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The Rural Missouri NEWS Service January
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June 2009 Who regulates the cooperatives? The Public Service Commission regulates investor-owned electric utilities. City councils keep an eye on municipal systems. So who regulates the state’s electric cooperatives? Believe it or not, you do. Electric cooperatives operate under the watchful eye of the most ideal group of regulators yet devised — directors elected directly by the users of the cooperative’s product, the members. These elections take place at the cooperative’s annual meeting. Rules governing election of directors vary from co-op to co-op, but one rule is absolute — directors must also be members of the cooperative. The director’s foremost job is to maintain the financial integrity of the cooperative. While management and the board must work together, it’s not unusual for the co-op’s staff to take a budget back to the drawing board after it gets run by the board. The manager may see the need for some new equipment or a new roof for the co-op office. The directors may recognize those needs too, but put the plans on hold because of a downturn in the price of wheat or a layoff at an area plant. That’s why the cooperative form of regulation works so well in rural Missouri. Economic conditions in one part of the state may be vastly different than those in another. Who can better decide what is right for the membership than someone who uses the co-op’s services and must abide by the decisions made at the board meetings? In all utilities the watchdog role is important because, for the most part, utilities have a monopoly in providing service to their area. It makes sense to have just one utility operating in an area because this avoids costly duplication of service. But it is necessary to have someone looking out for the public’s interest. Get to know the directors who serve tirelessly in the effort to bring you quality electric service at affordable rates. These people volunteer time from busy schedules because they know the benefits electric co-ops bring to their service areas. Jobs, a quality lifestyle and a helping hand on the farm are just a few of the things rural electrification made possible. Thanks to a dedicated board of member-directors, rural electric cooperatives will be around for a long time. Electricity Takes No Vacations You’ve packed the car, loaded up the kids, mapped out your trip and made your reservations. All that remains is to enjoy every minute of a two-week vacation. As an added bonus, since your house will be vacant for 14 days, your utility bill should drop dramatically, right? Well, no. You may be on vacation, but your home is still hard at work. Appliances like refrigerators, deep freezers, water heaters, televisions and VCRs consume power even when you’re not around. This dormant or “passive load” has an active appetite for your energy dollars. You can pull the plug on passive load, but it will take a little extra work. First, look at your water heater. It’s designed to maintain the tank temperature, even when you’re not using water. Turn the temperature down or shut the heater off entirely to eliminate wasted energy. The same rule applies to your refrigerator and freezers. To save energy dollars, you can empty and unplug them for the duration of your vacation. Clocks, televisions, computers, VCRs, microwave ovens — any appliance that has an electronic readout or memory — consumes energy even while it’s not actively engaged. You can disconnect individual appliances, or if you’d like to shut off the entire house, you can turn off power at the main breaker. Keep in mind, this will eliminate the automatic timer features on your lights and VCR. Your fridge and freezers will defrost and the contents of your water heater will cool to room temperature. Without air conditioning, you home can heat to levels well above the outdoor temperatures. Heat that enters your home through the windows and ceiling can be trapped inside. This can be especially hard on candles or other temperature-sensitive items around the house. If you intend to leave your appliances connected and the power on, vacation is the perfect time to determine how much of you energy dollar goes to passive load. Read your meter before you leave, then take a second reading when you return. Although the percentage of your bill that goes toward passive load will vary from season to season, this will give you an idea of how much energy your home consumes to maintain a constant “body temperature” and what your appliances consume just to stay “conscious.” One last thing — you may want to let a neighbor know you are leaving. If a storm leaves your area without power, your neighbor can let us know that you home is unattended, and we can verify that service has been restored to your home. Now it’s time to hit the road. Have a safe and enjoyable vacation. Electrical Storms Can Be Deadly “Lightning never strikes twice in the same place.” “You have more of a chance of getting struck by lightning. . . ” These often-repeated sayings give the impression that lightning strikes are extremely rare, predictable and avoidable. This idea, however, is wrong. Although seemingly less dangerous, lightning kills more people per year than either tornados or hurricanes and causes billions of dollars in damage. Given these statistics, it’s extremely important to take lightning seriously and to stay educated on lightning safety. “Plan outdoor activities around the weather and be prepared to seek shelter if the weather turns threatening,” says Molly Hall, Safe Electricity executive director. “If thunderstorms and lightning are approaching, the safest location is indoors away from doors and windows. Avoid water, electric appliances and other objects that could conduct electricity, and use only cordless or cell phones to make emergency calls.” Phone use is the leading cause of indoor lightning injuries in the United States. A direct strike is not necessary for lightning voltage to enter your home through phone lines, electrical wires, cables and plumbing. Other recommendations to avoid lightning shock and damage indoors include:
Lightning can strike up to 10 miles from the area in which it is raining. This means that if you can hear thunder, you’re within striking distance. A good idea is to use the “30-30 Rule.” According to this rule, if you can count less than 30 seconds between a lightning flash and the thunder following it, you should seek shelter from the storm. When the storm is over, wait 30 minutes after the last lightning strike you see before going back outside. If caught outdoors during a thunderstorm and unable to take shelter in a building, take the following precautions:
More information on lightning safety can be found at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Web site at www.lightningsafety.noaa.gov. Also visit www.SafeElectricity.org for more electrical safety information. Safe Electricity is a safety public awareness program created and supported by a coalition of several dozen organizations, including electric utilities, educators, and others committed to promoting electrical safety.
