Recently, Culver City Crossroads noted that the Culver City City Council joined LA County’s Clean Power Alliance and voted to serve Culver City businesses and residents with 100% renewable energy at a slightly higher rate than Southern California Edison, beginning in early 2019.
WHOA!! That definitely sounds radical, if not a bit edgy! But it’s not as scary as it sounds, here’s why:
1. If you don’t want 100% renewable energy, it’s easy to opt down to 50% or 36% renewable energy and get a lower rate than what you’re paying with Edison.
2. Take actions to reduce your energy use. Among other things, you can ditch your old energy-sucking appliances by taking advantage of energy efficiency incentive programs.
3. Culver City’s participation in the nonprofit Clean Power Alliance means that instead of lining the pockets of Edison’s investors, all profits come back to cities for workforce development and local job creation. Now that’s a radical concept!
4. If all else fails, and paying your energy bill is still a hardship, apply for a discount on your electric bill through the State of California’s CARE/FERA programs or the Medical Baseline Allowance.
Bottom line: There are a lot of smart ways we can take control of our energy future. In the process, Culver City might just teach other cities how easy it is to be green.
David Haake
Culver City resident and Chair, West Los Angeles Group of the Sierra Club
(with assistance from Sarah Friedman and Luis Amezcua)
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