News Briefs: GB police enforcing junk car and boat bylaw; Clean Energy Community designation for Canaan, N.Y

Police: Junk cars and boats must be registered, removed or receive permit

Great Barrington — The Great Barrington Police Department is conducting its annual campaign to enforce the town’s automobile storage bylaw. Unregistered or dilapidated cars or boats left on property are in violation of this bylaw, and the town offers four ways to rectify the situation:

• Properly register the vehicle or boat;
• Screen the vehicle or boat from public view by permanent means such as fencing or a garage structure;
• Remove the vehicle or boat; or
• Obtain a nonrenewable permit from the police station for $25 that is good for one vehicle or boat for one year only.

The following nonprofit agencies may pick up unwanted vehicles and offer a tax detection for the donation:

• National Kidney Foundation: (800) 488-2277;
• Mothers Against Drunk Driving: (800) 720-6233; and
• American Lung Association: (800) 577-5864, donateyourcar.com.

Police officers are checking all town streets to enforce this bylaw, and residents are being asked to comply within three weeks. The bylaw calls for a $50 fine for each day of the violation.

For more information. call Officer Andres Huertas at (413) 528-0306 x141.

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Canaan earns Clean Energy Community Designation

Canaan, N.Y. — The town of Canaan announced Tuesday that it has been designated a Clean Energy Community by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, recognizing its leadership in reducing energy use, cutting costs, and driving clean energy locally.

Announced by Gov. Andrew Cuomo in August 2016, the $16 million Clean Energy Communities initiative supports local government leaders across the state by providing grants to eligible municipalities to implement energy efficiency, renewable energy and sustainable development projects in their communities. Clean Energy Communities advance the governor’s Green New Deal by demonstrating the importance of communities in helping New York reach its goal of having a carbon-neutral economy and a carbon-free power grid by 2040.

To earn the Clean Energy Community designation, Canaan completed the following high-impact clean energy actions:

• Adopted a benchmarking policy to track and report the energy use of the town’s municipal buildings;
• Performed energy efficiency and renewable energy upgrades to municipal buildings to achieve 10 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions;
• Streamlined the local approval processes for solar projects through adoption of the New York State Unified Solar Permit; and
• Completed energy code enforcement training on best practices in energy code enforcement for the town’s code officer.

Cities, counties, towns and villages that complete at least four of 10 high-impact clean energy actions are designated Clean Energy Communities and are eligible to apply for funding of up to $250,000 with no local cost share and the option of receiving up to 25 percent paid in advance to support additional clean energy projects. At least two of the four actions must have been completed after Aug. 1, 2016. NYSERDA is accepting applications for funding on a rolling basis through Monday, Sept. 30, 2019, or until funds are exhausted, whichever comes first.