By Carolyn Schuk
Checked out your carbon footprint lately? I did and learned that my personal annual contribution to global warming is about 39,000 lbs. of the greenhouse gas Co2. At least I'm under the U.S. average of 44,947 lbs.
Now, I could reduce this directly by turning off the heat, riding a bicycle and not taking plane trips. Or I could let any of dozens of companies advertising on the Internet balance my ledger with carbon offsets costing $30 to $50 a month.
By comparison, the $10 or so I pay every month for Silicon Valley Power's Santa Clara Green Power program looks like a bargain.
But how exactly does SVP reduce global warming with my $10? After all, I don't see a solar generator going up in my neighborhood. The answer is that SVP buys renewable carbon offsets, also called renewable energy certificates (REC*).
Here's how it works: Most of the money SVP collects every month through the Green Energy program purchases RECs from 3Degrees, a San Francisco-based company that funds clean energy generation and emissions reduction projects. (The utility retains a small amount for program administration and solar generation projects in Santa Clara.)
3Degrees then uses that revenue to fund new development or ongoing operations of clean energy projects – primarily wind projects -- as close as possible to Santa Clara.
"If the project is in the early stages of development the money can be used as part of the financing," according to Adam Capage, 3Degrees Director of Utility Partnerships. For projects already in operation, the money can be used to pay off development debt.
"Nobody likes the idea of paying off debt, but everyone wants to build new wind farms," Capage explains. "But wind farms last 20 years and these projects were built on the basis of two revenue streams: the electricity itself plus the renewable energy certificates."
Because 3Degrees' mission is fostering new clean energy generation, the company only funds wind farms built since 1999. "We can't be supporting 25-year old wind farms," adds Capage.
To find out more about Santa Clara Green Power, visit www.siliconvalley.power.com or call (408) 244-SAVE (7283). The program costs only 1.5 cents per kilowatt hour (about $7.50 on average). You can calculate your own carbon footprint at www.3degrees.com.
Carolyn Schuk can be reached at cschuk@earthlink.net.
*Each REC represents one megawatt hour of electricity generated by a renewable energy source.
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Where Your Santa Clara Green Power Dollars Go
Here are some of the projects Santa Clara Green Power supports through RECs:
High Winds Energy Center in Rio Vista near Sacramento began operating in 2003. Overlooking grazing sheep and barley fields, the 90 turbine windmills generate enough electricity for 75,000 homes – keeping over a billion pounds of Co2 out of the atmosphere.
White Water Hill in Riverside County powered up in 2002 with 22 wind turbines, producing enough energy to power 4,800 homes. It was also the power source for retailer Patagonia's 100 percent renewable energy program, California's first commercial renewable energy sale.
Mountain View Wind in the San Gorgonio Pass near Palm Springs went into operation in 2001. With 111 wind turbines, Mountain View Wind Project generates enough energy for 40,000 homes.
Alameda County Fairground Solar in Pleasanton turned on the lights in 2003 with 20,000 square feet of solar panels topping 16 stables, two maintenance buildings, and the Amador Pavilion. One of California's largest solar projects, it produces enough electricity to power about 200 homes.
STG Machine Solar in 2005 became the first Santa Clara business-owned solar installation supplying Santa Clara Green Power. While its output only generates enough electricity for about 10 average Santa Clara homes, STG will keep 55,600 pounds of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere ¾ the environmental equivalent of taking five cars off the road or annually planting 3,700 trees.
In addition to RECs to fund new renewable energy sources, SVP's Neighborhood Solar program also promotes solar power generation within Santa Clara's city limits. In 2004 the program's first solar system was installed at Haman Elementary School. That was followed by the Valley Village solar installation in 2007.
