December 28, 2011
Beginning in January, the City of Ithaca will purchase 100% of its electricity consumption from renewable sources. Under a new agreement with Integrys Energy Services of New York, Inc., Ithaca will purchase Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) certified by Green-e Energy for all of its electricity.
Integrys and its subsidiaries generate electricity at wind-energy farms, hydroelectric plants, biogas facilities, and solar and clean coal plants. By purchasing RECs for its electricity use, the City will offset an estimated 4,896 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually compared to the conventional production of electricity. Dennise Belmaker, the City of Ithaca Energy Sustainability Project Manager, compares the savings to "not driving 12,000,000 miles in a car, or planting 1,460 acres of trees."
While the electricity the City uses won't be directly coming from Integrys's renewable-energy plants, Belmaker says, "We are purchasing the benefits of displacing traditional (fossil fuel) energy production throughout the grid with renewable sources. In other words, we are indirectly offsetting the amount of carbon emissions relative to our entire electric load." She adds that as demand for, and purchases of, RECs increase, the higher the percentage of renewable-sourced energy in the grid will be.
Belmaker says the RECs are sold at a slight premium price compared to the regular energy rates, about two or three tenths of a cent per kilowatt-hour. New York State has one of the highest energy rates in the U.S., at about 17 cents per kWh. Ithaca has actually been buying wind power to provide 5% of its electricity since 2006. Mayor Carolyn Peterson says the new commitment "ensures that the City continues to set an example nationwide toward energy independence."
The $0.002/kWh premium for renewable energy is a significant reduction from past years, a development made possible both by a decline in the cost of renewable energy in general, and by collective bargaining done by MEGA, the Municipal Electric and Gas Alliance, a non-profit of which the City is a Mayor. MEGA's executive director, former Tompkins County legislator Barbara Blanchard, says "Ithaca has always been a leader in responsible energy choices, joining the Town of Caroline in taking advantage of the affordable RECs pricing resulting from our September bid process."
