Eco-programs get a budget boost

GLENDALE — In the burgeoning age of eco-minded consumerism, it’s not hard to find energy efficient gadgets and appliances. But Glendale Water & Power wants to make it even easier — and cheaper — for local residents.

The City Council on Tuesday approved a 2 1/2 year, $13.6-million budget for the utility’s public benefit programs aimed at reducing energy use through conservation incentive programs. And now that the budget has been approved, one of the first things on the agency’s to-do list is getting at least one energy-saving compact fluorescent lightbulb in every Glendale home.

The utility already offers 22 public benefit programs, but the newly approved budget includes funds for three new public offerings, including an aggressive marketing campaign to get Glendale homeowners to do away with incandescent lightbulbs, said Craig Kuennan, Glendale Water & Power’s public benefit programs marketing manager.

“One of the biggest ways to conserve energy is the lighting in a home, and so we’re trying to promote the use of [compact fluorescent] lighting in homes,” Kuennan said.

The first step in the lighting project is to mail out 74,500 Earthmate bulbs along with brochures and marketing materials that will direct customers to a new Glendale Water & Power website and online catalog for energy efficient appliances and information, he said.

Compact fluorescent bulbs have the potential to save residents about $65 per year, per bulb, he said.

Also included in the budget is $250,000 over 2 1/2 years for a new affordable housing program that will offer developers financial incentives to install energy-efficient features in affordable housing projects, according to a city staff report.

New and existing affordable housing projects approved by the city’s Community Development and Housing Department would be eligible for funds to help pay for energy-efficient windows and water heating, improved insulation and lighting.

The budget approved Tuesday also includes $300,000 to help developers pay for Leadership in Energy Efficiency and Design certification, which means a developer met a set of nationally recognized green building guidelines.

The programs join a lengthy list of other rebates and incentives for residents and local businesses, which have won California Municipal Utilities Assn. awards the last several years, said Glenn Steiger, Glendale Water & Power’s recently appointed general manager.

In 2005, the agency won an award for its Smart Business Energy Savings program, which targets hard-to-reach small businesses for free energy surveys and installations up to $1,000 in value.

A Glendale Water & Power incentive for apartment building owners to install Energy Star air conditioners won in 2006, and the utility’s “Cool Care” program, which subsidizes the cost of new refrigerators for low-income residents, was honored in March.

“That speaks volumes in terms of the effectiveness of our programs,” Steiger said.

“So in the brief time that I’ve been here, my opinion is that we’re allocating properly in the right areas and quite frankly the programs that I see that we have in place are so effective that they are now an ongoing sustainable part of our supply plan, which is quite unusual and does bode well for our future.”