Successes

As required, each agency has appointed an individual who is responsible for incorporation of the Initiative into the operations of the agency. Contact between the leadership team and consultants is frequent.

Further, each agency has developed a biennial plan which outlines the efforts to be undertaken during the period of July 2002 through June of 2004.

A Clean Government Initiative web page to provide information to participating agencies as well as to promote the Initiative to the public has been developed. The site address is www.state.me.us/purchase/Cleangovt .

Former Governor King issued two Executive Orders in support of the Initiative. The first Order instructs state agencies, to the extent possible, to purchase products with no added mercury to reduce the amount of mercury contributed to the waste stream of Maine state government. This advances the goals of legislation enacted last year to require the DEP to develop a comprehensive strategy to reduce mercury emissions from products.

The second Order, consistent with the Global Climate Change Action Plan agreement between New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers, instructs each agency to examine fleet vehicles to assess efficiency and emissions. Further, when replacing vehicles, fuel efficiency and emission guidelines must be met to the extent that resources allow.

DAFS and DEP have also created a battery recycling program for both rechargeable batteries and alkaline batteries and small electronic devices such as calculators. These prepaid collection and mailing boxes are available to all agencies through the central supply warehouse.

9. Status of geothermal pilot school construction project:

The Gorham Middle School Geothermal System is a Closed Loop bore field system. It uses ground heat as a heat sink to transfer energy. The system status is as follows:

The building is 52% complete and is expected to be 100% complete in September 2003.
The Wells for the Bore Field are 100% complete. There are 116 wells, each 354 feet deep. They are grouted solid with a grout system to induce the heat transfer to the surrounding rock.
All of the piping has been installed, about 10 miles of plastic high strength pipe.
The system should be operational in September, when we will know more about the system start-up.
We expect to monitor the system performance for the first 2 years rather intensely.
The construction contract was awarded to LaFrame Bois Well drilling of New Jersey in the amount of $593,352.00.

The Project Manual for this project and the Life Cycle Analysis are included in our responses to questions raised on January 30, 2003 .

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