The issue raised by the considerable share of greenhouse gas emissions produced by the consumption of residential energy is a concern to many stakeholders in the City of Easton – which includes the Nurture Nature Center, residents, the city’s government, and us. As many states take on the responsibility to implement plans in hopes of reducing the future impacts of climate change, local governments are making sure they are doing their part to help reach the common goal. In Easton’s case, the local government has tasked the Nurture Nature Center with the initiative of acting on a climate action plan, and as students in the Engineering & Society Capstone, we have looked to microgrids as the solution for the city of Easton to consider. Initially, we looked at ways solutions could be implemented at the individual level. We considered tasks such as the use of incentives like tax credits to encourage individual actions. However, we noticed that there were existing policies in the state and country that are already aimed at encouraging actions on the individual/household level (i.e. WAP, LIHEAP, etc.). Additionally, because of issues and limitations regarding the social element of the project, we scaled up our solution to account for individuals in the city that may have limited access to resources. Because climate change has impacted cities across the country, it’s feasible to adopt an existing practice, and through research analysis and evaluation, we landed at microgrids.
Without a doubt, a major barrier for low-income individuals when it comes to becoming more energy efficient is money. Low supplies of oil and gas resulting from the pandemic coupled with the return of energy consumption to pre-pandemic levels have caused energy costs to rise. According to some reports, the average electricity pricing rate has increased by nearly 8% from its levels in 2021. Additionally, studies have shown that on average, low-income households have an energy burden percentage that is at least three times higher than non-low-income households. Furthermore, the war in Ukraine has also caused supply instability in oil and gas markets globally, causing this issue to be reflected in energy prices in the US as well. With multiple factors forcing the rise of energy prices, utility companies have to charge increasing rates. This economic burden is affecting lower-class households, causing them to put more focus on paying bills rather than prioritizing energy efficiency. Taking on the initiative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the City of Easton requires us, as well as the Nurture Nature Center, to consider all aspects of the city’s community. Regarding the social aspect, it is in our best interest to make the project feasible and accessible to all Easton residents as projects like this can easily exclude viewpoints from lower-class individuals and vulnerable communities. As stated earlier, nearly 19% of Easton residents fall below the poverty line and are most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change for various reasons. Additionally, many of these residents tend to rent and reside in buildings that do not utilize energy efficiently. Considering that these individuals lack resources, individual measures would put financial stress on a great percentage of Easton’s population. However, with microgrids, it is possible to decrease the economic burden on residents. The local aspect of a microgrid would give end-users more agency and independence from utilities and increase energy savings. Microgrids would take up the burden of investing in energy-efficient technologies off of the individual, as it is a systemic solution that will benefit the community as a whole.