The Smart Energy Committee is a current program of SASCO.
The committee meets every first Thursday from 5:30 - 7 PM every month usually at Durango Coffee Company.
The goals of the Smart Energy Committee are: to promote healthy communities through cleaner, more efficient energy options; to influence and engage utilities, the local private sector, and political entities toward this mission; to continue a cooperative working relationship with the local utilities; to continue advocacy for various initiatives, including accessibility to and marketing of green power programs; to act as a forum and agent for implementing government, utility, and private-sector renewable power and energy efficiency initiatives; to continue advocacy for a sustainable alternative to coal-fired electric power plants in the Four Corners region; and to assist the Governor’s Energy Office in meeting or beating the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Colorado by 20 percent by 2020.
Current activities include: providing education on energy alternatives through public presentations; supporting the local efforts of the CLEAN campaign.
For more information or to participate in our activities, please contact Harry Riegle or call (970) 759-5259.
Next Friday, on April 20th, our local electric cooperative, LPEA, will be sending out ballots to all 30,000+ members. That means that you, or many people you know, will have an unprecedented opportunity to contribute to real change on the LPEA board by voting in this election.
This year, SASCO is endorsing four local candidates—one in each LPEA district—who have been active in trying to encourage more local renewable energy in our region. If you don't already know them, you can click on the links below to see a video of each candidate talking about the campaign. (Click here for a district map.)
On March 14, 2012, Pegeen Hanrahan, the former mayor of Gainesville, Florida, visited Durango to discuss "how La Plata County can become the renewable energy leader of the Southwest, develop good jobs, and grow our local economy."
Slides from the presentation are available for download below.
As mayor, Hanrahan made Gainesville a national leader in solar energy. Florida ranks above California, the U.S., Japan, and China in per capita installed solar PV. Gainesville went from 0 to 7.3 MW of installed PV in less than three years!
A registered professional engineer, Pegeen Hanrahan was term-limited in 2010 after 12 years of elective service and two terms as Mayor of Gainesville, Florida. In that role, she sparked a solar CLEAN program (also known as a feed-in-tariff), making Gainesville the first city in the U.S. to implement this solar funding process. Her presentation shared the lessons from the Gainesville Regional Utilities, the electric utility whose feed-in tariff solar policy has brought over 7 megawatts of solar to the city's 125,000 residents. The raw number puts Gainesville among the world leaders in solar installed per capita, beating out Japan, France, and China (and besting California, which has 32 kilowatts per 1000 residents).
Help our community move toward a smarter and cleaner energy future!
The Sustainability Alliance's Smart Energy Committee
Meets Every FIRST THURSDAY of the Month
We often meet at the Durango Coffee Company; however, if we receive a lot of interest in attending, we need to reserve a bigger room. If you are interested in attending the next meeting, please contact Lissa Ray.
Our primary focus for 2011–12 is the CLEAN campaign (Clean Local Energy Accessible Now)
Let LPEA Know You Are Concerned Before the Vote on Upcoming "Rate" Increase!
This new rate structure is in exact opposition to Mr. Munro's July 2011 "Rate on the Rise..." article in Colorado Country Life (Page 1 of LPEA supplement http://www.lpea.coop/company_info/countrylife/ccl201107.pdf) regarding the current problems with LPEA's rate structure. It states, "I must, however, inform you that under the current rate structure, the more energy you save, the more we have to charge. It's an anomaly, and it is why you (in the near future) will begin to see some changes to our rate structure, to hopefully mitigate this anomaly." Please explain!
Come to the Board Meeting
Monday, December 19 at 9am
LPEA Multipurpose Room
On November 10, 2011, the Smart Energy Committee/ CLEAN Traveling Team of the Sustainability Alliance of Southwest Colorado presented on SOLUTIONS!learned from Germany’s successful transition from dirty coal to clean energy. The free public event was from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. at Fort Lewis College Student Union Building, Vallecito Room.
On March 14, 2012, Pegeen Hanrahan, 
