KFTC Members Participate in Rural Electric Cooperative Public Forum

The Public Forum was held as part of the Clean Energy Collaborative, in which KFTC participates along with other public interest groups, the local rural electric co-ops, and the East Kentucky Power Cooperative (EKPC). The mission of the Collaborative is to review and recommend energy efficiency and renewable energy actions to EKPC, and to promote collaboration among all the parties in implementation of these ideas.

The Public Forum focused on energy efficiency and was definitely a collaborative effort. It began with presentations from key EKPC and co-op staff along with KFTC members and others. Rowan County KFTC member Sue Tallichet presented on the important reason for increasing energy-savings programs: they reduce the need for building costly new power plants and, thus, help to stabilize electric rates. The Forum was emceed by KFTC member Tona Barkley and David Crews of EKPC.

Attendees also learned about three energy efficiency programs--Button-Up, How$martKY, and $impleSaver--before breaking into small focus group to give the co-ops feedback on how they might better implement existing and new energy-savings programs. The conversations were hearty and eye-opening, and both co-op members and co-op staff learned much.

 "I found out that our home qualifies for three programs that I didn't know about before, all things I had been trying to figure out how to do anyway," said Harrod. "The co-ops are living up to their name as cooperative enterprises between the managers and the members."

The results from the focus groups were presented at the most recent Collaborative meeting, and a great discussion ensued about how to use the feedback and findings from the members to improve the co-ops' energy saving programs.

John Harrod has good reason to be optimistic. "I think these ideas are going to take hold and spread as more people see their friends and neighbors saving energy, using renewables, and saving money in the long term."