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Many ways for cities, residents to go green

Woman taking garbage to curb; three cans, a black, a green and a blue one.

Extensive recycling programs are just one of many ways for cities to become more sustainable. (Photo by Logan City, Utah)

Western customers use their ingenuity—and technical assistance from Energy Services—to make the most of generation resources. It is hardly surprising that many communities Western serves are applying that know-how to protecting other critical resources.

Every day, local governments provide services that encompass energy and water use, waste management and transportation, to name only a few. The upside of this daunting task is that it presents opportunities to "green" city operations, and to encourage residents to do the same.

Saving community resources

Like an old-fashioned barn-raising, local energy- and water-conservation initiatives bring neighbors together to accomplish a common goal. These programs can be effective in a way that no national campaign can match. And they provide a template that other publicly-owned utilities can duplicate.

The sense of community helped Loveland [Colo.] Water and Power launch a voluntary load-management program. Customers allow their air conditioners to be cycled during summer peak-demand periods to reduce the need to purchase expensive supplemental power. Instead of a direct payment or credit, the incentive is the long-term goal of keeping electricity rates down.

Neighborly competition is another useful motivator in small towns and big cities alike. Brigham City, Utah, celebrated Energy Awareness Month in 2006 by giving away a mountain bike. Only customers who had made energy-efficiency improvements in their homes were eligible to enter the drawing. To gain coverage for its refrigerator turn-in and recycle program, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power sponsored the "Coolest Loser" contest. Customers competed for the title of ugliest refrigerator, and to win an energy-efficient replacement.

Municipalities also create comprehensive conservation programs. Colorado Springs Utilities offers energy audits to commercial and residential customers, and rebates for efficient appliances and peak demand reduction. Wise water use is equally important in the semi-arid region. Rebates are available for high-efficiency toilets, clothes washers and water-saving irrigation equipment. The utility strongly promotes xeriscaping with classes, exhibits and Web resources. Residential customers can learn more about their water consumption, indoors and out, with a water efficiency profile.

Munis embrace green power

Although renewable portfolio standards often don't cover publicly-owned utilities, municipalities have other reasons to develop renewable energy resources. Wind turbines, for example, have helped school districts in small rural towns like Spirit Lake, Iowa, and Wray, Colo., stabilize operating costs or create a revenue stream, and give the science curriculum a boost, too.

To keep renewable energy revenues in the community, a group of Minnesota landowners formed a partnership to build the Trimont Area Wind Farm. The project brought more than 100 construction workers to town, created six permanent jobs and continues to provide land lease payments to 40 area farmers. Great River Energy buys the power from the facility to apply to its RPS requirements.

Moorhead, Minn., Public Service uses the power from its two wind turbines for its own green power offering. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory ranked Capture the Wind among the top green power programs in the nation from 2000 to 2005. Other Western customers with highly rated green power pricing programs include Lenox, Iowa; Palo Alto, Calif.; and Sacramento Municipal Utility District.

California isn't the only western state to show strong support for solar power and other renewables. In St. George, Utah, customers who install solar or wind-energy systems receive a rebate of $2,000 per kilowatt-AC. A pilot program in Murray City, Utah, offers net metering to customers who generate electricity using solar, wind or hydroelectric systems with a maximum capacity of 10 kW.

Answers to solid waste management

Every community produces waste, and every town or county has to figure out how to dispose of it. That gives municipalities plenty of incentive to come up with creative recycling programs.

The Logan, Utah, Environmental Department developed a comprehensive recycling program to extend the life of its landfill. The program provides residential curbside recycling, hazardous waste collection and drop-off sites for green waste, glass and bulky cardboard. The unique Landfill Mall gives residents a place to recycle usable household items that other customers can take away for a five-dollar fee. The Solid Waste Association of North America awarded the Logan program a silver Excellence Award in 2007.

Another award-winning program began with a landfill closure. Instead of trucking organic waste to a new facility 40 miles away, Brigham City launched a pilot program to process it into compost. The project was so successful, the city opened a full-fledged composting facility and implemented curb-side green waste collection. The Utah Recycling Coalition named the program Green Waste Recycling Program of the Year in 2004.

Mesa, Ariz., took the same approach to a similar problem with its Green Barrel Recycling program. To save space in the Salt River Landfill, the city began collecting green waste separately and processing it into mulch. In 2007 alone, the program diverted more than 17,000 tons of organic material from the landfill. The Solid Waste Trivia page on Mesa's Web site points out that residents still sent more than 121,000 tons of trash to the landfill.

Alternative-fuel vehicles clean up road

In an effort to contain traffic congestion and greenhouse gas emissions, most cities already offer some form of public transportation. Now, many municipalities have moved beyond that step to find more ways to reduce fossil fuel use by public vehicles.

One of Colorado's most environmentally friendly cities, Fort Collins, launched a multifaceted hydrogen energy system pilot project four years ago. The project included converting a Transfort mini-van from compressed natural gas to hythane, a compressed natural gas (CNG)-hydrogen blend. Recently, the city installed the only hydrogen and hythane fuel pump in the state at its south Transfort fueling station.

CNG-powered buses are a popular choice nationwide for cities concerned about air quality. According to Burbank, Calif., Mayor Todd Campbell, every natural-gas burning bus in circulation is the equivalent of removing the negative effects of approximately 300 cars on the road. Burbank recently expanded its bus routes, adding more CNG-vehicles and the fleet’s first hydrogen-powered fuel-cell bus.

Converting the city fleet to alternative and/or renewable energy sources is another way to reduce the environmental impact of transportation. Pasadena, Calif., leased 21 electrical vehicles in 2001 for use by meter readers, parking enforcement, printing services, power troubleshooters, transportation engineers and utility customer service representatives.

Cities interested in promoting alternative vehicles can join DOE's Clean Cities program. The network of 90 volunteer coalitions works to develop public/private partnerships to promote clean transportation choices.

Taking the long view

Local governments may be in a better position than any other public entity to recognize that all activities and functions of daily life are inter-related. Particularly in the West, where tourism, recreation and agriculture are central to many local economies, municipalities are taking a more proactive approach to city planning and environmental stewardship.

Communities as diverse as Sioux Falls, S.D., Sacramento, Calif., and San Juan Pueblo, N.M., are applying Smart Growth principles to development. Though the practices vary from town to town, smart growth generally calls for restoring and preserving existing infrastructure to strengthen community and use resources as efficiently as possible.

The Mayors Climate Protection Center, another organization that helps cities address environmental issues, boasts several Western customers as partners. The mayors of Aspen, Longmont and Montrose in Colorado; Lincoln and Omaha in Nebraska and Taos, N.M., are among the more than 800 city leaders who have signed the U.S. Mayors Conference Climate Protection Agreement. Participating cities commit to reducing their emissions to 7 percent below 1990 levels by 2012.

That ambitious goal may have found its match in the creativity and determination of local governments. Western applauds our customers, and all the cities, towns and counties in our territory, that are leading the way in creating more sustainable communities.

April 2008

Energy Services Bulletin home REC sale gets Wray school wind project off the ground Big lighting upgrade holds many benefits for Alameda County Many ways for cities, residents to go green Technology spotlight: Heating and cooling with VRF systems Web site of the Month: DOE Builders Challenge Calendar of events

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