Green Power EMC Reaches 36 Members

As of September, Green Power EMC has a total of 36 participating electric membership cooperatives. The addition of Okefenoke REMC, headquartered in Nahunta, provides another 33,000 consumers with the option to choose earth-friendly energy.

"We are very pleased for the support of the EMC family in making renewable energy available to almost three million Georgians," said Green Power EMC President/CEO Michael Whiteside. "We continue to seek new projects to add to our renewable energy portfolio and the 112 million kWh we have already generated and made available in the last four years.

Georgia ranks among the top five in the nation, from a cooperative standpoint, in terms of renewable energy programs. Green Power EMC mainly uses biomass and low-impact hydro projects and a small portion of solar attributed to the Sun Power for Schools project showcasing the benefits of solar energy. Participating EMCs partner with a middle or high school to install a photovoltaic system to harness energy from the sun. Georgia’s EMCs have installed solar panels at 14 middle or high schools. Green Power EMC has also sought additional renewable resources to add to its generating capacity, including the addition of 20 MW of electricity from the first poultry litter-to-energy operation in Georgia scheduled to be completed in 2008. <<