Clean Power Blog

Next Round of Commonwealth Woodstove Change-out Program Arrives

Nick Berghane

Feb 26, 2014

On February 18, woodstove owners across the Commonwealth began to fill out applications after Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Rick Sullivan announced a new round of the Commonwealth’s Woodstove Change-out Program, committing up to a million dollars to encourage residents to replace older, inefficient woodstoves with healthier, higher-efficiency models.

The announcement was made at The Fire Place, a cozy woodstove retail shop located in Whately. The store redeemed more vouchers than anyone else when the program was first launched last winter.

 The Commonwealth Woodstove Change-out Program provides vouchers of $750 or $2,000 to Massachusetts woodstove owners looking to trade in their non-EPA certified stoves for models that use less wood and release less pollution into the air. This program allows residents to both improve their health as well as their bank account. DOER Commissioner Mark Sylvia summarized this sentiment while speaking at the announcement, saying, “These vouchers will help residents save money on upfront costs and monthly wood costs, while helping the Commonwealth reduce air pollution.”

Secretary Sullivan and Commissioner Sylvia were also joined by MassCEC CEO Alicia Barton, MassDEP Deputy Commissioner Marty Suuberg, and the American Lung Association Northeast Director of Public Policy Casey Harvell.

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Green Gaming

Sanah Ahmed

Innovation and Industry Support Fellow

Feb 19, 2014

As the Massachusetts Gaming Commission considers applicants for a limited number of casino licenses, sustainability and energy efficiency practices are an important factor in the decision.  With the invitation for large entertainment facilities to enter Massachusetts, an exciting new opportunity has been created for clean energy companies in the region to deploy and test their technologies.

MassCEC and the Massachusetts Gaming Commission took the initiative to create a networking event at Bentley University where the clean tech industry in Massachusetts had a great opportunity to link up with the potential entertainment facilities. A mix of clean energy, transportation, energy efficiency and water innovation companies presented the developers with a variety of technologies and services that could both improve facility operations and prove to be financially beneficial. 

The new market that this legislation has created will undoubtedly aid in the further development of clean technology as these large energy, resource, and water consuming facilities will be active testing grounds for entrepreneurs to expand their technologies. The connections created between these Massachusetts based clean energy companies and the entertainment facilities industry could also lead to business opportunities for Massachusetts clean energy companies on a national scale that would benefit all the parties involved.  

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Massachusetts Water Delegation Visits Singapore

Michael Murphy

Business Development Manager, Water Innovation

Feb 14, 2014

This past December, Gov. Deval Patrick led a trade mission to Singapore, looking to expand markets for Massachusetts companies and gain exposure to cutting-edge technologies and research.

As part of this effort, MassCEC worked with a delegation of leaders in the Massachusetts water industry to make connections and build professional networks with their counterparts in Singapore’s business, academia and governmental fields, with the aim of learning about the country’s water innovation cluster and gaining exposure to leading-edge technologies and research.

They say necessity is the mother of innovation, and that’s very much the case in Singapore.  Dense population and rapid urbanization combined with other factors to create water security issues across the country.

However, with notable investments from the country’s Environment and Water Program Office and National Research Foundation, Singapore has made deep commitments in research and development of water technology, placing itself squarely on the map as an international hub for water innovation.

The intense five-day trip featured a number of great meetings and events, including a tour of CleanTech Park and Visenti, a water technology spin-out that originated in the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART).

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