the public energy council's projects and this forum is to educate the public on the possible benefits of renewable energy and increase awareness on one's energy consumption.
“What we’re trying to do is to raise everyone’s energy IQ,” he said. “So we’re trying to get people to look at their bills, understand the impact of their energy choices, what things in their homes or in their businesses are using a lot of energy and how we can make investments that have good returns and have good economic investments that pay themselves off quickly.”
At the forum, the details of a possible 3-megawatt, 10-acre solar farm in Albany County that would provide energy purchasable by the city of Athens, Athens County and potentially Ohio University will be discussed, as well.
He added that grazing sheep might be incorporated into the land for the solar farm because it is agriculturally zoned and farmers in the vicinity would like to have the opportunity to integrate agriculture.
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