Seven Tribal Buildings Targeted for 30% Energy Consumption Reduction

The EBCI Office of Planning and Development has pooled a $70,000 Cherokee Preservation Foundation grant and $130,000 of EBCI funding to obtain a matching $200,000 grant from the Department of Energy (DOE). All $400,000 will be used to achieve a 30% energy reduction in seven Tribal buildings.

The buildings are Fire Station #2, the Fitness Center in the Ginger Lynn Welch Building, the new quarters of the EBCI Cooperative Extension Program, the Cherokee Fairgrounds Exhibit Building, Qualla Arts & Crafts Mutual Cooperative, Cherokee Historical Association’s administrative office and the EBCI Finance Building.

A previous grant from Cherokee Preservation Foundation funded energy audits of 20 Tribal buildings to identify opportunities for sizable energy and water use reduction.

“The DOE application was one of the more technical and complicated ones we’ve seen,” said Jason Lambert, EBCI Office of Planning and Development, “But it was an excellent opportunity and we were able to take advantage of good work that had been done in the energy audits. There was great collaboration between the Tribe, the Foundation and Waste Reduction Partners.”

Once DOE funds are received in the coming months, improvements in the seven buildings’ lights, plumbing, insulation and HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) systems will take place.