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<br />9A <br />Page 14 <br /> <br />Sustainable Cities Feature: Palo Alto National Leader in Clean Energy Use <br /> <br />Palo Alto has become one of the nation's top clean energy providers by offering its residents the <br />opportunity to purchase renewable energy. The city is doing this through Palo Alto Green, a <br />program through which residents voluntarily pay an extra 1.5 cents per kilowatt-hour on their utility <br />bill to fund the purchase of clean energy. It's considered a voluntary utility tax, and on average, <br />participating customers are charged approximately $10 each month. <br /> <br />Launched in 2003, Palo Alto Green now has 22 percent of the city's residents participating, making <br />it a national leader. The average participation rate for other American cities with similar programs <br />is just 1.8 percent. <br /> <br />The purchased renewable energy comes from a combination of 97.5 percent wind and 2.5 percent <br />solar generators from facilities located throughout California including Solano County, Davis, San <br />Ramon and Pleasanton. <br /> <br />Annually, Palo Alto's municipal utility department purchases about 41.5 megawatt-hours of energy <br />with 13 percent coming from renewable energy. This program prevents about 700 million pounds <br />of C02 from being released each year. <br /> <br />Palo Alto is unusual among cities in that it provides all utilities for its residents, not just water and <br />refuse collection. Palo Alto Green is possible because the city is able to contract for green power. <br /> <br />Assistant City Manager Emily Harrison remarked on why Palo Alto is so committed to addressing <br />climate issues. "Our council adopted a sustainability policy in 1997 and since we've implemented a <br />broad array of programs including Green Palo Alto_ Just last month we adopted a climate <br />protection plan to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. This will mean massive changes to city <br />operations as well as significant changes from every sector of the community: <br /> <br />Palo Alto is getting national attention for its sustainable focus. In 2006, the Environmental <br />Protection Agency recognized the city a Green Energy Community because of the innovative <br />program. The California Climate Action Registry has also designated Palo Alto a Climate Action <br />Leader. <br /> <br />To learn more about Palo Alto Green please visit www.citv_palo-a!to.ca.usf and search the term <br />"Green Palo Alto." <br /> <br />Register Now for Green California Summit and Exposition <br /> <br />The Green California Summit and Exposition is scheduled April 7-9, at the Sacramento Convention <br />Center. This event was created to support efforts by local and state government to implement <br />effective and innovative green seNices, products and solutions. <br /> <br />Session topics include: <br /> <br />. Climate change <br />. Energy innovation <br />. Green building <br />. Environmentally preferable purchasing <br />. Waste management <br />. Transportation <br />. Water management <br />. Developing an organizational "green culture" <br />. Planning and development <br />. Funding <br /> <br />7 <br />