But with prices expected to be high, he called on residents to do what they can now to prepare. And in a reference to the spirit that prevailed during the 1998 ice storm, King appealed to people to help their friends and neighbors make preparations. Energy conservation was a key theme of the conference, which was organized by the Maine State Housing Authority. Participants watched a presentation by Joseph Lstiburek, a nationally recognized expert on energy-efficient construction. Lstiburek showed how builders can erect homes that use half as much energy for the same cost as conventional construction.
Maine lacks an energy-efficient building code, a standard common in other states.
King said he would support a minimum standard for energy efficiency in Maine, particularly for multifamily buildings. But in Maine, which has some of the country's oldest homes, the focus is on upgrading existing structures to make them more comfortable and easier to heat. The state's new BundleMeUp campaign describes steps homeowners can take on their own. King used a laptop computer and slide projector to walk the audience through the bundlemeup.org Web site. King said a prediction 20 years ago from Richard Hill, a former University of Maine professor and widely known energy expert, has stuck with him.