SMUD: Power to the People
Posted on August 1, 2010 – 4:31 AM | by OldManFoster
By Niki Kangas Photos by Scott Duncan
Damn it, it’s that mint green envelope from SMUD again. When the bills start changing colors, you know you forgot, or weren’t able to make, that last payment. Those little green envelopes must make SMUD (Sacramento Municipal Utility District) a common target for cussing in many local households. But we all need electricity, so we sign on for these friendly monthly reminders; however, most of us do so without stopping to appreciate the powerhouse of a power company we boast right here in our hometown. Yeah, I’m still talking about SMUD.
Turns out, in partnership with public leaders and the otherwise influential, SMUD is positioning Sacramento as a renewable energy hub on the forefront of the burgeoning green industry. All the while, they’re a non-profit, busy driving down costs for consumers- a far cry from utility providers like PG&E, authors of the recently rejected Prop 16.
SMUD is a publicly owned, non-profit energy provider governed by a Board of Directors that is comprised of seven men and women. Serving 592,000 customers and a total population of about 1.1 million, SMUD is the sixth-largest public utility in the country. SMUD’s 900-square-mile service territory encompasses Sacramento County and a small portion of Placer County. The current mission statement of the Board reads: “To empower its customers with solutions and options that increase energy efficiency, protect the environment, reduce global warming, and lower the cost to serve its region.”
History
Voters created SMUD in 1923, but it wasn’t until March of 1946 that the California Supreme Court refused PG&E’s final petition against it, and PG&E sold its distribution system at the value appraised by the Railroad Commission.
When about 400 SMUD employees took the helm of Sacramento’s power supply they found it to be a sinking ship – the electric distribution system was geriatric, with some of the equipment dating back to the 19th Century. Most of the system was ‘McGyver’ed’ together – PG&E had systematically bought up and merged an initially fractionated, competing market. Up went the proverbial sleeves, and they were never rolled back down.
To ensure a well-integrated and diversified power supply, and to gain “energy independence”, SMUD constructed the Upper American River Project in the ‘50s, resulting in clean hydroelectric power still employed by SMUD today. This and other early SMUD endeavors lead to unprecedented results- by the ‘60s SMUD had lowered their rates three times.
The energy crisis and drought of the ‘70s led SMUD to begin thinking about lowering our collective carbon footprint- they started allocating resources to conservation practices and research, and further expanded their repertoire of power generation sources. In the ‘80s they closed their nuclear plant, Rancho Seco, in response to voters, and began to lean less toward energy independence and more toward buying, selling, and trading the cleanest and cheapest energy available.
Greenergy
SMUD’s Greenergy program is an umbrella term for its pioneer use and research of sustainable energy sources, and advanced technologies like solar, fuel cells, gas turbines and biomass. Some of this ‘greenergy’ is provided locally by SMUD’s solar facility, wind turbines, hydroelectric plant and other technologies. Customers can choose to pay an extra $6 a month to support cleaner energy, or $3 a month for half their supply to come from clean energy sources. The nominal charge on the bill is matched by SMUD to purchase renewable energy and add it to the grid. (Kind of makes you feel like an ass if you instead splurged that extra $6 on some fruity frou-frou cocktail, doesn’t it?)
Beyond supplying power that won’t send the human race to an early grave, they’ve thought up other ways to encourage sustainability. SMUD pays hefty rebates for choosing energy efficient appliances, and if you’re in the market for a new home, make it a SolarSmart home for a rebate reprise. A current undertaking of SMUD’s research team is the Home of the Future program- a prototype attempt at a home building design wherein a house produces as much energy as it uses! Then there’s the Free Shade Tree program. SMUD provides consumers, upon request, with sturdy saplings that will grow to cut energy costs and prettify yards one day- for generations to come.
SMUD has also set aside parcels of land for the enjoyment of the public, and the conservation of onsite plants and animals for future generations. The District has developed recreational facilities hand-in-hand with its power-generating facilities, including the Rancho Seco Recreational Area and the Crystal Basin Recreational Area, both of which see thousands of visitors annually.
Energy & Information Access to All
EAPR – SMUD’s Energy Assistance Program Rate, works to make power affordable to everyone. Users that make less than $3600 a month (in a family of four), or $2542 or less (in a family of 1-2), you qualify to receive a 35% discount on Tier 1 usage, a 30% discount on Tier 2 usage, a 50% discount on monthly service charges.
And if you still get in a bind, there’s EnergyHELP, which keeps the lights on for low-income families that need immediate financial assistance to avoid service termination. This program is funded by voluntary residential customer donations of as little as $1 a month added atop their own service charges. To sweeten the deal (if just being awesome isn’t enough) SMUD provides incentives, such as tickets to the Sac Zoo, for a donation of $5 or more.
Wait! There’s more… SMUD also hooks the community up with the following: an art gallery and energy-saving technology exhibits viewable on-site; a website loaded with informative articles on going green at home; workshops and seminars offered on topics like lighting, HVAC, architecture, environmental compliance and pollution prevention, commercial & industrial processes/productivity improvement, and power quality; classroom resources for teachers; and community sponsorship for programs that are in keeping with SMUD’s mission.
Today
Seventy-three years after that first SMUD vs. PG&E vote, the drama continues. This year PG&E funded (to the tune of $46 million) Proposition 16, a measure which, if passed, would have amended the California constitution to prevent publicly owned utilities, including SMUD, from spending funds to establish or expand electric service delivery without approval of two-thirds of the voters. Voters rejected Prop 16 in the June election, but the amount of money PG&E was willing to spend on the measure illustrates how seriously they view the competition from SMUD and other not-for-profit power companies. Proponents of local power dodged a bullet when the measure failed, and SMUD is currently exploring the feasibility of a ballot measure that would protect SMUD – and its customers – from futue power grabs from the competing electrical giant.
Board meetings are open to the public and take place at 6pm on the first Thursday of every month and at 9pm on the third Thursday of every month. Check SMUD’s webiste, http://www.smud.org, for meeting location and agenda.
Tags: Niki Kangas, Scott Duncan, SMUD