Beth Israel Congregation
Ann Arbor, Michigan
The purpose of this application is to request funds to pay for selected energy efficiency projects at Beth Israel Congregation (BIC), located in Ann Arbor Michigan. With the assistance of Hazon, we have successfully completed a professional energy audit at the main synagogue located at 2000 Washtenaw, and at our school annex and meeting area located at 2010 Washtenaw. The audit was an “ASHRE Level II Audit” offered by the Ann Arbor 2030 District. In 2021, BIC joined the Ann Arbor 2030 District as well as an affiliated subgroup consisting of houses of worship (HoW). The goal of the Ann Arbor 2030 District and the HoW subgroup is to improve energy efficiency and environmentally friendly practices across commercial buildings and HoW, with a goal of reaching a targeted bench mark by 2030. The audit was paid for by a $2,500 grant from the Ann Arbor 2030 District, $1,000 grant from Hazon awarded in 2021, and $300 from BIC. The “Green Team” at BIC would like to respond to the audit by completing a short list of recommended retrofits chosen from the audit, targeted at the 2000 Washtenaw building. As shown in the Table below, we have listed five projects consisting mostly of replacement of light fixtures with LED lighting as well as occupancy sensors for selected area of the building. The Table also provides details on the cost of each project, the savings per year in dollars and energy, and estimated time period for payback of our costs (in years). The total costs of the projects would be $991 which would result in a savings of $349 per year, which would subsequently pay for itself in a 2.8-year period and generate continued savings moving forward. These dollar savings result from a saving of 2,917 kWh of electricity per year. We anticipate that the completed projects will jump start our efforts to reach the Ann Arbor 2030 District goal of 50% reduction in energy use by 2030, and, more broadly, inspire Beth Israel Congregation to undertake more ambitious projects to operate sustainably and contribute to the decarbonization of the global energy system (Table in separate document)
- Michael Simon
- August 1, 2022