ASHFIELD — The Selectboard has approved a plan to reduce fossil fuel use in town-owned facilities by 95.6% by 2050.

Over the next quarter-century, the town will work to decarbonize its nine buildings and fleet of vehicles by reducing energy use, becoming more energy efficient, and switching from oil-based and propane-based energy to clean energy sources. This effort comes as part of the climate and sustainability goals in the Ashfield Municipal Decarbonization Roadmap.

The town has been working to become greener and more sustainable since 2010, when it applied to be named a Green Community by the state Department of Energy Resources and was given $165,000 in grants to upgrade town buildings. Evolving from the Green Communities program, the state is now offering a new certification program, called Climate Leader Communities, that opens up a new pool of $60 million in grants available for municipalities. By approving three warrant articles at Annual Town Meeting in May — involving a decarbonization resolution, a plan to replace old town-owned vehicles with more energy-efficient electric or hybrid vehicles, and added efficiency requirements for residential and commercial buildings — Ashfield is in line to become one of the state’s first Climate Leader Communities.

“While Green Communities focus on conserving energy in municipal buildings, this is taking it a step further,” said Mary Quigley, a member of the Energy Committee and one of the co-authors of the Ashfield Municipal Decarbonization Roadmap. “This is about matching the state’s goal of trying to be net zero by 2050.”

Ashfield has already met the majority of the requirements to become a Climate Leader Community following the Town Meeting approvals. The next step for the town was creating a plan outlining how it will meet its goals to be fossil-fuel free by 2050. The decarbonization roadmap shows the town’s next steps toward becoming greener and sets an example for how even small towns can lead the way in meeting climate goals.

A 2022 emissions study said town-owned buildings, vehicles and streetlights were responsible for 257.1 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, called MTCO2e. The majority of those emissions (153.1 MTCO2e) come from town-owned vehicles.

Town emissions in 2022 consisted of 40.5% diesel use, 19.8% propane, 19.6% gasoline, 17.0% electricity and 3.0% oil.

The town hopes to cut down on these emissions over the next few decades by continuing to replace lights with LEDs, weatherizing buildings by improving insulation and building envelopes, and replacing windows through the 2030s. Decarbonization work will continue through the 2040s as equipment like heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems and water heaters reach the end of their lifespans. Those systems will be replaced with electric, energy-efficient versions, supported by solar arrays that will be installed around town at the wastewater treatment plant, library, highway garage and fire station roofs.

Additionally, as the town’s vehicles need to be replaced, electric options will be considered whenever possible. The town’s fleet consists of 20 vehicles, including dump trucks, loaders and graders, fire brush trunks and tankers, and two police cruisers.

The Ashfield Municipal Decarbonization Roadmap does not include a detailed budget, just per-square-foot estimates for the installation of equipment at current costs. For example, the plan estimates installing LED lights will cost $3.15 per square foot, and electric HVAC systems will cost $17.87 per square foot.

Quigley said the Energy Committee and Finance Committee will work together to tighten up the budget over time. The hope is that as technology continues to evolve, electric equipment and vehicles will become more easily accessible and more affordable, and that as equipment and facilities reach the end of their lifespans, the town will be able to consider electric and energy-efficient options.

The Selectboard approved the Ashfield Municipal Decarbonization Roadmap, noting that the Climate Leader Communities program would be a good way to access funds for town facility improvement projects. However, if electric options end up being too expensive, the town can still choose cheaper options.

“It’s nothing we’re absolutely stuck in,” Selectboard Chair Steven Gougeon said. “If the town says, ‘No, we can’t do this,’ we can absolutely walk away. … I think this gives a lot of opportunity to access some funds and implement at least a few things over the next couple years.”

The plan will be reviewed and updated every few years.

The Climate Leader application is due by Dec. 31. The town hopes to hear back in the spring if Ashfield is chosen as a Climate Leader Community. The Ashfield Municipal Decarbonization Roadmap can be found at tinyurl.com/AshfieldDecarbonizationRoadmap.

Reach Madison Schofield at 413-930-4579 or mschofield@recorder.com.