June 2000 issue

 NWCouncil.org NeWs    June 2000 index

Renewable resources: An investment that helps people and the environment

If you haven?t already, you soon may receive a notice from your electric company inviting you to buy "green power," "earth-friendly power," "salmon-friendly electricity," "windpower," or "renewable energy." Or, your utility may be melding electricity from renewable resources like wind and solar power plants into the electricity supplied to all its customers. As consumers, you probably want to know if these renewable resources are good investments for you, your business, or your community. Do they really make a difference in the environment, or in how your utility does business?

All across the Pacific Northwest, electricity consumers and many of the utilities that serve them are finding innovative ways to develop, use and market the region?s remarkable abundance of renewable natural resources to generate electricity. You could be among them.

To help you decide, the Northwest Power Planning Council has published this special edition of NWPPC NeWs. We?d like you to know what "green power" is, why many people find particular value in it and are willing to pay a little extra, and how you might be able to get your utility to offer it if it isn?t already.