La Plata customers show high participation in green power programs
Though often on the news and in political conversations, renewable energy is not as popular with consumers as it might seem. Many “green” power programs are offered by electricity companies, but the idea just doesn’t seem to stick with most customers.
Green power programs allow consumers to buy wind, hydro, solar, and biomass energy without disconnecting from the grid. For a small premium, consumers can reduce their use of fossil fuel energy without having to erect a windmill or install a solar panel. The programs make being green relatively easy and cheap, but in most areas, electricity users just aren’t buying.
“They don’t think wind and solar power can keep the lights on at night, keep the heat on in the winter, and keep the air conditioning on in the summer,” said Brian F. Keane, president of Smart Power, a not-for-profit clean energy marketing group. “It conjures up all of the worst caricatures of the environmental movement…They must wear hemp, they must buy organic, they must live in a cold, dark house.”
People involved in the alternative energy industry say Americans are interested in reducing the amount of greenhouse gases they are responsible for, causing “green” booms like the popularity of compact fluorescent bulbs. But they also say that many consumers aren’t aware of programs designed to reduce their reliance on fossil fuels, or if they work, or even how they work.
La Plata Electric Association not only offers a green power program, but also helps their customers to understand the benefit of the program so that it can become more popular and widespread on a commercial level. Currently, LPEA provides renewable energy through their green power program to an exceptional percentage of their residential and commercial customers.
Commercial customers buy the bulk of the green power provided by LPEA. The cities of Durango and Pagosa Springs pay the premium for 100 percent of their power. The town of Ignacio also buys a significant amount.
Customers currently pay 80 cents per each 100-kilowatt block, while the LPEA pays its supplier, Tri-State Generation and Transmission, about 40 cents to receive wind generated power. The difference between what the co-op collects and what it pays Tri-State is invested in local renewable energy projects. The first project was a solar system for Bayfield Middle School, which is connected to a website allowing viewers to see what the system is generating in real time.
The LPEA will continue to save up for more community projects, encouraging in the meantime the spread of green power awareness for the health of the environment and the benefit of their customers.