Category Archives: energy

City’s DPU: Natural Gas Bills Will Drop 4 Percent

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According to the City of Richmond Department of Public Utilities:

RICHMOND, VA—Beginning with the utility bill to be received in March 2011, city of Richmond Department of Public Utilities natural gas customers will see a six and a half percent decrease in the purchased gas cost (PGC). This amounts to an overall four percent decrease in their natural gas bill, Mayor Dwight C. Jones announced today.

“In recent months, the increase in natural gas production and low volatility in natural gas markets have translated to our ability to pass on lower prices to city of Richmond natural gas consumers,” Mayor Jones said.

Beginning with the first bill customers receive in March 2011, the PGC will decrease from $.695 to $.650 per Ccf (100 cubic feet of natural gas). As a result, the average residential customer who uses 70 Ccf per month will pay approximately $86.84 compared to a current price of $89.99.

The City of Richmond passes along the cost of the natural gas it purchases to its customers, dollar for dollar, without any markup. The PGC cost is one of three components of a customer’s natural gas bill. The other components are the customer charge and the distribution charge.

DPU analysts periodically review and adjust rates up or down based on market and weather conditions.

DPU offers information and programs year-round to help customers manage their utility bills and seek assistance before bills become unmanageable. DPU also encourages customers to consider enrolling in the Equal Monthly Payment Plan (EMPP) in order to avoid large seasonal fluctuations in their monthly bill. More information about EMPP and other programs is available by calling 644-3000 or visiting DPU’s Website at
http://www.richmondgov.com/dpu

Meanwhile In The General Assembly…McEachin Powers on

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Oregon Hill’s State Senator Donald McEachin is doing great work to push forward a clean energy agenda for Virginia in the current General Assembly session.

Sadly, his bill to limit offshore oil drilling (while promoting offshore wind), SB814, died in committee yesterday. This is particularly galling to those concerned about the undue influence of the fossil fuel corporations and their disasters.

Fortunately, there are other bills to root for. In particular, SB907, also sponsored by McEachin, which is now scheduled to come up (again) in the Senate Commerce and Labor committee next week. SB907 would direct the State Corporation Commission to order utilities to develop an appropriate pricing strategy to incentivize residential customers to reduce their consumption. Inclining block rates (IBR) is just such a strategy and is designed so that the more electricity consumers use, the more they pay, sending a price signal, especially to high-use residential customers, to reduce their consumption.

Does this sound familiar? It should, because it is similar to the municipal water reform that Oregon Hill residents have lobbied for in the recent past. Paying for what you use and rewarding conservation makes the sort of common sense that many citizens want to see on all levels of our government.

EarthAid.net Groups’ Next Steps?

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Now that other neighborhoods are getting their own EarthAid.net groups, what else can we look for?

The obvious aspect is some friendly competition. Do Oregon Hill households on average use more energy than say, Church Hill households? (My prediction is that OH ones do simply because of the number of VCU students and their computers, hotplates, miniature fridges, etc., but that may be based on a faulty generalization on my part).

Of course to get a good competition, we need more people to join EarthAid.net and share their utility information. Don’t forget, EarthAid.net users can also win rewards from local merchants. Maybe in the future, groups could collectively win rewards.

Regardless, more Richmond neighbors are looking to reduce their energy use (and save money!). On that note, the Sierra Club is a hosting a free, public meeting this Wednesday that will feature local experts on home energy audits as well as solar power.

Appalachia Rising At Flying Brick

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The Flying Brick Library will be hosting an event on Sept. 30 at 6 pm with Tricia Shapiro, author and Mountain Justice campaigner.

Here’s some background:

Mountaintop removal (MTR) does exactly what it says: A mountaintop is stripped of trees, blown to bits with explosives, then pushed aside by giant equipment?all to expose a layer of coal to be mined. In recent years, local people fighting against MTR’s destruction of their homes in West Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia have invited volunteers from outside Appalachia’s coalfields to help them bring national attention to this shameful practice, and abolish it. Since the Mountain Justice campaign began in 2005, dozens of local coalfield residents, students, Earth Firsters, and others have been arrested in nonviolent protest actions against MTR.

Tricia was there for some of it. Tricia is coming to us at the Flying Brick to offer her perspectives and experiences as an on-the-ground, inside reporter with the Mountain Justice Campaign. Her book, published by AK Press, is being released just as Mountain Justice and other environmental groups plan to converge on Washington DC for Appalachia Rising, the largest convergence against MTR in history. Please join us during open hours at the Flying Brick Library for a casual and educational talk on the struggle against Mountain Top Removal.

Brought to you by The Flying Brick Library, AK Press, and James River Earth First!

Oregon Hill electric grid to be updated

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There have been previous posts on some of the electric grid issues that have plagued the neighborhood. Unfortunately, some portions of the neighborhood saw more brownouts this summer, including the new Pescados restaurant on China Street. Thankfully there have been some temporary solutions, but after more inquiries by the Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association to the State Corporation Commission, Dominion Power is now actively working on a more permanent update to the grid structure.

From a letter to the neighborhood association:

In response to the inadequate service provided by Dominion Virginia Power (“Company”) due to load growth within the Oregon Hill neighborhood, the Company has designed a project that will split the neighborhood’s load in half. The project will consist of installing set of step-down transformers, a new terminal pole, and a 1/0 underground primary conductor as indicated in the pictures below. The voltage will then be stepped down to 2.4 kV. This will essentially take half of the neighborhood off of the current stepdown.

The Company is currently in the process of obtaining the permits and underground easements required for this project. The Company will provide a more specific timeframe for completion once all the permits and easements have been acquired.

Now that the electricity service is being addressed, maybe we can take another look at the internet service…stay tuned!

‘CarnivOil’ Comes to Monroe Park Tomorrow

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From the press release:

‘CarnivOil’ Comes to Richmond, Celebrating the Greatest Addiction on Earth
Big Oil: Keeping America dependent on oil for 150 years and celebrating
victory over
Virginia’s clean energy future

Richmond, Va. – The U.S. Senate’s failure to pass a clean energy and
climate bill this summer, coupled with the continued push to block new
clean air standards, is reason to celebrate if you profit from America’s
oil addiction. Highlighting Big Oil’s stranglehold on Washington, we
present “CarnivOil”: the Greatest Addiction on Earth – a celebration of
America’s addiction to oil with an outdoor midway-style carnival
complete with games, concessions, and some Big Oil-style celebrating.
Step right up! Don’t be afraid. See the world’s biggest polluters – by
looking behind the curtain.

Games will include the Petroleum Wheel of Doom, Oil Executive Boxing and
the Big Oil version of the famous Hammer game. The event highlights Big
Oil’s success in pocketing Congress, while blocking progress toward a
clean energy future and threatening to kill American jobs and worsen
public health with the Dirty Air Act.

WHAT: CarnivOil: The Greatest Addiction on Earth: complete with games to
celebrate Big Oil’s success

WHEN: Tuesday, August 31, 2010

TIME: 11 am – 1 pm ET

WHERE: Monroe Park, 620 W. Main St., Richmond, Va. 23220

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For more information, contact:
Sarah Driscoll, sdriscoll@environmentvirginia.org
Phone: (603) 236-2097