Earth Day, the cooperative Way
Posted by Josh Randt on April 22, 2015
This Earth Day, we’d like to highlight some of the steps we’ve taken to help not only our members, but our planet.
• Solar energy is a year-round means of conservation, and WH’s two solar communities have shown a commitment to making renewable energies attainable to all members who want that option. Our first solar community was the first in the state, and one of the first in the nation to feature battery back-up. And we’re not stopping at two arrays, as we have more solar community projects in the works for 2015. Where other utilities have cemented their future by solely sticking to grid power, WH CEO & President Mark Vogt has stated that the cooperative will do its best to bring renewable energy into the mainstream, and that it will do so “quicker and more enthusiastically than most utilities.”
• To improve our local environment and habitat, every year WH donates 15,000 trees to local schools and organizations to plant around the area. This not only improves our environment, but allows kids and people of all ages to get involved and learn the importance of taking care of the Earth.
• For 15 years, WH has been involved in maintaining one of the last bastions of Minnesota’s “Big Woods” at Lake Maria State Park. WH donates tree seedlings and provides volunteers with a free lunch, while they plant trees and wildflowers, rake leaves, maintain trails and paint buildings.
• As a distributor of electricity, WH offers its members multiple ways to help conserve energy. But we also make sure that the companies we choose to purchase power from are on the same page when it comes to preserving our environment. Through Great River Energy (GRE) and Basin Electric Power Cooperative, WH ensures its members that the energy they are receiving is generated and produced by some of the most efficient and environment-friendly power suppliers available. Basin currently generates 17.5 percent of its power from renewable energies, with 16.7 percent generated from wind. Renewable energies make up 11 percent of GRE’s power sources.
We sincerely thank all of our members for helping us with this task, and caring about your environment.