Understanding the issues “These are the times that try men’s souls.” Written by Thomas Paine before the Revolutionary War, those words have relevance today in this troubling economic downturn. More and more people today are having trouble making ends meet, and that includes paying their electric bills. Adding to the uncertainties facing consumers today are the discussions going on in Washington, D.C, where Congress is considering what to do about the climate change issue. In a nutshell, they are debating putting limits and taxes on the release of carbon dioxide into the air. Many people believe so-called greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide are causing the planet to warm up. While there is plenty of debate on whether this is in fact true, there is little argument that Congress and the Obama Administration plan to do something about it. The question electric cooperatives are asking is this: How do we meet national climate change goals without making electricity unaffordable? The great achievement of Franklin Roosevelt’s rural electrification program — affordable electricity for all Americans —is at risk under many of the proposals Congress is considering. Many of these proposals would make burning coal to generate electricity very expensive. That will affect Missouri electric cooperative members dramatically since approximately 80 percent of the electricity you use comes from coal-fired power plants. The alternatives — switching to natural gas or nuclear powered plants — will be even more expensive. And using more natural gas will most likely require importing even more energy from the Middle East and will certainly drive up prices for those who heat their homes with natural gas. Ultimately, consumers will be paying the bill for programs to reduce carbon emissions. For this reason, we believe consumers should have a place at the table as Congress considers the most sweeping energy policy changes ever. That’s the purpose behind the Our Energy, Our Future campaign enacted by the nation’s electric cooperatives in 2008. Through that program, more than 1.7 million messages have been sent on behalf of consumers to elected officials in Washington. The message has been a series of questions designed to encourage elected officials to consider consumers before they pass legislation dealing with energy and the climate. The latest question is, “Will you please work with the electric cooperatives to be sure public policy meets my need for affordable electricity?” Co-op members are encouraged to go to the www.ourenergy.coop Web site and send a message. Those who are less computer savvy or who have slow connections should contact their electric cooperative and ask them to send the message for them. At issue is the need to build new power plants to meet rising demand — some 21,000 megawatts nationwide — combined with uncertainties about what type of plant to build. This could present electric cooperatives with their biggest challenge in history. So what is Congress talking about and what are electric cooperatives doing themselves? In the climate change debate, there has been a lot of talk about cap and trade. Under this proposal, a government authority sets a maximum limit (the cap) on emissions. Businesses covered by the cap would likely receive some emissions credits but would have to buy more to meet the amount of emissions they release. In theory, they could also find ways to reduce emissions. If they managed to reduce emissions under the cap, they could then sell or trade their allowance to another business that needs them. There are two major problems with a cap and trade program. First, someone has to decide who gets emission credits and how many each stakeholder will receive. This could be a political dogfight. Second, utilities that need more credits will have to buy them from an auction. As anyone who has tried to buy anything at an auction knows, the price for these credits will be set by the demand for the product. And expect a scramble for the proceeds from this auction. Already, the Obama Administration is considering using cap and trade auction funds as revenue in future budgets. The real problem with cap and trade, however, is that it is in fact a backdoor tax on consumers with Wall Street speculators setting the rate. Utilities dependent on fossil fuels to generate electricity today have few options to turn to for reliable baseload generation. One experiment electric cooperatives in Missouri are supporting is a look at the potential of capturing carbon dioxide before it’s released and storing it underground. Called carbon capture and sequestration, this project is being conducted by Springfield’s City Utilities with support from Associated Electric Cooperative. Another research project involves taking flue gas from Central Electric Power Cooperative’s Chamois Power Plant and bubbling it in a pool full of algae. The algae feeds on the carbon dioxide, and in turn can be harvested to produce biodiesel and plastics. Missouri’s electric cooperatives are also pioneers in wind energy. Our agreement to