New Report Explores Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Opportunities for the Frankfort Plant Board
EnvisionFranklinCounty will host a community presentation about the report
August 11 at 6:00 pm at Paul Sawyier Public Library in Frankfort.
August 9, 2016
Contact: Andy McDonald, Earth Tools, Inc. & EnvisionFranklinCounty
502-223-7936
andyboeke@yahoo.com
Frankfort, Kentucky – A report released today by EnvisionFranklinCounty explores the benefits of energy efficiency and renewable energy to the Frankfort Plant Board (FPB), their customers, and the local community. These benefits include protecting customers from rising electricity rates and helping them to reduce their bills; reducing the risks from being heavily dependent on coal power; lowering the FPB’s demand charges and extending the life of utility infrastructure; and generating local investment and economic development.
“The Plant Board is facing some critical decisions about its electricity supply as it moves away from KU and joins the KyMEA,” said Andy McDonald, a consultant with Earth Tools, Inc. and one of the report’s authors. “This change opens up new possibilities for the Plant Board that could bring many benefits to the community.”
The report cites examples of utilities that have achieved great success with energy efficiency and renewable energy. The Burlington Electric Department in Vermont has been operating energy efficiency programs since 1990. Their programs save their customers about $11 million per year on their electric bills. Burlington also sources nearly 100% of their electricity from renewable energy, consisting mainly of biomass, hydro, and wind.
MidAmerican Energy in Iowa sourced 41% of their electric capacity from wind in 2015 and is aiming to meet 100% of their power from renewables. They state that their electric rates are the 7th lowest in the country. MidWest Energy in Kansas created the How$mart on-bill financing program, an innovative program that helps customers implement home energy improvements. Their program has completed nearly 1,500 projects and saves the average participant $53 per month on their utility bills.
The How$mart Program is available to the FPB through the Mountain Association for Community Economic Development (MACED) in Berea, which brought the program to Kentucky in 2011 and now operates it in partnership with six electric cooperatives in Eastern Kentucky.
“Energy efficiency is the cheapest source of energy available,” stated Daniel Holder, an economist and one of the report’s authors. “Effective conservation programs save the utility and their customer’s money. Meanwhile the cost of renewables like wind and solar has fallen dramatically in recent years, to the point that both are now competitive with natural gas in many places.”
“EnvisionFranklinCounty invites our community and local leaders to come to this presentation, read this report, and join the conversation about Frankfort’s energy future,” said Chris Schimmoeller, member of EnvisionFranklinCounty. “The energy choices we make today will affect our community for decades to come. The clean energy path offers us opportunities to create a healthier, more prosperous community.”