No Longer Accepting Applications
Introduction to Program
Durham’s Neighborhood Energy Retrofit Program (NERP) was designed to help households in participating neighborhoods reduce energy use through targeted retrofits and conservation education. Close to 500 homes are receiving subsidized professional retrofits through the program and hundreds of residents will learn ways to reduce energy use through do-it-yourself energy conservation projects and changing resource use habits.
This program targeted neighborhoods, not just individual homes. The benefits of focusing on the neighborhood level include strengthening neighborhood cohesion, building a support network of people to continue improving energy efficiency after the program, and economies of scale in conducting the outreach and retrofits. Neighborhood outreach included door-to-door canvassing and do-it-yourself energy upgrade workshops.
The work done on qualifying homes included the following:
• sealing air leaks in heating and air conditioning ductwork;
• installing a programmable thermostat;
• sealing air leaks in the attic floor and the ground floor;
• installing attic insulation;
• installing water saving showerheads and faucet aerators; and
• installing carbon monoxide detectors.
Funding was provided by the federal stimulus program from the US Department of Energy’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program and the Environmental Protection Agency’s Climate Showcase Communities Grant Program.
This program provided job training, employment, energy savings, and community-building to citizens of Durham.
Participating Neighborhoods
Colonial Village
Duke Park
East Durham
Fischer Heights
Hillside Park
Lakewood
Lochaven Hills
Morehead Hills
Northgate Park
Parkwood
Spring Valley
Trinity Park
Tuscaloosa Lakewood
Watts-Hillandale