First 7 homes saving money through Model Neighborhood Project

Since February, the Model Neighborhood Project has installed 8 high-efficiency wood pellet boilers in homes in Berlin, NH, saving homeowners money on heating fuel and increasing the amount of money kept in the local economy. Another dozen homes have applied to participate and are being evaluated.

The project's goal is to help the Northern Forest region move away from dependence on imported oil toward a local energy source that will create jobs and strengthen the forest economy.

The first 7 homes enrolled have spent $4,345 dollars on pellets from the Northern Forest and saved $4,380 on heating fuel, keeping a total of $8,725 circulating in the local economy.

Switching to heating with wood pellets made from fiber grown and processed in the Northern Forest will retain 100% of the money spent on this alternative fuel in the local and regional economy – a welcome alternative to exporting nearly 80 cents of every dollar spent on imported heating oil.