Lights out: Day to focus on energy conservation
Mayor Doug Thompson is asking Logan residents to observe “Energy-less Day” on Thursday in order to become aware of energy habits and hopefully learn to conserve natural resources.
Logan City Light and Power currently produces and owns 65 percent of the power the city uses at 2.9 cents per kilowatt hour, said Ron Saville, director of the Light and Power Department. But LCL&P has to purchase the remaining power on the market, and due to a shortage of available power, the price per kilowatt hour of power is 36.9 cents (as of Feb. 9), Saville said.
“We’re doing everything we can to avoid paying that,” Saville said.
In light of the increasing cost of energy, the city has been running radio and newspaper ads announcing Energy-less Day and offering suggestions for residents to cut down on power use to help the city conserve.
“I’m very concerned that we might have rolling blackouts in Utah this summer,” similar to the blackouts that California is experiencing right now, Saville said. “If one of our coal-fire plants go down and there is no energy available on the market,” there is nothing power departments can do, he said.
The No. 1 tip LCL&P has for homeowners is to shift electrical usage to the time between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. when the city has less power usage and thereby lower costs, Saville said.
Homeowners are also encouraged to simply turn down their thermostats when leaving home and at night, and close the drapes when it isn’t sunny, he said.
Utah State University is supporting the city’s energy conservation movement with efforts to reduce power use on campus.
President Kermit L. Hall sent a letter to faculty and staff in late January with a list of ideas that could potentially save the university $180,000 per month.
Assistant Vice President for Facilities Darrell Hart said people on campus should be turning off lights, computer monitors, printers and copiers when they leave for extended periods of time, especially at night.
He also suggested dressing appropriately for the weather rather than using portable space heaters under desks, because the appliances are energy hogs.
One thing students might consider doing is using a lamp to light up workspace rather than illuminating a whole room, Saville said.
“The objective on Thursday is to get people’s awareness so they change their [energy] habits,” Hart said.
The purpose of the day, he said, is to spread the word about energy issues and to get people to permanently change habits that are wasteful.
The idea of energy habits is especially applicable for a university, Hart said.
“If we can get students to change their habits, they will become habits for a lifetime,” Hart said.
Facilities has been working for years on energy conservation, Hart said.
Energy-saving lights have replaced most fluorescent lights, a main computer system monitors building temperatures for efficient heating and cooling and the sprinkler irrigation system will soon be run by computers for easy shut-off during valve leaks and rain.
In 1997, USU received the Energy Efficiency Award for State Facilities because of these conservation changes.
Other campus conservation efforts include slowly replacing the Aggie Shuttle buses with vehicles that run on natural gas, as half the buses do now.
Also, the campus recycling committee monitors waste output and estimates that 25 percent of the waste stream is currently recycled, Hart said.
The city is offering awards to a resident and a business that comes up with the best energy-saving idea and implements it, Saville said. Winners will receive cash awards and free dinners.
Residents interested in learning how to save energy at home can pick up a free brochure with tips on insulation, lighting, heating and cooling from the Utility Billing Office at City Hall.