PUD rebate, retrofit programs show gains

The Wahkiakum County PUD Board of Commissioners discussed business and heard from Lia Sealund, a customer service representative, about the PUD’s local energy conservation efforts at their meeting on Tuesday.

The rebate programs for ductless heat pumps, custom projects, non-residential lighting, windows and insulation have helped to save local customers, in total, as much as 1,028,000 kWh each year since 2010, according to Sealund.

“This fiscal period has provided the utility an opportunity to partner with both public and private commercial organizations,” Sealund said, “such as Wahkiakum County Port 1 and the school district to do some lighting projects. I think it has shown good stewardship of our available funds to partner with those local organizations.”

The PUD has retrofitted 206 streetlights for LEDs and has plans for nearly 300 more.

“When that project is finished,” Sealund said, “it will allow us to capture about 164,000 kWh a year for the life of those lights. I’ve made a recommendation that we seriously explore other lighting retrofit projects as a primary focus in our new fiscal period. It’s a nice, clean way to measure savings.”

At some point, the PUD plans to retrofit Wahkiakum PUD infrastructure with LEDs and Sealund encouraged the commissioners to move forward with the project.

“It is a nice way to demonstrate to our customers what products are available,” Sealund said. “It shows that we are progressive in our energy efficiency consumption as well.”

General Manager Dave Tramblie informed the commissioners that the motor in the PUD’s digger derrick was replaced.

“The long range plan for that vehicle was to replace it next year but I think due to the fact that we have a new motor and we had a mechanic from Altec out last week who went through the boom,” Tramblie said, “I think we can get a couple, three more years out of it.”

Tramblie reported that he would be meeting with an independent consultant from the Army Corps of Engineers on Friday to discuss the proposed project to put sand inside the dike on east Sunny Sands.

The PUD had concerns with sand being placed on underground lines or piled too high near power lines. Tramblie guessed that the consultant and the Corps were interested in moving forward, despite the county planning commission’s veto and the county commissioner’s decision to table the matter.

“I didn’t feel it was my place to tell the corps that I wouldn’t discuss it with them,” Tramblie said.

Commissioner Robert Jungers, who recently attended a symposium about the Cascadia Subduction Zone sponsored by the Bonneville Power Administration encouraged all to consider how they might fortify the PUD’s infrastructure in preparation for a big event.

“There is a 38 percent probability of this happening in the next 50 years,” Jungers said.

The commissioners voted to table the Renewable Energy System Cost Recovery Program to allow more time to perfect language in the policy.

Commissioners approved travel for Sealund to a Bonneville Power Administration Expo in Portland in late April.

After an executive session, the commissioners voted to allow Tramblie to go to bids for a new excavator as well as allow Tramblie and Hanigan to respond to a letter from the Town of Cathlamet regarding the water contract.