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IN THIS ISSUE

2023: A year of composting successes
Framingham’s City Charter: Can it incorporate sustainability?
Solar: Can Framingham Public Schools catch up?
Briefs: December regifting: A holiday tradition?
Upcoming events | In the News

2023: A year of composting successes

2023 has been a year of great progress in diverting some of Framingham’s organic waste through composting programs! The more waste we divert, the less waste rots in landfills producing methane and the less the city has to pay for trash disposal. Plus, the organic waste is converted into a useful product: clean, soil-enriching compost.

Composting Task Force forms

Announced in mid-November by Mayor Charles Sisitsky, the 13-member Task Force – holding its first meeting on December 11 – will present recommendations and cost options to the Mayor.  (December 11 agenda and background)

The Mayor appointed District 7 City Councilor Leora Mallach as chair. Energize Framingham members Aimee Powelka and Diana Porter were also appointed, together with Erin Ellsworth of the Framingham Sustainability Committee and Framingham residents Mike Croci, Michael Tarselli, and Heather Smith. 

They’re joined by several city officials and staff: Bob Lewis, director of the Department of Public Works; Darren Guertin, Sanitation Operations Manager; Eve Carey, Recycling Coordinator; Lincoln Lynch, executive director of Operations, Framingham Public Schools; City Councilor Janet Leombruno, who chairs the City Council’s Environmental & Sustainability Subcommittee; and a member of the School Committee’s Climate Change, Environmental and Sustainability Subcommittee (to be named).

About 375 Framingham households (out of 31,500) are currently subscribing to curbside organic waste pickup service with Black Earth Compost. But that’s not enough! According to its announcement, the city aims to make composting more accessible to everyone. That’s great news! 

Energize Framingham looks forward to helping the Task Force make this happen as soon as possible and minimize the city's waste disposal costs. We’ve done research outlining several options the city could pursue, from underwriting a curbside composting pilot to distributing free compost bins and liners to soliciting bids for citywide curbside food waste pickup service. Thanks again to everyone who wrote letters that helped the Task Force come to be!

School cafeteria composting: Volunteer opportunity!

Energize Framingham’s partnership with Dunning Elementary School on cafeteria food waste composting continues. According to the Framingham Public School District November newsletter, Dunning’s cafeteria trash has decreased from 12 bags to 2 bags per day, with more than 120 gallons of compostable material collected and diverted from the waste stream every week. That’s a huge success! 

Dunning is seeking adult volunteers to help the younger children separate their organic waste from their other cafeteria trash.If you have a little time during the day and have been CORI-checked (or are willing to have a background check), sign up here as a Composting Helper!

A bit of training is involved, so you should ideally be able to work at least four lunchtime shifts this school year. With some much appreciated help from Keep Framingham Beautiful’s Mike Crocl, we’re part way toward filling these slots.

In the meantime, at least one other elementary school has expressed interest in cafeteria waste composting, and we’re excited to guide them. And Michelle Thomas, the district STEAM coordinator for Framingham Public Schools, has started a conversation with Energize Framingham about integrating student learning into the composting programs.

Walsh composting pilot wraps

Last June, eight diverse Walsh Middle School families signed up for six weeks of free curbside organic waste pickup service from Black Earth Compost, supported by a small grant from New England Grassroots Environmental Fund. Energize Framingham’s Aimee Powelka and Nanette Magnani met with participants virtually in November to get their feedback. Despite a learning curve, most families got used to the change in routine and several expressed interest in continuing. Some felt a bit more education was needed, preferably in multiple languages, and appreciated the availability of support through What’s App. One participant suggested an instructional video to help people understand what’s compostable and what’s not.

Framingham’s city charter: Can it incorporate sustainability?

In 2018, when Framingham transitioned from being a town to being a city, a City Charter was created outlining the structure of our new government. Now that we’ve reached the five-year mark, Framingham’s Charter Review Committee is formally reviewing the charter and gathering public feedback through a suggestion form and neighborhood meetings. The Committee, appointed by the Mayor, is chaired by Adam Blumer.

Energize Framingham is participating in the charter review process to advocate for ways to embed sustainability, climate resilience, and environmental justice in city decision-making – from purchasing to transportation to new buildings. We welcome your ideas (send email to [email protected])! 

Ideas we're exploring, which have been enacted in other cities, include creating a new government commission on climate and sustainability, drawing members from across city departments; add a chief sustainability officer in the Mayor’s office; and making sure that spending aligns with climate and equity goals.

