Get Paid to Save Electricity
Obviously conserving electricity saves money, which in tough economic times is particularly important. However, small businesses and other organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area were just issued checks for turning out the lights and taking the stairs for one day last summer. And some of the checks were for thousands of dollars.
These small commercial energy users were part of a Demand Response program run by the nonprofit San Francisco Community Power. When state energy use is particularly high, such as when there has been an extended heat spell and air conditioners are running for many hours a day through broad areas of the state, the California Public Utilities Commission (PUC) calls on Demand Response program participants to reduce demand by turning off equipment and lights, not using elevators, etc.
Participants in this program included all types of small commercial users, from retailer stores (such as an REI store), to automobile dealers and a film production studio, to schools and government offices. They received checks ranging from $30 to $3000 all from one day of reduced electricity usage last August.
