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EPA'S Wisconsin Green Power Partners cut greenhouse gas emissions

Release Date: 02/03/2009
Contact Information: William Omohundro, 312-353-8254, omohundro.william@epa.gov

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
No. 09-OPA013

CHICAGO (Feb. 2, 2009) - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 5 announced today that its Green Power Partners in Wisconsin reduced their greenhouse gas emissions in 2008 by buying more than 386 million kilowatt-hours of electricity from renewable resources such as solar and wind power.

The partners are Kohl's Department Stores, Menomonee Falls, 259 million kWh; the state of Wisconsin, 92 million kWh; River Falls Wisconsin Community, 18 million kWh; GE Healthcare Headquarters, Waukesha, 16 million kWh; and Monsanto/Agracetus Campus, Middleton, 916 thousand kWh.

The green power bought by these organizations is equivalent to avoiding the carbon dioxide emissions of some 50,420 passenger cars per year, or is the equivalent amount of electricity needed to power some 35,286 average homes annually.

"These organizations are protecting our environment by reducing greenhouse gas emissions," said Cheryl Newton, director of EPA Region 5's Air and Radiation Division. "We hope others will follow their lead by voluntarily shifting to renewable energy."

Kohl's was 14th among the top 50 purchasers with 22 percent of its purchased electricity coming from the city of Dover, Racine County, Wis.; Neuwing Energy Ventures, New York, N.Y.; Sacramento Municipal Utility District, Sacramento, Calif.; Sterling Planet, Norcross, Ga.; and WM Renewable Energy, Houston, Texas.

Kohl's ranked second on EPA's top 20 retail list and qualified for EPA's Green Power Leadership Club by significantly exceeding EPA's minimum purchase requirements. The company ranked eighth on EPA's Fortune 500 list.

The state of Wisconsin ranked 36th among the top 50 purchasers with 8 percent of its purchased electricity coming from Madison Gas and Electric, Madison, Wis.; We Energies, Milwaukee, Wis.; and WPPI Energy, Sun Prairie, Wis.

The River Falls Wisconsin Community, a new partner, ranked 10th in EPA's Green Power Community category, buying 15 percent of its purchased electricity from WPPI Energy. Green Power Communities are cities or towns where the municipal government is a Green Power Partner that works with local businesses and residents to purchase green power.

GE Healthcare Headquarters ranked 30th on EPA Fortune 500 list, buying enough green power to meet 10 percent of its purchased electricity use from We Energies.

Monsanto's Agracetus Campus ranked 53rd on EPA's Fortune 500 list, buying 16 percent of its green power from Madison Gas and Electric.

EPA's Green Power Partnership works with more than 1,000 partners to help them buy green power voluntarily as a way to reduce the environmental impacts associated with conventional electricity use. These green power purchases support the development of new, renewable generation resources nationwide. Overall, EPA Green Power Partners are buying nearly 16 billion kWh of green power annually, equivalent to the carbon dioxide emissions from electricity use in nearly 1.5 million average American homes.

Green power is generated from renewable resources such as solar, wind, geothermal, biomass and biogas, as well as low-impact hydropower. Green power resources produce electricity with an environmental profile superior to conventional power technologies and produce no net increase in greenhouse gas emissions.

More information on EPA's Green Power Partnership is at https://www.epa.gov/greenpower.