|
|
 |
|
From the "Saving Green, Going Green" special section of the June 25, 2009 edition of The Paris Post-Intelligencer:
Going green saves earth, money for industries
By HEATHER BRYANT
P-I Asst. News Editor
Local industries are starting to see that taking steps to reduce their energy usage is not only smart environmentally, but it’s also smart financially.
There’s not a single savior out there that’s going to save the environment, said Chris Scott, vice president of E&W Electric. The commitment has to be there from the industry leaders.
In the past couple of years, E&Ws focus has been on Green Solutions, a program that allows businesses and industries the opportunity to have an energy survey completed with suggestions on what changes should be made to use less electricity.
The survey looks at how much the industry would save financially because of decreased electric bills, but also shows how much less damage the industry will be doing to the environment.
Scott said Jim Arthurs, ICI president and chief executive officer, was impressed at how much the company could save on utility bills with energy upgrades, but was even more excited about the company reducing harm to the environment.
I’m really feeling that people are starting to make decisions based on it’s the right thing to do, said Scott.
The survey for ICI showed a lighting project would reduce the company’s energy usage by 365,268 kilowatt hours a year, and would remove 356 tons of carbon dioxide pollution from the air each year.
This is the equivalent of planting 67 acres of trees, removing 59 cars from the road, saving 30,222 gallons of gas and saving 718 barrels of oil. The 20-year impact obviously shows much higher figures.
Larry Miller, E&W sales manager, said industries can use the money they will save on the utility bill to pay for the energy upgrades such as retrofit lighting, programmable thermostats, refrigerant additive for heating/cooling units, and capacitors which increase the energy efficiency for industrial equipment.
Scott said industries who lower their kilowatt consumption by 50 percent can get up to $1.20 tax deduction per square foot because of the Energy Policy Act which has been extended until 2010.
Occupancy sensors that trigger a light to come on only when there is movement in the room is another energy-saving feature.
After some local businesses and organizations have made these energy changes, Scott said some have seen a savings of 60-70 percent on their lighting bill.
He said some ways people can save electricity in their homes is to unplug appliances when they are not in use, use compact fluorescent bulbs, install programmable thermostats and make sure their homes have good insulation.
The Paris Board of Public Utilities is participating in TVAs Green Power Switch Generation Partners pilot program. The program offers incentives for electric customers to supply renewable energy in the Tennessee Valley, including solar, wind and methane gas from waste water treatment.
Under the pilot program, customers sell all of the power they generate to TVA at a premium price, and the local power company credits the customer for the generation received through a credit on their monthly electric bill.
John Etheridge, BPU general manager, said some BPU customers have plans to participate in the program. Visit the Web site, www.greenpowerswitch.com for more information on the Green Power Switch.
Back to Press Releases
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
