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North County residents form energy co-op

The West Coast People's Buying Co-op will collect and distribute energy information for its members, said Jennifer Orrock, an Oceanside resident helping to found the group. About 20 people attended the group's first meeting Tuesday at the Oceanside Civic Center.

Members could get the inside line on energy-efficient refrigerators and washing machines, said Orrock, an employee of the Oceanside Chamber of Commerce. They could check the reputations of solar panel salesmen. They could learn more about grants and low-cost loans available for the installation of alternate energy sources.

"In a nutshell, we want to develop and maintain a database," she said. "We could recommend a vendor we have found to be worthy. We could show you discounts and buybacks you have coming."

Programs offered by the California Energy Commission and elsewhere will pay as much as half of the purchase and installation costs of solar panels, Orrock said.

The state's energy crisis and recent rolling blackouts have prompted widespread interest in the co-op, she said. Members would be charged $20 annually to cover administrative costs, a newsletter and other expenses.

Orrock said she decided she needed to join the co-op effort after her utility bill went from $118 one month last summer to $309 one month this winter. An electrical contractor working on her house hooked her up with the group.

Members of the group expect to be registered as a nonprofit corporation in the next week or two, said Stu Rodman, another Oceanside resident organizing the co-op. After that, they plan to set up a Web site and hold another informational meeting, probably in Oceanside.

"Our basic plan is to look at ways people can cut their energy costs today," said Rodman, a writer and energy consultant. "We have plans to drastically cut costs of installing alternate power. We also would work as advocates on behalf of members to take advantage of any and all subsidies."

Mark Snyder, an electrical contractor in Escondido, said he and a few other people have been laying the groundwork for the co-op for nearly a year. He lives on a 20-acre farm, where he gets most of his electricity from solar panels and windmills installed on the property.

"We're trying to put together a plan where we can reduce the cost of solar energy so that it's more affordable," Snyder said. Enough photovoltaic cells to power the average house during daylight hours can cost $10,000 to $40,000, which most people can't afford.

People who produce their own electricity can cut their utility bills significantly. Also, they can contribute any surplus to the region's power grid through a state-mandated program.

Called the "net meter program," it gives residential customers credit for any surplus electricity they contribute to the grid. Residential customers are not paid for contributing to the grid, but they can break even for the cost of electricity they consume after the sun goes down or the wind stops.

Conservation would be the co-op's bedrock, Snyder said. All members would get an energy audit to see where they can cut their energy consumption.

In many cases, conservation alone can cut a residential electric bill by 50 percent and the gas bill from 15 percent to 25 percent, Snyder said.

Windows, caulking and insulation are checked for leaks, he said. All appliances are examined for leaks and efficiency. Any refrigerator more than 10 years old usually should be replaced by a newer, more efficient model.

Efficiency is something that provides constant benefits, he said, unlike solar panels that work only during the day or windmills that operate only in a breeze. And everyone can work on efficiency.

"When we get large enough, we will support renewable projects such as biomass," Snyder said. Biomass projects burn waste products such as wood chips to produce electricity.

Snyder said he received about 1,000 calls from people interested in the co-op after a television station included his telephone number in a story about Tuesday's meeting.

"Our goal is to get 10,000 members in four weeks," he said.

Jodi Beebe of the San Diego-based Utility Consumers Action Network, a watchdog group, said she knew of no other energy co-ops in Southern California, though a few have helped consumers in other states.

Ed Van Herik, a spokesman for San Diego Gas & Electric Co., said he know of no other energy co-ops in San Diego County, but the idea appeared sound.

"In general, we've encouraged customers to become shrewd consumers of electricity and electrical products," Van Herik said.

SDG&E offers energy audits and several other programs to help people become more efficient users of electricity and natural gas. For more information about them, check the company's Web site at www.sdge.com.

For more information about the new co-op, call Snyder at (888) 267-4416.

Contact staff writer Phil Diehl at (760) 901-4087 or pdiehl@nctimes.com.

3/24/01

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