The Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources has awarded Wellesley a $1m grant through the Climate Leader Communities program that will cover a good chunk of the cost of outfitting the Hardy and Hunnewell Elementary School solar panel projects. Wellesley Sustainability Director Marybeth Martello sounded confident during the June 5 Climate Action Committee meeting that the grant would come through, and Wellesley Executive Director Meghan Jop confirmed at the June 8 Select Board meeting that it indeed had.

The goal is to complete the school projects in the fall, Martello said.

Earlier this year there had been some angst in town over Wellesley’s bid for the grant due to town government protocols that needed to be resolved, as they eventually were (see “Wellesley climate action team breathes sigh of relief over school solar funding decision”). Numerous departments and individuals joined forces to secure the grant for Wellesley.

The capacity of arrays the town would install on the schools has been estimated to generate the equivalent of 92% of the electricity Hardy uses on an annual basis and 82% of what Hunnewell uses. This would translate to annual electricity costs being $50k less than 2025 levels for the schools, plus excess capacity would go to the Municipal Light Plant’s distribution grid for community use, Martello said earlier this year.

A 430 kW system has been proposed for Hardy and a 374 kW  for Hunnewell.

The $1m grant would add to roughly $3.2m in remaining school project funds that could go toward the project, plus funding from the Wellesley Municipal Light Plant’s WECARE program that was contingent on the state funding being approved.

Other takeaways from the June 5 Climate Action Committee meeting (see Wellesley Media recording):

• Food waste diversion: An impressive 640 pounds of food waste was diverted from the trash during Wellesley’s Wonderful Weekend. (Learn about the town’s waste reduction efforts at the public schools in a presentation by Amber Crowley and Amber Keller about 32 minutes into the Wellesley Media recording of the April 3 Climate Action Committee meeting.
• National Grid strikes again: National Grid plans to dig up the practically new pavement on Hardy Road (leading to new Hardy Elementary School, which opened in summer of 2024) to replace a leaky gas pipe. The Climate Action Committee has reached out to the three households on that street and National Grid about a possible plan for de-commissioning the pipes and electrifying the homes. Though Committee Chair Lise Olney acknowledged achieving the preferred outcome on this would be challenging given a June 12 deadline from National Grid. Legislation has been proposed in the state to require utility companies to give municipalities more of a heads up on plans.  Unexpected National Grid plans have thrown off town construction projects in recent years. On the bright side, Wellesley has gained access to a general list of National Grid projects expected to be three to five years out, so there may be opportunities for the town to work with the utility to get ahead of some future work.
• Geothermal investment: Committee members expressed enthusiasm over potential state funding that could be used by municipalities to pay for geothermal energy projects if key legislation passes. Wellesley recently held a forum on “Geothermal Solutions for Affordable Heating & Cooling” at the Village Church, which is at the forefront of this clean energy option locally.

The room quickly reached capacity, with every seat filled and a standing crowd lining the back of the hall. Organizers said the April 15 event drew a mix of Wellesley residents and people involved in commercial developments, large property owners, multiple colleges, multiple houses of worship, community leaders and more interested in learning about geothermal solutions. 

The Wellesley Climate Action Committee co-hosted the event with the Village Church. Reps from the church, which implemented its geothermal system in November, led guided tours in the basement, allowing attendees to take photographs and see the installation up close. 

Geothermal energy utilizes heat energy from the earth to provide heating during cold times of the year and cooling during summer. This energy is accessed by bore holes and wells. 

“We as a congregation have been so hopeful that this would be an example and that the installation would be informative and inspirational,” said Kathy Schleyer, co-chair of Empowering the Future and a community leader at the Village Church. 

“One of our missions of course is to help care for the earth and the health of the world, and so we’re sharing this geothermal project with you with those goals in mind,” said Schleyer.

Caitlin Osepchuk, associate and architect at HMFH Architects, hopes the church’s lead towards a greener lifestyle will inspire residents to adopt their own renewable heating and cooling systems. 

 “We’re starting to see that this is something that is extremely achievable in a small scale residential area or in large scale public community building cities,” she stated. “I think in terms of implementation and actually getting it into the works, it will be mostly community buildings, libraries, town halls, schools who have a little bit more capital funding behind them to, you know, offset that high initial cost.” 

Isabel Varela Gutierrez, director of science at HEET, a non-profit working towards implementing climate solutions, said geothermal installations are possible on any building type, including residential buildings. However, she stated it is better to have a network of buildings that use one geothermal system, such as community centers and the Village Church. “University campuses are generally easy because they have multiple buildings,” she said. 

GreenerU, an organization focussed on achieving climate neutrality through engineering sustainable solutions, helped design and install the geothermal system for the Village Church. The long-term reliability of geothermal systems outweighs the initial higher first cost on installation, said Rob Durning, chief executive officer of GreenerU.

It is recommended for buildings that are going to be around for long periods of time. While the initial cost of geothermal installation is higher than traditional natural gas and air-source heat pump systems, geothermal solutions are twice as efficient because their cost of maintenance and replacement is less, said Durning. 

The Village Church faced a $2 million cost of replacement for a failing heating and cooling system, which urged their move to the geothermal systems. The church found that federal rebates and incentives meant the final cost for geothermal was about $2.05 million as opposed to the initial cost of $4.5 million. Natural gas and air-source heat pump systems’ final cost would have been around $2.07 million despite having a lower initial cost, Durning showed. Schleyer said the Village Church’s move to geothermal was a cost-effective long-term decision. 

“It was so inspiring to see so many folks excited to learn and brainstorm around improvements for our communities,” said Megan Lim, an MIT graduate student who founded Geo@MIT, a student consulting group for affordable decarbonization through thermal energy systems. “I’m excited to think about how we can highlight this story and enable more intergenerational collaboration around climate and community issues.” 

“Bringing groups together to explore practical solutions to help transition to cleaner, more efficient systems is essential to meet our climate goals. However, we know that this transition must extend to affordability, comfort, and resilience,” said State Rep. Alice Peisch, who also attended the forum. “I think it’s remarkable what the potential is for the geothermal systems.”