PUD Achieves All-Time Conservation Record

Snohomish County Public Utility District (PUD) and its customers beat the utility’s all-time conservation record in 2010, saving nearly 9.2 average-megawatts of energy – enough to serve about 6,500 homes. Collectively, consumers and businesses reduced their energy bills by $6.2 million.

“Conservation is by far our cheapest and greenest energy source since it’s energy that never needs to be generated,” said PUD Assistant General Manager of Customer & Energy Services Jim West. “Consumers contributed to our success by installing a record numbers of heat pumps and taking advantage of special incentives for efficient appliances and lighting.”

Business customers completed nearly 1,000 projects with the PUD and through other regional energy efficiency programs. The utility provided incentives and worked closely with contractors and retailers to streamline projects, particularly smaller lighting upgrades. All sectors of the business community completed efficiency projects, including grocery stores, hospitals, school districts, telecommunications companies, public agencies and major industrial manufacturers.

Residents benefitted from a range of conservation programs, including incentives for installations of ductless heat pumps, systems that heat and cool homes at a fraction of the cost of baseboards and wall heaters and do not require expensive and invasive ductwork. Energy saving compact fluorescent light bulbs remained popular with consumers; cumulative sales of the bulbs have topped 4 million since the program’s inception. The PUD also partnered with the City of Everett and Snohomish County to complete hundreds of efficiency installations in local neighborhoods and at businesses under the Community Power! program.

The PUD raised awareness of conservation through its award-winning Be a Conservation Sensation campaign, which helps customers identify new ways to save energy and money. The PUD also continued to promote its Energy Challenge, a call-out to customers to reduce their energy use by 10 percent. To date, 130 businesses and about 3,300 residential customers have pledged to reduce their energy use.

For more information about specific PUD conservation programs, customers can call the PUD Energy Hotline at 425-783-1700 or visit www.snopud.com.

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