Dayton will measure its carbon footprint to reduce energy bills

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By Joanne Huist Smith, Staff Writer 11:04 PM Wednesday, March 31, 2010

DAYTON — The city plans to measure its carbon footprint to look for ways to reduce its energy bills and protect the environment.

Energy usage — natural gas, methane gas, electricity, and petroleum — for the city’s more than 700 utility accounts will be measured dating back to 2006 to monitor greenhouse gas emissions. Greenhouse gases, which occur in nature and can be man made, hold heat in the atmosphere.

“Everyone should be conscious of their energy usage. It affects our environment and it affects our pocketbooks,” Donna Winchester, Dayton’s environmental manager said.

The Dayton City Commission, on Wednesday, March 31, approved a contract with Fairborn-based, Honeywell Building Services to conduct the yearlong study. The $91,779 project will be funded with a 2010 federal Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant.

Once the data is collected, Honeywell will do an analysis to look for operations that don’t reach federal EnergyStar benchmarks.

“We’ll go in and see if there is any special process sucking energy. It could be as simple as people leaving lights and computers on all night,” Winchester said. “We know they’re not all going to be quick fixes.”

Winchester said the city is not required to conduct the study.

“We’re preparing ourselves for future (U.S. EPA) regulations coming down the pike,” she said.

Contract awarded for EMS billing

In other business, the City Commission approved a contract with Miamisburg-based Med3000, Inc. for billing and collection services for the Dayton Fire Department’s Emergency Medical Services. City records indicate the billing is expected to generate revenue of $3.4 million to $4.3 million a year.

Since 1994, the city has billed EMS customers more than $93.7 million in charges. About $50 million remains outstanding.

“The Dayton Fire Department provides emergency medical transport services to support the community’s medical needs. We ask users of the EMS to support the city by paying the EMS fee invoice to the extent they can afford,” said Cheryl Garrett, the city’s financial director.

The city will pay Med3000, Inc. 5 percent of the gross cash receipts from collections, which is estimated to be $1.55 million over six years.

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