-
Residents and community members gather for the Acton Sustainability Office Heat Pump Pizza Party, held on December 4th. (Photo courtesy of the City of Acton) -
Volunteer Clean Energy Coach David Martin speaks to Acton homeowners about alternative heating systems, including heat pumps, during the event. (Photo courtesy of Karen Root-Watkins) -
Andrea Becerra, Sustainability Director for the Town of Acton, Jude Aronstein of Energize Acton, Karen Herther of Energize Acton and Lauren West, Environmental Analyst for the Town of Acton, clear out empty pizza boxes after the successful Heat Pump Pizza Party. (Photo courtesy of the City of Acton) -
Kit Wu, heat pump pricing researcher and founder of Laminar Collective, speaks to Acton residents about available heat pump incentives and pricing during the Heat Pump Pizza Party in Acton. (Photo courtesy of Karen Root-Watkins)
ACTON – The City of Acton Sustainability Office, in collaboration with Energize Acton, hosted a successful Heat Pump Pizza Party.
The event was held Dec. 4 at City Hall and approximately 130 residents and community members attended. Attendees spoke with volunteer Clean Energy Coach David Martin and Kit Wu, a heat pump pricing researcher and founder of Laminar Collective, who shared information about how heat pumps work, available incentives and pricing information, and explained how to retrofit a home.
State Senator Jaime Eldridge and State Representative Dan Sena were in attendance.
Pizza and drinks were provided by Acton House of Pizza.
Prior to the event, the City of Acton sent letters to homeowners who had oil, electric resistance and propane heating systems offering residents the opportunity to learn more about heat pumps.
Heat pumps are an efficient heating and cooling alternative to these sources that could help reduce utility bills even if residents are unwilling to replace their entire heating and/or air conditioning system. They also significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
This event was part of Acton's clean energy initiatives to help combat climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Since the program began in 2023, more than 240 residents have contacted a volunteer Clean Energy Coach, most of whom have reached out with questions about heating and cooling their homes with heat pumps, followed by questions about solar energy, energy efficiency audits and electric vehicles (EVs ).
Acton residents and businesses interested in learning more about the free Clean Energy Coaching program can click here or visit ActonEnergyCoach.com to sign up for free support from a coach.
Clean Energy Coaches can help residents and building owners learn about, plan and initiate measures such as: B. the introduction of home/building weatherization technologies, efficient electric heat pump technologies, solar and electric vehicles and/or other clean energy upgrades.
“Acton continues to be a leader in meaningful action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. I am impressed by the ongoing efforts of the staff and volunteers to educate residents about the benefits of energy saving measures such as heat pumps. Congratulations to Director Andrea Becerra and her team for a very successful outreach effort,” said City Manager Mangiaratti. “This program utilized an impressive outreach strategy that included targeted mailings to residents who currently heat with oil. This and other methods of communication such as social media resulted in such interest that registration had to be temporarily suspended while organizers worked to find a larger venue. A special thank you also goes out to select board members David Martin and Jim Snyder-Grant, who are volunteer energy coaches and participated in this event.”
To learn more about Energize Acton, click here.
For more information about the City of Acton's clean energy initiatives and programs, click here.
###