Grand Haven, Thursday, December 9, 2010. At November’s Early Bird Breakfast, the Grand Haven Board of Light and Power presented a $10,000 commemorative check to Grand Haven Area Public Schools from the BLP’s Energy Optimization Program. The school district used their award to leverage Bond dollars for energy efficiency improvements at Griffin Elementary School.
“You may wonder why an electric utility would pay local businesses to make energy efficiency improvements to their infrastructure,” stated Annette Allen, General Manager of the BLP. Allen informed Early Bird participants, “as local businesses reduce the amount of power they consume, they reduce the need for added infrastructure to our local power plant and preserve our current resources for a longer life.”
The Tri-Cities YMCA and GHSP also received $10,000 each, utilizing those funds for energy efficiency improvements to their organizations. Examples of these changes include installing energy-efficient lighting and motion sensors. These efforts reduce electric consump- tion, which lowers their organization’s cost of electricity and benefits the environment by reduc- ing the amount of electricity the BLP needs to generate for base load.
The Energy Optimization plan provides funds for various efficiency measures to reduce consumption of electricity. These funds are available to Grand Haven Board of Light and Power industrial and commercial customers on a first come, first serve basis. Applications for 2011 projects will be available at www.ghblp.org beginning December 10, 2010.
Created in 1896, the Grand Haven Board of Light and Power provides electricity to approximately 13,350 customers in Grand Haven and the surrounding area. Grand Haven Board of Light and Power. Community-owned. Locally-controlled. Not-for-profit. Environmentally responsible.