RBEC supports CleanPower program

RED BANK - - The borough has signed up to participate in the CleanPower Community Partnership Campaign run by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities, Office of Clean Energy.

CleanPower sources are those, such as wind and solar power, which do not cause global warming because they do not emit carbon dioxide.

The CleanPower campaign's goals are to build awareness about these sources and to increase their usage.

The Red Bank Environmental Commission (RBEC) is supporting this program and encouraging local residents to participate.

When enrolled in the CleanPower program, electricity payments go to a CleanPower supplier. Enrollment entails a small increase in costs because renewable energy is still somewhat more expensive than energy from carbon sources.

The Environmental Commission will be passing out brochures that describe the program and include an application form at various local events such as the Jazz & Blues Festival June 1-3.

Another way to sign up is to go to the BPU's CleanPower Web site: njcleanpower.com or to the site of one of the four participating suppliers: Green Mountain Energy Company: www.greenmountain.com/nj/; Jersey Atlantic Wind, LLC: www.njwind.com/product.html; Sterling Planet, Inc.: www.sterlingplanet.com/buyNJ.php; or Community Energy, Inc.: www.newwindenergy.com/buywind/home/new_jersey/step2_new_jersey.html.

Brochures for the program are also available at borough hall.

To encourage participation, and to offset the slight additional costs of enrollment, the RBEC is offering compact fluorescent lightbulbs, long-lasting bulbs, which use less electricity than regular incandescent bulbs, to those who sign up for the CleanPower program (supplies may be limited).

The Red Bank EC strongly supports the CleanPower program as an effective technique to combat global warming and to decrease air pollution, and encourages local residents to check out the above Web sites and to visit the group at one of the upcoming local events.

Environmental Commission meetings are the first and third Tuesdays of every month. For more information, call (732) 530-2748.