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Environmental center shows off energy upgrades

| 12 Apr 2017 | 06:29
    PEEC’s Visitor Activity Center (pictured) was designed and built in 2004 by the Wilkes-Barre architecture firm Bohlin Cywinski Jackson using recycled materials and energy-efficient insulation, as well as passive heating and ventilation designs to reduce heating and cooling costs. Additional conservation design elements include maximization of daylight, motion-controlled lighting sensors and radiant floor heating. (Photo: American Institute of Architects: aiatopten.org)
    PEEC’s Visitor Activity Center (pictured) was designed and built in 2004 by the Wilkes-Barre architecture firm Bohlin Cywinski Jackson using recycled materials and energy-efficient insulation, as well as passive heating and ventilation designs to reduce heating and cooling costs. Additional conservation design elements include maximization of daylight, motion-controlled lighting sensors and radiant floor heating. (Photo: American Institute of Architects: aiatopten.org)

DINGMANS FERRY — The Pocono Environmental Education Center (PEEC) recently hosted a tour for local elected officials and business leaders to showcase energy efficiency upgrades and retrofits.
PEEC, in Dingmans Ferry, has capitalized on Pennsylvania's Act 129 energy efficiency programs to deploy innovative technologies in its facilities.
On the tour, attended by Pike County Commissioners Matthew Osterberg and Steve Guccini and state officials, The Keystone Energy Efficiency Alliance highlighted the importance of Act 129 for businesses and organizations like PEEC across the state.
“Act 129 is an example of smart policy that has created local jobs that can’t be outsourced, while helping organizations like PEEC save money that can then be invested in the programs they offer to the thousands of children that visit every year,” said Julian Boggs, policy director for the Keystone Energy Efficiency Alliance, a 50-member Pennsylvania trade association.
Act 129 is Pennsylvania’s cornerstone energy efficiency law, enacted in 2008 with broad bipartisan support. It makes the up-front costs of energy efficiency projects affordable. All Pennsylvanians benefit from the energy cost-savings enabled by Act 129, from residential customers to large manufacturers.
“PEEC strives to be the most energy efficient and environmentally friendly facility of its kind, but we also need to be cost-effective to be a sustainable organization,” said Jeff Rosalsky, Executive Director at PEEC. “We are grateful that organizations like the Sustainable Energy Fund and programs like Act 129 exist so that we have the opportunity to save on energy costs and then reinvest in those savings into PEEC educational programs for the 25,000 students that visit every year."
According to a recent U.S. Department of Energy report, 62,341 Pennsylvanians are employed within the energy efficiency industry, a significant increase in recent years, spurred by Act 129.