TOMS RIVER – As Ocean County moves beyond the five-year mark in implementing recommendations from its energy master plan, it continues to see savings along with numerous beneficial energy conservation measures.

"The steps we have taken to install improvements in many of the main County government buildings in downtown Toms River to improve energy efficiencies have been more beneficial than we could have anticipated," said Ocean County Commissioner Joseph H. Vicari, who serves as liaison to the Ocean County Department of Buildings and Grounds. "This is a 20 year plan that continues to pay for itself in savings and also environmental benefits."

By implementing many of the measures outlined in the Energy Savings Improvement Plan, the County has received about $1.25 million in energy savings incentives in addition to the savings from reduced energy consumption.

"By installing high tech, energy efficient systems, we are realizing the substantial savings that comes along with it," Vicari said. "We want to make certain our buildings are powered with clean and efficient energy. These steps help save money and protect our environment."

The centerpiece of the County's energy program was the installation of the Combined Heat and Power & Fuel Cell (CHP) at the Ocean County Justice Complex at 120 Hooper Ave., here.

The large non-descript white box like structure located on the west side of Hooper Avenue is the 600 kW natural gas fueled CHP system that generates electricity to power the Ocean County Justice Complex, while capturing and using the waste heat for space heating, cooling, and water heating.

The Justice Complex is a multi-use facility housing courtrooms, some of the divisions of the Ocean County Sheriff's Office, jail facilities and other government functions. It is traditionally heavily used by the public.

"This project is anticipated to generate more than 4.7 million kWh of electricity annually," Vicari said.

The County was awarded $1.1 million in incentives from the state Board of Public Utilities for the installation of the energy efficient heating and cooling system at the Justice Complex.

The first incentive in the amount of $330,000 was paid in June 2019, following the County's purchase of the system's major components. The second incentive in the amount of $660,000.00 was received on July 6, 2020. The County is awaiting payment of the third incentive in the amount of $220,000.

"These kinds of incentives make undertaking the energy master plan extremely worthwhile," Vicari said. "This was an important step in the work Ocean County has been doing to create more energy efficient facilities."

Vicari with Ocean County Assistant Administrator Michael Fiure provided an update on the energy master plan during the Board of Commissioner's Sept. 29 preboard meeting.

"It's important that we have a reliable energy system to keep the power on in our buildings during storms or other incidents that can result in the loss of power," Fiure said. "Ocean County government needs to continue to function during these times and the CHP has been doing its job while saving us money."

Ocean County also received an additional $275,000 from the New Jersey Office of Clean Energy and anticipates an additional $200,000 from the state agency.

Ocean County saved almost $650,000 over a 10-month period since the implementation of the energy savings program.

Vicari said the County has also taken a host of other energy efficient money saving steps with its government buildings including lighting replacement, installation of energy management systems, boiler replacements, chiller replacements, and hot water heater upgrades.

"The list of improvements is lengthy," Vicari said. "But all the changes, some large, some small, have made an important difference."

"All of these improvements allow for a more efficient and cost effective way to control our heating and cooling units," said Director of the Ocean County Board of Commissioners Gary Quinn. "Ocean County taxpayers will benefit from these upgrades as we reduce our energy costs for years to come."

Fiure requested a one-year extension of the contract for DCO Energy, the engineering company that developed the energy savings improvement plan noting the additional time will result in added savings and also will provide training to County staff on the energy technology that is being implemented.

"This will help us in our effort to continue to improve our energy technology resulting in lower energy bills and savings to the County," Fiure said.