purchase the entire output from the state’s first three wind farms was the final straw in bringing these projects to reality. And recently a fourth wind farm was announced. This one will be the state’s largest. That’s not all. In a continuing effort to keep bills affordable for their members, Missouri’s electric cooperatives have developed an unprecedented energy efficiency program called “Take Control & Save.” More than a million compact fluorescent lightbulbs have been given away since the program started. Rebates on energy efficient appliances, energy audits and a steady flow of information on how to reduce electricity use have benefited members statewide. As a result, demand for electricity is stabilizing and electric bills have been reduced for many members. These are exciting but challenging times for the nation’s electric cooperatives. As Congress works toward new climate change goals, it’s apparent their efforts will have a profound impact on our daily lives. If done well, this new direction will improve the quality of life and economic well-being of us all. But — many of the proposals we are seeing could send prices soaring and undermine our ability to have enough electricity to meet your needs. Please help your electric cooperative keep its seat at the table during this important national debate. Join the Our Energy team now, by sending an e-mail or letter from the www.ourenergy.coop Web site or by contacting us for assistance. As Thomas Paine put it in The American Crisis: “The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.” We couldn’t have said it better. Help keep electricity affordable and reliable. Join the Our Energy, Our Future campaign today. Fill out this card and mail it or drop it off at our office. We will send an e-mail on your behalf that will show Congress you believe keeping rates affordable is vital to our nation's future. Now is the time to get involved. Join Our Energy today!
Great news — winter has come and gone and the flowers are beautiful. More good news — the government will help many of you pay for some of the things that I have been teaching you. As I write this column, I have just completed appearing at a home show in Kentucky. I am preparing to conduct an energy-efficiency seminar at a community college in Tennessee tonight. I will then drive to south Arkansas for a seminar and then to Illinois for a seminar and radio show. I have had great difficulty in deciding how to write this column because there is so very much that I wish to teach you. However, I am allowed only one page. I went down this morning for breakfast in the motel lobby and asked if I could have a late check-out since my seminar was not until 5 p.m. at the college. The lady at the desk asked, “Are you the caulk man?” To which I answered, “Yes, I am the King of Caulk and Talk. How did you know?” “I received a brochure in the mail about the meeting from our power company and I plan to be there because my electric bills have really gone up this year,” she said. I told her that she has two choices: Do something about it or just keep complaining. I proceeded to give her a personal one-hour seminar and answer her questions. Before we had finished, several others in the area had joined the group. Folks, every indication is that utility rates will continue to increase. With a slowing economy, utility bills will become a larger percentage of a family’s budget. You have two choices: Use less or use less. Some of you are thinking, “This man is a genius.” Others are thinking, “This man is a moron.” Probably, both of you are correct. I have spent my entire adult life teaching others how to use less by conservation and energy efficiency. Example: Turning off the light is conservation, but installing a compact fluorescent bulb is energy efficiency. Now for the other great news. I am happy to announce that it is now more feasible to make energy improvements than ever before. The Stimulus Bill signed by the president on Feb. 17 allows for impressive tax credits to help pay for energy improvements. Please understand I am not your tax advisor, but I suggest that you go to www.energystar.gov for details. Please note that these are tax credits, which may be worth far more than tax deductions. Please note that there are tax credits for windows, insulation, solar systems, wind systems, and the best news of all, geothermal heat pumps. You can now install the best heating and cooling system available and you may qualify for a tax credit of 30 percent of the total cost on your 2009 tax return. My friends, this is huge. Many of you have installed geothermal, with no tax advantages, because you knew it was the smart thing to do. Well, now it is cost effective for many more of you to do the same. I consider that to be really, really good news. Doug Rye can be heard on KGOZ and KAAN locally. Every Saturday morning, Doug Rye hosts a live call-in show on several area radio stations. He can be heard from 9-10 a.m. on KGOZ, 101.7, Gallatin, and on KAAN, 95.5, Bethany. |
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Good news – no more ice!