solar – Belmont Citizens Forum

Belmont Creates Clean-Energy Corridor

Climate Change, March/April 2026, Solar Power Comments Off

Feb 202026

Sustainable infrastructure has fiscal, environmental benefits By Peter Dizikes Belmont is entering a new era of local energy production. Today, renewable energy capacity is becoming a normal component of our public buildings and even the town’s vehicle fleet because clean energy offers both fiscal savings and environmental benefits. Consider the flurry of recent building activity on lower Concord Avenue. Over the past five years, the town opened the new Belmont Public Library, the Belmont Sports Complex, Home of the Skip Viglirolo Rink, and the Belmont Middle and High School, all heavily powered by renewable energy. Together, these structures are turning [READ MORE]

Book Review: Here Comes the Sun by Bill McKibben

Climate Change, November/December 2025, Solar Power Comments Off

Oct 312025

Book Review: Here Comes the Sun by Bill McKibben

By Jeffrey North with assistance from Roger Wrubel In his latest book, Here Comes the Sun, environmental writer and activist Bill McKibben offers a compelling case for why solar energy may be the most hopeful—and practical—path forward in the fight against climate change. McKibben, who has long been a voice for climate action and grassroots mobilization, weaves together history, science, and policy to argue that solar power is not only technologically viable but also socially transformative. McKibben begins by tracing the origins of the modern solar movement, reminding readers that the technology is hardly new. What has changed, he notes, [READ MORE]

Belmont Carbon Emissions Down 14%

Climate Change, Environment, July/August 2024, Solar Power Comments Off

Jun 252024

By Roger Wrubel, Brian Kopperl, and James Booth According to the Belmont Energy Committee’s most recent inventory, the town’s carbon emissions dropped from 177,000 tons to 150,000 tons per year between 2014 and 2021. The drop, which measures emissions from gasoline, natural gas, fuel oil, and electricity, results from residents shifting away from home heating oil to other energy sources, driving more fuel-efficient vehicles, and drawing their electricity from a cleaner New England grid. Except for the shift away from fuel oil, none of these reductions are happening at a pace sufficient to reach zero emissions by 2050. The committee [READ MORE]

Opinion: Belmont needs to get serious about climate goals

March/April 2023 Comments Off

Mar 012023

Opinion: Belmont needs to get serious about climate goals

By Brian Iler While providing $290,633 to BMHS Building Committee to complete the full solar array is an encouraging development from both a fiscal and environmental perspective, this observer is discouraged by the fact that the Select Board’s deliberations never included a mention of the climate-positive effect of the scheme. Instead, it was a 100% fiscal argument that carried the day. There are obvious reasons for this. Everyone can agree with a proposal that saves the town money. It’s a political no-brainer. What’s not clear is whether the town shares a sense of its moral responsibility to decrease its contribution [READ MORE]

Belmont Needs School Roof Solar Panels

March/April 2023, Newsletter, Solar Power Comments Off

Mar 012023

By Brian Iler Photovoltaic solar panels (PVs) have been planned for the new Belmont Middle and High School (BMHS) since early designs for the project were presented in 2017. PV is integral to achieving this building’s Zero Net Energy goal. And to many in Belmont, Zero Net Energy was a big factor when deciding whether to vote for a hefty tax increase to fund this colossal project in 2018. Since this vote, the funds reserved for PVs have been on the chopping block three times to offset project cost overruns. Public outcry—with advocates crowding into Belmont Middle and High School [READ MORE]