In spite of operating efficiencies, GRE expects the cost of power to increase. In 2008, it will change to a variable rate policy where weekday power cost to its cooperatives will be higher than nights, weekends or holidays, and power cost during critical peak times – very hot or very cold periods, for example – may be double or triple the normal rate.

It’s a way to smooth out demand and avoid building new peaking plants. The next generation of plants, said Saggau, is expected to be built at costs that are three times the cost per kilowatt hour than currently operating plants.

Another way to avoid new construction is conservation – encouraging customers to use less electricity. “A brighter idea” is a campaign to replace incandescent bulbs with more energy efficient CFL bulbs. As part of this promotion, North Itasca Electric will exchange a $1 donation to the Bigfork Food Shelf (or a canned good item) for a new CFL bulb. The offer is open to cooperative members at its Main Street Bigfork headquarters through the summer. For more information, call the cooperative at 743-3131.

The campaign isn’t just about dollars and cents, though. Saggau pointed out that environmental stewardship is the second most important thing to its membership; something that didn’t even show up in surveys until about 15 years ago. Reliability is the most important and rates are third. GRE’s policy, said Saggau, is that one of these three values will not be pursued at the detriment of another.

Saggau pointed to the new headquarters building for GRE under construction in Maple Grove as an example. The 166,000 square foot building is envisioned as a “living laboratory” of conservation methods for members to visit, he said, which will use 60 percent less electricity to run than a normal building. Designed to be only the 18th building worldwide to achieve the top, or “platinum” LEED’s rating, the incremental cost of achieving this will be paid back in just utility savings in 6-7 years, Saggau pointed out.

LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, and is a point-based rating system developed by the U.S. Green Building Council to promote the construction of environmentally sustainable designs.

Being environmental stewards can also be good for business, Saggau pointed out. The 440,000 tons of fly ash from Coal Creek Station used to be trucked to landfills at a cost of about $3 million each year. After developing a market for the ash as a Portland cement substitute, that ash now brings in a $3 million profit. Ash from Stanton Station, although not a good cement substitute, was found to be good for soil stabilization and such things as plugging dry oil wells. It, too, is 100 percent subscribed so does not go into landfills, said Saggau.

Another process developed at Coal Creek runs pulverized coal over a fluidized bed of hot air. The patented process reduces emissions – lowering mercury emissions by 20-50 percent – and reduces coal use by 4 percent. Licensing the process is expected to add to GRE’s bottom line also.

An ethanol plant adjacent to Coal Creek and 49 percent owned by GRE is producing ethanol at the lowest cost per unit in the industry, said Saggau. The Blue Flint ethanol plant buys waste heat from Coal Creek and is currently selling all its product into Boston.

In appreciation of the membership support for Operation RoundUp, Saggau presented North Itasca Electric with a $1,000 contribution for the local program.

Meeting speakers
The membership also heard from a number of speakers including North Itasca Electric President Jim Cox and CEO Jeff Ortman. Cox complimented the current board, pointing out that members have continued to elect qualified, intelligent individuals who take their board positions seriously. Ortman spoke on several suggested changes to policies including capital credit refunds, redistricting, GRE plans to install two diesel generators on the system, future rate increases and WildBlue.

Senator Tom Saxhaug reviewed the legislative session’s commitment to energy including the legislative compromise which mandates state energy sources to be 25 percent renewable in 2025 with a goal of reducing greenhouse gases by 80 percent by 2050. He also pointed out the $50 million earmarked for the Clean Water Legacy and $20 million put into the Forest Legacy program.

Representative Tom Anzelc spoke on his experience as a first year legislator. “I learned to be like the great people I represent,” he said; having an opinion, being blunt, standing up to urban interests and being brief. Change is difficult, he said, referring to the 2007 session as the “greenest” in memory, but renewables are necessary to the welfare of our children and grandchildren. He said a $465,000 cooperative study between the Commerce Department, University of Minnesota, Department of Natural Resources and Public Utilities Commission would look at how to capture, control and sequester carbon dioxide from burning coal. His goal is to make sure that the area is just as good for his grandchild as it was for his parent.

Chair of the RoundUp program, Linnette Davidson, spoke about the generosity of the membership who contribute to worthwhile projects of local organizations by allowing the cooperative to “round up” their bills to the next dollar. There are about 50 applicants each semiannual grant session for just over $20,000 raised annually.

Brittany Adams, the 2006 Youth Tour participant sponsored by the cooperative, reported on her experience in Washington, D.C. It was a busy week, she said, and thanked the membership for an experience that would not have been available anywhere else. Participants saw the Smithsonian, a House session and national monuments, and met people with unique cultures and personalities, she said. Her favorite monuments were the Washinton monument where she stood at the same spot as Martin Luther King, and the Vietnam War Memorial where she was able to find a relative’s name. The friendships she made, Adams said, have extended to the present.