https://www.americancityandcounty.com/wp-content/themes/acc_child/assets/images/logo/footer-logo.png
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcast
  • Resources & Events
    • Back
    • Resources
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • IWCE 2022
    • How to Contribute
    • Municipal Cost Index – Archive
    • Equipment Watch Page
    • American City & County Awards
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Privacy Statement
    • Terms of Service
American City and County
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcasts
  • Resources/Events
    • Back
    • Webinars
    • White Papers/eBooks
    • IWCE 2022
    • How to Contribute
    • American City & County Awards
    • Municipal Cost Index
    • Equipment Watch Page
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Stament
    • Terms of Service
  • newsletter
  • Administration
  • Economy & Finance
  • Procurement
  • Public Safety
  • Public Works & Utilities
  • Smart Cities & Technology
  • Magazine
acc.com

Public Works & Utilities


Article

Green Power Partnership helps cities choose their shade of green

Green Power Partnership helps cities choose their shade of green

As local governments continue to pursue ways to reduce their carbon footprints, many turn to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Green Power Partnership for advice on choosing the most suitable renewable energy options for their operations.
  • Written by Annie Gentile
  • 12th January 2011

As local governments continue to pursue ways to reduce their carbon footprints, many turn to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Green Power Partnership (GPP) for advice on choosing the most suitable renewable energy options for their operations. In some cases, direct green power purchases are inaccessible or insufficient, so cities and counties are choosing to support alternative energy through Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs).

Nearly 1,300 organizations, including more than 100 cities and local governments, are part of GPP, says the program’s director Blaine Collison. “The questions we get most often are not, ‘What are the technologies?’ but rather, ‘How do we get them?’ and ‘From where?’ We help them to understand the landscape of options available,” he says.

Green power comes from such sources as solar, wind, geothermal, biomass and hydropower. The types of green power cities can purchase often depends on what local electric providers have to offer, Collison says. Factors such as up-front costs and reliability also help determine which sources of green energy a municipality should choose. GPP provides a purchasing guide on its website as a resource for picking a green power source.

Communities that cannot access green electricity for reasonable prices can participate in green power markets through RECs, Collison says. RECs are tradable, non-tangible energy commodities that represent 1 megawatt-hour of electricity from an eligible renewable energy resource. They are sold through utilities, REC marketers and other entities, Collison says.

Brookeville, Md., purchases wind energy for most of its electricity needs, says Fred Teal, former chair of the town’s Energy Advisory Committee. The committee chose wind energy over solar power because it is cheaper. “Wind energy turbines are now so large and efficient that they can compete fairly well with standard newer gas and coal fired power plants,” Teal says.

However, wind cannot power all of the town’s energy needs, so Brookeville started purchasing RECs as a way of offsetting its non-green electricity purchases. Teal says the REC payments can be used to further develop green energy. “By buying RECs, [cities are] basically making a supplemental payment to wind, solar and other green energy providers,” Teal says.

Related Stories

  • EPA launches Green Power Community Challenge
  • EPA announces Green Power Challenge
Tags: Public Works & Utilities Smart Cities & Technology Article

Most Recent


  • MSPs
    The MSP downstream cyberthreat paradox: Understanding the city and county connection
    Recently the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) along with the FBI, NSA, and international cyber authorities issued a cybersecurity advisory aimed at protecting managed service providers (MSPs) and their customers. This high-level advisory has been gestating for some time ever since the SolarWinds and Kaseya supply chain cyber-attacks. A software supply chain attack occurs […]
  • As ransomware threat increases, a shift in minimum cyber insurance standards is hardening digital defenses
    In the last decade, the threat of ransomware and other cyberactivity has increased dramatically—more than ever, targeted organizations are paying the criminal perpetrators to have their information restored.  “Over the last year there has been an almost threefold increase in the proportion of victims paying ransoms of $1 million or more: up from 4 percent in 2020 […]
  • EV chargers
    Cities steadily adding more EV chargers for public to use
    Local governments are making headway as they develop their electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure. “Progress varies depending on what stage governments are at in the electrification strategy and funding availability,” says Brandon Branham, assistant city manager and chief technology officer for Peachtree Corners, Ga., which is part of the Atlanta metro. Its 2022 population is estimated […]
  • Four years after Hurricane Michael, Panama City, Fla. is replanting, rebuilding
    It’s been nearly four years since Hurricane Michael ripped through Florida’s panhandle, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake that’s still being felt.   “We lost 80 percent of our trees,” said Greg Brudnicki, mayor of Panama City, a municipality of around 30,000 people on Florida’s panhandle. He estimated the number of trees the […]

Leave a comment Cancel reply

-or-

Log in with your American City and County account

Alternatively, post a comment by completing the form below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • How local governments can improve bridge projects through strategic engagement
  • NLC releases State of Cities 2021 report
  • How local governments can get ahead of the infrastructure wave: Strategies to mitigate risk
  • Prioritizing rapid restore leads to stronger ransomware attack recovery

White papers


The PIO’s Ultimate Guide to Social Media

16th May 2022

Gain Greater Visibility Into Your Public Works Fleet

16th May 2022

Arizona Arts Center Meets Rapid Deadline with Hundreds of Thousands in Savings

26th April 2022
view all

Events


PODCAST


Young Leaders Episode 4 – Cyril Jefferson – City Councilman, High Point, North Carolina

13th October 2020

Young Leaders Episode 3 – Shannon Hardin – City Council President, Columbus, Ohio

27th July 2020

Young Leaders Episode 2 – Christian Williams – Development Services Planner, Goodyear, Ariz.

1st July 2020
view all

Twitter


AmerCityCounty

Minor league baseball is helping cities hit a revitalization home run dlvr.it/SQc5N4

18th May 2022
AmerCityCounty

Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council can help governments get up to speed on sustainable buys dlvr.it/SQbwqL

18th May 2022
AmerCityCounty

The MSP downstream cyberthreat paradox: Understanding the city and county connection dlvr.it/SQYVjs

17th May 2022
AmerCityCounty

Philanthropic group to launch assistance portal for local admins navigating federal bureaucracy dlvr.it/SQY16G

17th May 2022
AmerCityCounty

Report: Nearly 95 percent of America’s mayors face harassment, threats and violence dlvr.it/SQTn2z

16th May 2022
AmerCityCounty

The PIO’s Ultimate Guide to Social Media dlvr.it/SQTdCK

16th May 2022
AmerCityCounty

Gain Greater Visibility Into Your Public Works Fleet dlvr.it/SQSqXG

16th May 2022
AmerCityCounty

Report: Almost half of public sector retirees don’t touch their retirement plans for a decade dlvr.it/SQKMjp

13th May 2022

Newsletters

Sign up for American City & County’s newsletters to receive regular news and information updates about local governments.

Resale Insights Dashboard

The Resale Insights Dashboard provides model-level data for the entire used equipment market to help you save time and money.

Municipal Cost Index

Updated monthly since 1978, our exclusive Municipal Cost Index shows the effects of inflation on the cost of providing municipal services

Media Kit and Advertising

Want to reach our digital audience? Learn more here.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • IWCE’s Urgent Communications
  • IWCE Expo

WORKING WITH US

  • About Us
  • Contact Us

FOLLOW American City and County ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookies Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2022 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.
This website uses cookies, including third party ones, to allow for analysis of how people use our website in order to improve your experience and our services. By continuing to use our website, you agree to the use of such cookies. Click here for more information on our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.
X