Green Power

– By Paul Hicks –

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently announced that PepsiCo, headquartered in nearby Purchase, has undertaken the largest-ever corporate green power commitment. The company's future use of over one billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) annually will cover the electricity needs of all its U.S. facilities and is enough to power nearly 90,000 average American homes for a year.

To qualify for the EPA's list of the nation's largest green power purchasers, the power they use must be produced from renewable sources such as solar, wind, geothermal, biomass and biogas. Also included are “low-impact” hydropower facilities that are certified as providing river flows, which are healthy for fish, other wildlife and water quality.

Rather than dealing directly with green power producers, PepsiCo and other large purchasers generally rely on brokers that sell renewable energy credits (RECs). Although these credits cost more than buying conventional energy (PepsiCo is paying a premium of about $2 million) the corporations earn good will from customers, employees and investors because of the environmental benefits of RECs.

PepsiCo's three-year deal is with Sterling Planet, a leading provider of RECs, which guarantees that the renewable energy meets certain environmental and consumer protection standards. When Whole Foods Market committed in 2006 to offset 100% of its corporate electricity usage from wind power, it purchased RECs from Renewable Choice Energy. The growth in corporate, institutional and governmental REC sales is helping to expand renewable energy capacity around the country, thereby reducing future emissions from burning fossil fuels.

Growing numbers of residential customers around the U.S. are also making use of renewable energy options, provided mainly through their regional utility companies or by the purchase of RECs. In this region, their principal choices for using green power are made available by ConEdison Solutions, an energy services company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Consolidated Edison, Inc. based in White Plains.

A residential customer of ConEdison Solutions using 350 kWh of electricity per month will incur an additional monthly cost of about $3.50 for a mix of wind and hydropower and approximately $8.75 more per month if the customer chooses 100% wind power. Thomas Ringwald, VP of Customer Operations, said that the added costs of $.01 and $.025 per kWh, respectively, for the two green power options are not likely to change anytime soon.

According to Christine Nevin, Director of Business and Media Relations, the number of ConEdison Solutions customers has doubled in the past 18 months. She attributed the growth to improvements in corporate marketing and greater customer awareness.

Those who choose ConEdison Solutions as their green power supplier continue to receive one consolidated electric bill with no change in delivery of their electricity. Rye resident Hilary Remsen, who has been a satisfied participant in the program for several years, noted that the relatively small added cost has been outweighed by the value her family places on the environmental benefits.

Some critics argue that the extra payments made for RECs amount, in effect, to a non-deductible donation to the providers and producers. The key factor, it appears, is determining whether the renewable energy source, such as a wind turbine, would not have been built and maintained without the REC funding.

As an article in the online publication Salon.com observes: “buying [REC] offsets goes beyond fretful hand-wringing about government inaction and fist-shaking at polluting industry” and allows people “to take an immediate concrete step…”

To find out more about the GREEN and WIND Power options from ConEdison Solutions visit www.ConEdSolutions.com/GREENPower or call 888-437-1722.