WCAX.COM Local Vermont News, Weather and Sports-Vt. competition rewards energy efficiency

West Rutland, Vermont - June 10, 2011

Community members plant, pot and water flowers to celebrate National NeighborWorks Week.

"It's really a community effort. We get our board members our staff, volunteers, the town manager," said Mary Lamson, the communications director for NeighborWorks.

It's a symbol of something else sprouting in the Rutland community, something organizers hope will bring job growth.

"It isn't often that Rutland County gets the big shiny apple and this is a case where we did," said Ludy Biddle, the executive director of NeighborWorks.

With Sen. Bernie Sanders' support, NeighborWorks in West Rutland came up with a countywide energy competition and asked Sanders for funding.

"We're creating jobs, we're cutting back on greenhouse gas emissions and we're becoming more energy independent because people are using less foreign oil. So if that's not a win-win-win, I don't know what is," said Sanders, I-Vermont.

Each town in Rutland County will work to reach their target goal of home energy improvements over the next year. As an incentive two towns will receive $10,000 prizes for the highest percentage of home energy improvements completed and the highest average savings per home. The prize money came in a bill pushed by Sanders.

"It'll just be more fun if you're reading about your neighbor and trying to beat them, and we've already had four towns declare they're going to be the winner so I think it's working," Biddle said.

The city of Rutland often points to a lack of jobs and poor infrastructure as scars from the recession, Sanders says energy efficiency is key in reviving Rutland County.

"If you're living in an old house that is wasting energy, the fact that we're making your home more energy efficient, more comfortable and we're using less oil, that in a broad sense is infrastructure," Sanders said.

"It shows the rest of the state and the rest of the country that Rutland County is really thinking about these issues of sustainability and it's more than just talking about it," said Jim Sabatoso of Sustainable Rutland.

Organizers hope planting the idea in the community will create an energy around Rutland County as leaders in sustainability.

Click here if you'd like to have your home checked for energy efficiency improvements or want to learn more about the competition.

Susie Steimle - WCAX News