Babylon picked to join green programs group

The Town of Babylon has been chosen to be a part of a nonprofit founded by billionaire Sir Richard Branson that identifies cities with innovative green programs.

The town was recognized for its Green Homes program, which helps residents make their homes more energy-efficient through a benefit assessment, similar to a loan in that it allows homeowners to pay back the costs of the work over several years.

Branson's group, the Carbon War Room, aids programs such as Babylon's by helping them obtain private capital investment.

Babylon joins 14 other municipalities that were chosen, including New York City, Vancouver, London and Copenhagen.

Among the group goals, said Dorian Dale, Babylon's energy director, is to create a "unified loan product" among the various payback programs, so that the "loans" are more secure and marketable.

The municipalities will also all have energy efficiency measures that are packaged together and pay for themselves in savings, Dale said. They will be marketed with images that are easily recognizable across markets, he said, something that should be made easier with Branson leading, given his success in marketing his Virgin brand.

"What he brings is both his understanding and the understanding from people around him that this is an objective we need to seek," Dale said. "For us in Babylon, to be a part of this really heady company - I think we're in the big leagues now."

The town has done more than 400 houses through the Green Homes program, with the average home's work costing about $8,700 paid back over eight and a half years. The town estimates the work saves homeowners about $1,000 a year and has eliminated over 1,000 tons of carbon dioxide.