As I sit by the window looking out at the icicles, like vicious fangs, hanging from the roof, I find it hard to believe that the temperatures outside are as low as the thermometer registers. Even near this wall of glass (windows on the south side of the house for solar gain) the feeling of comfort prevails over the frigid outside air.
As a family, we attempt one significant sustainability change to our lifestyle each year. A few years ago, we decided to add another pane of glass to our double pane windows. The manufacturer didn’t offer a third pane for our window, so we had a local glass company make them for us. These additional panes have made quite a difference in the comfort of the house, and decreased our oil usage—and cost—each year.
Last Saturday at Bedford’s Environmental Action Day, Greg Hale, from the Natural Resources Defense Council, spoke at length about how important it is that we put our efforts into energy efficiency. He explained that for every dollar we spend on efficiency, we receive huge, local, benefits. Each dollar paid to a local contractor to install energy efficient retrofits (building improvements) adds money into the local economy because of the money the contractor spends locally. Those vendors then have money to spend. As homeowners, we also spend less on fuel, saving money annually, which then brings even more money into the local economy. This “domino effect” is exponential.
So as I sit, basking in the sun’s warmth which is now trapped indoors, rather than escaping through the window. I appreciate the economic impact the windows have on my community: trapping our money, keeping it from escaping from our local economy.