As per the charter, the Charter Review Committee will submit its report of recommended changes to the City Council no later than May 1, 2024. The City Council must then put the committee's recommendations on its agenda for action before June 15, 2024. The next opportunity to review the charter will be in another 10 years (2033).

Solar: Can Framingham Public Schools catch up?

It’s widely agreed that solar has been slow to take hold in Framingham. To date, only Fuller Middle School and Brophy Elementary School have had solar panels installed in their parking lots, and Fuller’s have not yet been turned on – representing lost savings of $250/day, according to School Committee member Adam Freudberg. 

Meanwhile, the Farley Administration Building was approved for a new roof without solar being part of the plan. This despite the School Committee’s goal for 2022-23 to “incorporate solar structural analysis and design into roof design projects.”

At the November 1 School Committee meeting, Freudberg expressed his frustration with the pace of progress and called for an amendment to begin to help Framingham catch up. The amendment, ultimately approved by a 5-4 vote, adds about $1.7 million of funding for rooftop panels for Farley to the proposed FY25 Capital Budget for the public schools.

Without this off-cycle budget request, Farley’s solar panels would have had to wait for next year’s budget process, Freudberg said, meaning the panels wouldn’t be operational until December 1, 2025 at the earliest. Now, with the amendment, the project could go before the City Council immediately and construction could begin as early as summer 2024, he said.

A future ‘catchup’ package?

While Freudberg focused on the Farley project, he hopes that going forward, money for solar will be part of any request for a new school roof or repaving project. 

He noted that according to a 2021 document from the Buildings and Grounds Department, the rooftop solar panels were in consideration for six elementary schools (Barbieri, Harmony Grove, Juniper Hill, King, McCarthy, and Potter Road); Walsh Middle School; and Framingham High School.

None of these projects have yet moved forward. Meanwhile, a new roof is expected to be approved for Dunning Elementary, while new paving projects are expected to be approved for McCarthy Elementary and Walsh Middle School. Once these are approved for funding, Freudberg said, “we need to ask for solar.”

Off-cycle budget requests for solar projects are justifiable, he argued, because of their expected financial payback via the electricity they produce. Projected payback time has gone from 10 years to 4 years, he said.

A 5:4 vote for Farley solar

Matt Torti, director of Buildings and Grounds for FPS, voiced his support for starting the timeline for solar projects sooner rather than later.

School Committee member William LeBarge also voiced support. “The sooner we start it, the sooner it will get done,” he said.

But not everyone on the School Committee favored the amendment. David Gordon (District 2) questioned whether panels should be funded and installed only to face delays in turning them on. Vice Chair Priscila Sousa (District 5) said she didn’t see a cost benefit of rushing the process through the City Council and felt it would put stress on the administration “for maybe a couple of months lead with solar.” 

Freudberg countered by quoting from Mayor Sisitsky’s State of the City address:

“That was last January, and we have not given the Mayor one proposal since then,” Freudberg said. ‘It sounds like unless this amendment passes we are going to continue on with that lack of progress on solar.”

Delays in getting solar panels turned on and attached to the electrical grid does remain an ongoing issue. Sousa offered to work with Eversource in her capacity as a Framingham State Representative to facilitate the process.

Roll call:
Yes: D1 Robles, D3 Moshe, D4 Freudberg, D7 Maskell, D9 Le Barge
No: D2 Gordon, D5 Sousa, D6 Ottaviani, D8 Barnhill

The School Committee’s Buildings and Grounds Subcommittee will be meeting to discuss its long-term facilities planning this month (date TBD; follow us on Facebook or Instagram for notice of the meeting date). Of note, the School Committee’s Climate Change, Environmental and Sustainability Subcommittee has not met since May 2023.

BRIEFS

December regifting: A new holiday tradition?

Have you seen those Advent calendars where you open a door for each day in December, and find a small gift? Energize Framingham member Diana Zimmerman-Porter suggests doing Advent in reverse. Each day of the month she’s giving away items she no longer needs – a total of 25 items, ranging from hair styling cream to unopened jars of cranberry sauce to some of her son’s old books. 

Tip: If you don’t have a specific recipient in mind, tap one of Framingham’s neighborhood Buy Nothing groups! Find the one nearest you by searching for “Buy Nothing Framingham.” If you don’t know about Buy Nothing, read our feature from last year.

Opt-in Specialized Code gaining traction

When we last wrote about the Opt-in Specialized Building Code over the summer, it had been passed by 17 Massachusetts communities. As of December 4, that’s now grown to 31 communities. The most recent votes were in Melrose, where the City Council passed the code 10-1 on Dec. 4, and Weston, which passed it 142-36 on Nov. 29.

