McHenry County Recognized For Sustainable Practices

McHenry County has been recognized with an Achievement Award from the National Association of Counties (NACO).

The award honors the innovative, sustainable practices of McHenry County Government to expand energy efficiency, education and conservation programs.

The application was submitted by McHenry County’s Facilities Management Department. Since 2009, the Department has reduced annual utility costs from $1,684,975 to $1,174,302, an overall operating cost savings of 30%. Additionally, annual greenhouse gas emissions have been reduced by 12%, which has a positive environmental impact equivalent to removing over 270 cars off the road per year .

Energy efficiency improvements have both reduced the County’s carbon footprint and created value for taxpayers. Several years ago, Facilities Director John Hadley saw a need to evaluate and improve inefficient facilities and operations. At the time, the County did not comprehensively assess for efficiency, sustainability, life cycle, labor costs and effectiveness.

Through a series of grants and rebates from the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO),Hadley offset much of the costs of implementing building energy efficiencies. He began using

software programs to track building utilities, including electricity, natural gas, water, and sewer.

The County can now efficiently identify problematic building systems, oversee performance, and quantify cos avoidance using various software programs that manage and monitor utility costs.

The largest funds to support McHenry County energy efficient projects were from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). In 2008, cHenry County was awarded $2.4 million to produce “shovel ready” projects to improve aging, inefficient facilities. The funds were used for 16 energy savings projects , including:

• lighting retrofits,
• window replacements,
• new boilers,
• hot water heaters,
• solar panels.

With the help of contract partners including Alpha Controls, Siemens Building Technologies, Elkhorn Chemical Company, the County is using products and practices that are energy efficient, safe, environmentally friendly and effective.

To create awareness, a “Green Touch Screen” was installed in the administration

building lobby. Staff and visitors can view energy efficient operations of the solar panels on the roof of the building. The building serves as a learning environment to encourage sustainable use and resource practices, including a water bottle filling station, biodegradable garbage bags, technology trash recycling containers, and a cell phone and battery collection site in the purchasing department.

McHenry County is proud to be a part of NACO’s 2015 Achievement Award Program. The award will be presented at NACO’s 2015 Annual Conference and Exposition July 10-13 in Mecklenburg County, N.C.