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First, and most importantly, the board of directors gave their go ahead to a load management program. We are hard at work defining how our load management system is going to work. If you would like a detailed summary of what we are trying to do, give us a call, and we would be glad to share some information with you. I was surprised by the small number of people who commented on the OPALCOGRAM on load management. Usually, I can count on far more responses. Many of those I did talk to commented that they were confused by the OPALCOGRAM. The overriding response that I received from you was, "You don't appreciate how environmentally aware the people of San Juan County are. They will do what is right for the environment without having to be bribed with incentives." Even though I recommended to the board that we offer incentives, the board concurred with your sentiment, and we will not be offering financial incentives for people who participate. We will have more detailed information on our load management program available at the county fair. Stop by our booth, find out about it, and sign up for the program. The second item is that even though our computer has not changed the message printed on your bill (we are still waiting for the company to change the program), you will not have to pay the late payment penalty for payments received at OPALCO prior to the 20th of the month. Hopefully, our bill printing will soon be changed to reflect this longer period to pay your bills. We have set up collection points for you to drop off your PTI and OPALCO payments. Current drop off locations are Rainbow Services in Eastsound, The Little Portion Store on Shaw, the Lopez Pharmacy, and any Islanders Bank branch. We are continuing to add new drop off points to make it more convenient to pay your bill (and save postage). Even though Bonneville has reduced their funding for conservation programs, OPALCO still offers a wide assortment of programs to make your existing and new homes more energy efficient. Under our new program, we are finding that more and more property owners are doing the work themselves rather than using contractors. One of the problems we have noticed is that when people are insulating the underside of the floors in their home (usually from a crawl space), they are installing the insulation upside down. While it is easier to install it foil side down, this creates a vapor barrier in the wrong place and can result in the accumulation of moisture, leading to deterioration of the insulation and flooring. So remember, if you are insulating underneath your floor, make sure the foil side goes towards the heated area and you support the insulation with battens or other means to hold it in place.
Call 376-3570 for more information on our conservation programs.
Doug Bechtel
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