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1 <br /> INFORMATION ITEM <br /> ORANGE COUNTY <br /> DEPARTMENT OF COUNTY MANAGER'S OFFICE <br /> Memorandum <br /> To: Board of County Commissioners <br /> Bonnie Hammersley, County Manager <br /> From: Amy Eckberg, Sustainability Programs Manager <br /> Date: November 2, 2023 <br /> Subject: Orange County Is Partner in $1 .5 Million Energy Efficiency and <br /> Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Award from the U.S. <br /> Department of Energy <br /> On October 12th, Durham County was announced as one of twelve selectees of the <br /> Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Competitive Program, a <br /> funding opportunity from the Office of State and Community Energy Programs at the <br /> U.S. Department of Energy. Durham County, the only entity in North Carolina to be <br /> selected for the EECBG Competitive Program, was awarded $1.5 million to implement a <br /> program that will reduce energy burdens and promote energy efficiency in marginalized <br /> under-resourced neighborhoods in Durham, Orange, and Granville Counties. <br /> The EECBG Competitive Program, funded by President Joe Biden's Bipartisan <br /> Infrastructure Law, awarded $8.8 million in funding to twelve small-to-medium sized <br /> local governments and state-recognized Tribes to use to implement projects and <br /> programs in their communities that reduce fossil fuel emissions, improve energy <br /> efficiency, reduce energy costs, and cut overall energy use. In addition to funding, the <br /> program provides recipients with technical assistance, including training offerings and <br /> access to experts. <br /> The $1.5 million award will be used to fund the NC Energy Burden & Emissions <br /> Reduction Program (EBERP), a collaboration between Durham, Granville, and Orange <br /> Counties and several local partners. The goal of the EBERP is to reduce energy <br /> burdens, build organizational capacity, and develop clean energy technical skills in rural <br /> and urban neighborhoods across the three counties. <br /> EBERP will conduct neighborhood-focused residential energy upgrades in Justice40 <br /> communities, overburdened and underserved communities most impacted by pollution <br /> 1 <br />