WOODVILLE— For the second year in a row, the town of Woodville in Jackson County has earned national recognition for its efforts to cut costs by improving the energy efficiency of its buildings.
The federal ENERGY STAR program recently announced the results of its 2015 Battle of the Buildings National Competition. With an energy-use reduction of 89 percent, the Woodville Chapel building was named the top energy-saving building in the nation, beating more than 100 buildings including facilities from Sears, General Motors and major universities. The Chapel won the same honor in the 2014 competition with Woodville taking home the top team honors for overall energy reductions.
Other buildings Woodville entered into the 2015 competition included the wastewater treatment plant, Town Hall, and the Woodville Cooperative building. By cutting energy use 32 percent, the Cooperative building was named the top energy saver in the public services building category. With an energy-use reduction of 16 percent, the wastewater treatment plant earned recognition as the top energy-saving treatment plant.
The motivation for the town of about 750 residents was simple: By saving money on energy, the town could add more dollars to its budget for essential services. The energy savings for 2014 and 2015 – the two years Woodville has competed in Battle of the Buildings – represent $5,400 in cost savings from 2013.
“This is a great award for the town of Woodville,” Mayor Steve Helms said. “It just shows that you don't have to be big to do big things. I am truly amazed, and I really appreciate everyone working so hard and really staying with it.”
Steve Harnden, Woodville Wastewater Treatment Plant operator, played a key role in organizing the energy-saving effort, which included the mayor, council members and town employees. Harnden credited a 2013 grant awarded by the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs for kick-starting the process. The $8,625 grant helped the town upgrade to more efficient wastewater treatment equipment that uses less energy than the old equipment. As part of that process, ADECA’s Energy Division introduced the town to the ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager, a no-cost online tool that allows managers to track the energy performance of their buildings over time. The town started benchmarking the wastewater treatment plant’s energy performance and soon added additional buildings.
With the town already entering data into the ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager program, ADECA’s Liz Cochran, who managed the wastewater grant, encouraged the town to enter the ENERGY STAR National Building Competition in 2014. The town continued its efforts in 2015.
“We are very happy to be able to bring this award home for a second year to Woodville and Alabama,” Harden said. “After our success in last year’s competition, we did not quit. We kept on saving and showing we could do it. We sustained our energy savings and surpassed our expectations for a second year.”
ADECA Director Jim Byard Jr. said Woodville serves as an example of how energy savings can bring relief to tight budgets and help governments, residents, businesses and organizations make the best use of their resources.
“For the second straight year, Woodville has demonstrated how a community can come together to achieve an important goal,” Byard said. “We are pleased to continue our partnership with the town to help identify and achieve energy savings opportunities.”
The town frequently consulted with the North Alabama Electric Cooperative for advice and assistance. The team achieved much of the savings by examining the buildings and simply shutting off lights and unplugging equipment that was not in use. In the Chapel, the town shut down the air conditioning and heating systems, appliances and water heaters until they were needed when the facility was used for a function. The group achieved additional energy savings by using programmable thermostats, switching to more efficient LED lighting and installing timers that automatically shut off the lights.
To learn more about the Battle of the Buildings, go to www.energystar.gov/battleofthebuildings.
For more about ADECA’s Energy Division programs, go to www.adeca.alabama.gov/energy.
In addition to energy conservation programs, ADECA administers an array of programs supporting law enforcement and traffic safety, economic development, water resource management and recreation development.
Contact: Mike Presley or Jim Plott