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I don't want to support the coal or nuclear industries. How
can I make sure my electricity comes from a renewable source?
The electric grid is one big pool. Lots of different power plants — be they nuclear, coal, wind, solar or whatever — feed electricity into that pool. When your home or business takes electricity out of the pool, there is no way to determine exactly where the electrons zipping through your power lines came from. If you want to be 100% sure that the electricity powering your toaster comes from a renewable source, you'll need to "get off the grid" altogether, and generate your own renewable electric supply.
A less drastic measure is to make sure that the electricity added to the power grid in your name comes from a renewable source. In many states, you can pick-and-choose which company you pay for producing electricity. You still pay the local utility that maintains the power lines running into your home for about 70% of your electric bill. But you can choose who you pay for actually putting electricity up on the grid — the other 30% of your bill.
A program called Green-e
makes it easy to find a clean energy provider in your area. Companies
with Green-e accreditation generate at least half of their power from
solar, wind, geothermal, biomass or low-impact hydro. If a portion
of their electricity is from a non-renewable source, you can at least
rest assured that it is not nuclear and that its air emissions are
no worse than those produced by conventional electricity. Visit the
Green-e site
to help find a clean company in your area and for information on how
to make the switch.
If you live in a state that doesn't let you actually choose your electricity
supplier, you can still purchase what are known as Tradable Renewable
Certificates (TRCs). Each time you buy a TRC, a renewable energy supplier
such as a wind farm will add a specified amount of electricity to
the power grid in your region. The price for the certificates is simply
the difference between your regular electric bill and the costs you
would pay if you were buying direct from the renewable company. That
way you can feel proud that whatever energy you're taking from the
grid, gets back up on it from a clean and green source. For more info
on TRCs, visit the Center
for Resource Solutions.
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