Leading municipalities across the nation are partnering with the EPA to become Green Power Communities (GPC.) GPCs are cities in which the local government, businesses, and residents collectively buy green power in amounts that meet targets set by the EPA.
In April, the City of Clayton Board of Alderman committed to pursuing the GPC designation by unanimously passing a resolution to embark on an GPC Challenge via a joint effort of the City of Clayton, AmerenUE Pure PowerTM and Clayton-based, Microgrid Energy.
The GPC Challenge focus is to encourage local businesses, residents, and non-profit organizations to support new sources of renewable energy and reduce the City of Clayton’s carbon footprint. In addition, the Challenge events and activities will include a focused renewable energy education effort for Clayton residents and businesses, and in particular, the students in the Clayton School District.
On June 3rd, the City officially kicked off the Challenge with a luncheon held at the Clayton Fire Station adjacent to City Hall. Mayor Linda Goldstein shared several reasons why Clayton elected to take the Challenge to join leading municipalities in becoming an EPA Green Power Community.
“In Clayton, we know today that renewable energy is here, in Missouri, and that it is working. We also know that increasing the amount of renewable energy in the Missouri power pool through the purchase of RECs or installation of onsite solar will reduce carbon emissions and promote local economic development.”
There are two ways that Clayton residents and businesses can help the City achieve the Green Power Community Challenge goal of 670 Megawatt Hours per month:
1) The easiest way to help is to enroll in AmerenUE Pure Power or any other Green-e certified voluntary green power program. Each REC represents 1 megawatt hour (MWh) of renewable electricity generated and delivered to the grid, which means one less MWH of conventional power. Each REC also represents the environmental benefits of displacing pollution causing power with clean power. Pure Power RECs support Missouri wind farms thus keeping those environmental benefits working at home.
2) The second way a business or residence can help reach the goal is by installing an onsite green power system. GPC Challenge partner Microgrid Energy is a Clayton-based business offering a 10% discount to any Clayton business or resident who installs during the Challenge (before April 22, 2011). Each kilowatt-hour of power generated from a Clayton based solar electric system will count toward the Challenge goal.
The good news is that either way supports more, local, renewable energy sources. The even better news is that opting for one or even both will help Clayton achieve the Challenge goal.
To learn more about supporting the Clayton GPC Community Challenge visit please the Challenge website: www.mogpc.com/clayton .
To find out how your community can get on the same path – please contact the Missouri Green Power Community Team Leads – Cindy Bambini (cbambini@3degreesninc.com) or Rick Hunter (rhunter@microgrid-energy.com).