One may not need a sleek, luxurious lake runabout to attract attention to energy sustainability programs, but it certainly seemed to help on Saturday, when members of Southampton Town’s sustainability committee signed up residents for free home energy audits and solar evaluations at Sag Harbor’s annual Harborfest event.
Visitors to Harborfest were literally all over the Tahoe-14 electric runabout that was parked on a trailer adjacent to the committee’s exhibition at Long Wharf, ogling its inlaid mahogany veneer deck, navy blue fiberglass hull, hand-carved mahogany tiller, and, behind its two upholstered seats, cooler and charcuterie board. Next to it, Lynn Arthur and Victoria Gorman of the committee answered questions about home energy audits, solar panels, and PSEG Long Island’s new battery storage program, which encourages homeowners to enroll in a program under which the utility can discharge the battery as needed when the grid is stressed by demand.
The emission-free vessel, which is manufactured by Beau Lake and costs around $35,000, was part of a press conference town officials held last month at Conscience Point Marina in North Sea to illustrate Southampton’s objectives, programs, and policies aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. On Saturday, “it got a lot of attention,” said Ms. Gorman, a social media and marketing maven who learned about Beau Lake’s electric vessels through a fashion event. “We were there for 12 hours.”
“I’ve been doing these events for Southampton Town for three years,” Ms. Arthur said on Sunday, “and yesterday was the largest single-day signup for solar and home energy audits. I think it was largely due to the collaboration with Victoria and her all-electric motorboat.”
Maybe it was the sexy battery-operated boat, Ms. Arthur mused, “or the devastating aerial shots of Grand Bahama stirring memories of being without power for weeks after Superstorm Sandy,” in 2012. “Locals are asking themselves, when is the next hurricane going to hit the South Fork, and what can I do to protect myself? I think that is why there’s a heightened awareness of energy needs on a local level and a surprisingly significant interest in battery technology. Seventy-five percent of residents who came into the booth asked me for additional information about battery storage and how it could be integrated into their residence.”
The Tahoe-14, Ms. Gorman said, represents “a good opportunity to show people you can look good and do good at the same time. Having that call to action is a really good way to get people involved. Sometimes I think people think it’s still a very ‘hippie’ way to be, but it’s cutting-edge, eco-chic, all of those. It’s really the way of the future.”