Resources from the Energy Committee

Starting a research or home improvement project related to energy efficiency or energy conservation? Need facts to back you up when you talk about the challenges of climate change? Want quick links to other towns' or regional energy committees? What are "Complete Streets," what's new with walkable neighborhoods, and what makes a good biking community? Has Durham developed a Climate Adaptation Chapter for its Hazard Mitigation Plan? Check out the Durham Energy Committee's page of resource links.

Overview

The Internet makes useful resources easily accessible and broadens our reach exponentially, but there is a downside. Many organizations whose prime purpose is to spread incorrect information, disinformation, and doubt around the issues of carbon emissions and global warming also use the Internet. The Energy Committee provides below lists of credible resources, linked to their home pages. (Clicking on a link will take you to a new window for the external site.) At the bottom of the page you will also find a list of websites that the DEC strongly urges you to avoid.

In addition, third-party research reports and articles may be downloaded from the *Supporting Documents* section.

Websites are grouped by category. See also the Energy Committee's page of links about alternative and public forms of transportation, including bicyclist, pedestrian, and car sharing options. [IN PROGRESS]

Resources by category (click on name of link to activate)

Other websites' lists of resources

• NH Office of Energy and Planning Resource Library: Energy Production, Use, and Consumption

A. Climate Change

1. Regional and local climate change, energy initiatives

• NH Climate Action Plan
• Climate Adaptation Chapter of Durham's Hazard Mitigation Plan 
• Climate Solutions (including report "Climate Change in the Great Bay region of NH")
• NH Carbon Challenge (including "Carbon Challenge Estimator)
• NH Seacoast Science Cafe: What Do We Really Know and Believe About Climate Change? (see two-part podcast) 
• NH's Energy Efficiency and Sustainable Energy Board ("EESE"; see report released in December 2012)
• NH RSA establishing a State Energy Strategy (adopted 2013)
• EPA's Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program

2. General climate and general climate change

• World Climate (data) 
• Intergovernment Panel on Climate Change
• US Global Change Research Program, including its "National Climate Assessment Report"
• Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES)
• EPA's Climate Change website
• Climate Change Research Center UNH
• Union of Concerned Scientists
• The Center for Biological Diversity's Climate Law Institute (see microsite "Climate Change Is Here Now") 
• NOAA's Climate site
• State of the Climate in 2012: Highlights (NOAA)
• U.S. Department of Defense "Quadrennial Defense Review" (2010 report)
• The Center for Climate and Security
• The Climate Reality Project
• M.I.T.'s "Greenhouse Gamble"
• World View of Global Warming
• 350.org
• Stop Global Warming
• Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI)
• Center for Clean Air Policy: Extreme Weather Trends, Climate Science, and Public Opinion
• Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC): Global Warming
• Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) Thirsty for Answers: Preparing for the Water-related Impacts of Climate Change in American Cities

B. Sustainable built environments 

Architecture, buildings

• U.S. Green Building Council
• LEED (Leadership in Environmental Energy & Design)
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
• Northeast Sustainable Energy Association
• EnergyIQ: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's non-residential building action-oriented benchmarking tools
• Smart Communities
• American Institute of Architects, Committee on the Environment
• Passive House Institute
• International Living Building Institute / Living Building Challenge
• Institute for Market Transformation

Infrastructure (not "green infrastructure, per se)

• Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure
• Zofnass Program for Sustainable Infrastructure (Harvard University) (check out the "Envision Rating System")

C. Energy Use and Conservation  

• Energy Star Program
• Energy Star Program II
• Positive Energy Conservation Products
• US Public Interest Research Group (USPIRG)

D. Alternative and Renewable Energy Resources  

• U.S. DOE Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy
• EV World
• American Solar Energy Society
• International Solar Energy Society
• Solar Energy International
• Vote Solar
• American Wind Energy Association
• American Council on Renewable Energy
• Solar Energy Business Association of New England
• The Sierra Club: Clean Energy Solutions
• Alliance for Green Heat

E. Funding Programs, Household Help, Consumer Resources

• Eversource of NH Energy Saving Programs and Rebates
• NH Office of Energy and Planning "Energy Efficiency Rebates and Incentives"
• Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency (NH)
• New Hampshire Residential Energy Performance Association (REPA) [an organization made up of individual Residential Energy Auditors and Weatherization Professionals providing Energy Efficiency Services in NH]
• Button Up NH
• Energy Star program (U.S. government)
• Federal Tax Credits for Consumer Energy Efficiency (Energy Star program)
• US Department of Energy | Rebates, Tax Credits & Financing
• Environment New Hampshire: "Plug in to Clean Energy"
• Environment New Hampshire: Help on plugging airleaks
• CEE Energy Efficiency Program Library (Consortium for Energy Efficiency): see "Residential"
• Home Efficiency Questions answered at Energy.gov
• PACENow (advocate organization for Property Assessed Clean Energy) 

F. Water and Energy

• Our Energy Choices: Energy and Water Use (Union of Concerned Scientists)
• The Energy-Water Nexus (Sandia National Laboratories)
• Overview of the Water-Energy Nexus in the United States (Challenges & Opportunities)

G. Transportation and Energy

Bicycle and bicycling resources

For every 1 mile pedaled rather than driven, nearly 1 pound of CO² (0.88) is saved. (US Environmental Protection Agency, 2009). 

• NH's "Three Foot Law"  for drivers and bicyclists (RSA 265:143-a)
• NHDOT's Bicycle and Pedestrian Program
• NHDOT "Tips for Driving a Bicycle and Rules of the Road Summary" 
• Four Types of Transportation Cyclists (who is riding; who wants to ride but isn't)
• Granite State Wheelmen 
• Seacoast Area Bicycle Routes (SABR)
• League of American Bicyclists
• Bike-Walk Alliance of NH
• Women Cycling Project (Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals)
• IBPI (Initiative for Bicycle and Pedestrian Innovation), Portland State University: Web Resources
• National Conference of State Legislatures (see "Transportation")

I. Other Local Energy Organization Websites

• The Green Oyster | Oyster River Sustainability Committee (ORCSD)
• Concord, NH Energy and Environment Committee
• Dover, NH Energy Commission
• Keene, NH Cities for Climate Protection Committee
• New England Grassroots Environment Fund
• New Hampshire Office of Energy and Planning, Energy Progr
• Rockingham Planning Commission's Community Energy Planning
• SEAREI (Seacoast Area Renewable Energy Initiative)

Broken links and comments

Links provided on this site are accurate as of October 4, 2019. Please tell us if you've come across a broken link by sending us an email. Provide us with the name of the organization and the title and web address (URL) of the specific page to which the link is broken.

If you'd like to suggest the addition of a resource, feel free to email us as above.