The adoption of “Climate Ready Oak Park” by the Village Board on August 1, 2022, represents a significant step towards addressing the global climate crisis at the local level. The plan outlines ambitious goals and concrete actions aimed at reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and building resilience within the community. The key commitments of the plan are to decrease community-wide GHG by 60% by 2030 and achieve community-wide net-zero GHG emissions by 2050.
To meet these ambitious goals, the Village of Oak Park hired Baumann Consulting to perform ASHRAE Level 1 & 2 energy audits for seven village-owned buildings including Village Hall, the Public Works Center, three pumping stations, and two fire stations.
Baumann Consulting’s thorough analysis, which encompassed a site visit, consultations with on-site personnel, data collection on existing conditions, and a review of past reports, yielded valuable insights into energy efficiency opportunities. By employing energy analysis software, we were able to pinpoint both cost-effective and capital-intensive measures to enhance energy efficiency.
The identified measures offer significant potential for combined annual energy savings, totaling 8,640 MMBtu which translates to a noteworthy decrease in GHG emissions, estimated at 640 tons CO2e annually.
