Five members of the Hailey Climate Protection Committee attended the Idaho Energy and Green Building Conference, which took place in Boise from Oct. 24 to Oct. 26.
Hailey City Clerk Heather Dawson, a member of the committee, stated in a press release Monday, Oct. 29, that the conference was a forum to share information about energy resources and needs from state and national building associations, Idaho power companies, and Idaho city officials, among others.
Dawson stated that one of the most important messages of the conference was the need to dramatically increase efficiencies in both new and old buildings, as well as awareness and action in residential and commercial energy consumption.
This focus on increasing the energy efficiency of building stemmed from the statistical analysis the committee provided in the release that showed that buildings create 48 percent of carbon emissions, with 29 percent the result of transportation, and the remaining 23 percent created by industry and solid waste.
Dawson stated that the committee will provide residents with information from the conference, as well as recommendations for the public and private sectors in its effort to create a community sustainable in its energy needs.
This conference came on the heels of a $5,000 grant that was awarded to Hailey, in partnership with the ERC, Blaine County, and the other cities of the Wood River Valley, to implement climate protection programs.
The grant will help the city continue to support its committee and its goal of collecting information about the greenhouse gas emissions that result from the city's operations. This information will be shared with other local governments to make decisions on how to control and reduce the area's carbon footprint.
