Green power first blow for the environment

In this mention

An editorial in The Mountain endorses a green power program offered by Sevier County Electric System, one of 10 TVA customers purchasing renewable energy. The program will feature a solar unit at Dollywood and allow households and businesses to buy green power at a modest premium. The editorial notes that the Tennessee Valley Energy Reform Coalition, a TVA watchdog group, has become a supporter of the initiative.

Original clipping

PDF didn't open? Open it in a new tab →

Green power
first blow for
the environment

A program that will soon offer "green power" to
customers of Sevier County Electric System is
expected to be a model for the rest of the country.
Our system is one of 10 customers of the Ten-
nessee Valley Authority set to begin buying power
generated by renewable resources.
Translation for us: solar power.
The solar unit, originally planned for placement in
the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, but now
destined to be located at the Dollywood theme park,
will educate millions about the program while pro-
viding natural, safe electricity.
Electric system officials say community response
has been positive and we're glad to hear it, since we
think Sevier County is a natural fit with green power,
what with all the environmental
problems we've got plaguing us.

OUR VIEW
Once the program is up and
running, SCES will offer house-
holds and businesses in the area the chance to buy
green power at a slightly higher rate than usual.
In other areas, that increased cost has ranged from
$2 to $10 for every $65 a family or business already
pays – minimal expense when you consider what
kind of savings we might be generating in the long
run.
Certainly, the program is pricey at $6 million when
you consider that's only going to buy three to six
megawatts of power, a veritable drop in the TVA
energy bucket. But consider the results. We will be
paying for a product we know we're going to get.
How many projects funded in the millions or even
billions by our government produce nothing? More
than we'd like to acknowledge.
Even TVA's former naysayers have swerved to sup-
port green power because of the obvious benefits to
the environment. TVA watchdog group the Ten-
nessee Valley Energy Reform Coalition has become
an outspoken supporter of green power supplied by
TVA.
We encourage Sevier countians to educate them-
selves on the project and plan to support it if at all
possible.
If you'd like to learn more about the project, SCES
is hosting an informal information session Tuesday in
the council room at the Sevierville Civic Center from
8:30 p.m.