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Pedernales Public Hearing Tomorrow at Noon: Let ‘Em Hear from Ya

Do you, Pedernales Electric Coop member, want to save money on your electric bills?  World class energy efficiency programs? Solar Panels on your roof? Shape the future of PEC?

Let your voice be heard!

A public hearing on a proposal to adopt energy efficiency and smart grid policies will be held tomorrow in Johnson City.  If you’re a PEC member, this is your chance to weigh in on the standards PEC will adopt that will guide their energy efficiency and conservation policy in the future.

When: Noon, April 4, 2009

Where: Pedernales E. Babe Smith Headquarters, 201 South Avenue F, Johnson City, TX

What’s all this about anyway:

Congress passed a bill in 2007 (the Energy Independence and Security Security Act, or EISA) that included a requirement for all electric coops to consider adopting standards that would make information sharing, energy efficiency and conservation coop priorities.

If adopted, these standards would make it easier for Pedernales to offer energy efficiency programs and develop a “smart grid” which is crucial to develop small-scale renewables like solar panels on your rooftop.

PEC has a draft proposal on the table which modifies the federal standard. They want the public to comment on it and offer suggestions. So…

Now’s your chance! Show up to the meeting or submit written comments.  Tell PEC you want them to:

  • Develop a plan for meeting the PEC’s 30% renewable and 20% efficiency goals by 2020.
  • Create a sweries of innovative retrofit programs that have a goal of saving 20% or more of the energy used in each structure by 2020.
  • Give builders incentives to make new buildings as efficient as possible, and to add on site renewable energy.
  • Create solar and small wind incentives to help the coop and their customers meet 30% of the energy they consume with renewables by 2020.
  • Create a loan or lease program to help members afford these retrofits.
  • Give members information on the pollution produced by the power they consume.

To find out more visit www.cleanenergyfortexas.org.  There you will find a bunch of information, including our initial comments on all the good stuff above. Here is the link to PEC’s draft proposal too.

A group of like-minded folks will gather outside the building around 11:30.