Here’s the complete list (it’s regularly updated):

Acton, Amherst, Aquinnah, Arlington, Bedford, Belmont, Boston, Brookline, Cambridge, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Concord, Lexington, Lincoln, Maynard, Medford, Melrose, Needham, Newton, Northampton, Norwood, Sherborn, Somerville, Stow, Truro, Wakefield, Watertown, Wellesley, Wellfleet, Weston, and Worcester.

We hope Framingham will soon join the list! Buildings account for about 30 percent of Massachusetts greenhouse gas emissions, and adoption of the code would qualify Framingham for state funding through the Climate Leaders program. Learn more in this webinar from Metrowest Climate Solutions.

Geothermal update

Contractors assigned by Eversource are evaluating the homes of customers participating in the geothermal district. The city is also exploring the possibility of a second geothermal district that would include City Hall, according to Sustainability Coordinator Shawn Luz.

Heat pumps coming to McCarthy

Shawn Luz reports that McCarthy Elementary School is installing heat pumps.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Mon., Dec. 11, 6 p.m. Composting Task Force
Alblondi Room of Memorial building, 150 Concord St. Check for an updated agenda with a zoom link on Monday.

Wed., Dec. 13, 6-7 p.m. Framingham Sustainability Committee 
Zoom link, agenda, and meeting materials will be posted on the City's Public Meeting Calendar a minimum of 48 hours in advance.

Thurs., Dec. 14, 7-8 p.m. Bicycling in Framingham: Where we are and where we’re going. In-person and live online event. Co-sponsored with the Framingham Public Library. 

Thurs., Dec. 14, 7-8 p.m. How Can Cows and Food Waste Save the Planet? (online)
Barstow’s Longview Farm and Black Earth Composting explain how the end result of what we eat (and don’t eat) can curb climate change. Hosted by Congregation Or Atid in Wayland. 

Sun., Dec. 31, 4-7 p.m. New Year’s Eve on the Cochituate Rail Trail
Ring in 2024 with style! Community organizations, groups, and small businesses will host fire pits, offer family friendly-activities, and serve hot drinks, s’mores, and other treats. A drug- and alcohol-free event sponsored by Friends of Framingham Trails in partnership with the City of Framingham.  More details

IN THE NEWS

Massachusetts

State charts a new energy future for Mass., beyond natural gas (Boston Globe)
State officials laid out a new regulatory strategy to move utilities away from natural gas.

Mass. awards $27 million to help ‘decarbonize’ hundreds of affordable housing units  (WBUR)
The awards will reduce planet-warming emissions and increase energy efficiency in more than 700 units across the state.

Mass. is on track to meet its near-term climate goals, but the hardest work lies ahead (WBUR)
The Healey administration revealed in its first annual climate report card that the state is on track for its 2025 goals. But success is less sure for 2030 and 2050 goals.

Could climate tech be the next biotech for the Massachusetts economy? (Boston Globe) 
A profile of climate tech startups at Greentown Labs.

New map of U.S. plant zones shows a warmer Massachusetts (WBUR)
Most of Massachusetts now falls into zones 6 or 7, rather than the cooler zone 5B or 5A. 

The young industry of wind energy has hit economic headwinds in the U.S. (NPR)
Informative piece discusses New York attaching its first offshore wind farm to the grid and Mass.’s Vineyard Wind project.

It will take significant cash to fight climate change. Has Worcester invested enough? (Worcester Telegram) 

Time to move faster: Worcester told to plant more trees to fight climate change  (Worcester Telegram)

Should utilities pay the upfront cost of clean energy? A municipal utility in Ipswich is making the investment.  (Boston Globe) 

Electric vehicles

Why EV charging is still such a pain  (CNN) 

EV Makers Turn to Discounts to Combat Waning Demand (Wall Street Journal) 

Relax, Electric Vehicles Really Are the Best Choice for the Climate (New York TImes Opinion)
Two fundamental misunderstandings: assuming that EVs are locked into today’s technology, and underestimating the environmental drawbacks of gas-powered cars. 

Home energy

These sleek heat pumps can be installed in 30 minutes (Fast Company) 
For a small home or condo, incentives from the Inflation Reduction Act could cover some or all of the cost.

How a tax break of up to $3,200 can help heat your home more efficiently this winter  (CNBC)

ABOUT US

Energize Framingham provides climate education, outreach, and advocacy to promote a healthy, equitable, and resilient community.

Editors: Nancy Fliesler and Aimee Powelka
Have a tip for us? Email [email protected]
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