Wind Power Contract
The City first began its green power journey in 2012, with the purchase of Green Power Offsets equivalent to 1/3 of its total energy consumption from Puget Sound Energy (PSE). This offset was eventually increased to cover 100% of the City’s consumption in 2015, at a cost of about $12,000/year. These additional, voluntary contributions helped fund the development of more PSE green power programs in the future, for the benefit of all consumers, and served to offset the Carbon Dioxide (CO2) emissions resulting from the City’s use of electricity.
Staff began researching new options for procuring green power and for moving past offsets; and in 2016, the City signed a 20-year power purchase agreement with PSE to help fund a brand new, dedicated, clean energy source known as the Skookumchuck wind farm (see photo). Located on private timber land near Centralia, Washington, the facility went online in November 2020 and hosts 38 turbines (137 Megawatts total) capable of producing enough energy to power 30,000 homes.
Under this new program, known as Green Direct, all of the electricity used for City government operations (2,700,000kWh/year) is now 100% carbon-free, lowering the City’s entire carbon footprint by approximately 38%. However, the City’s power usage represents only 1.5% of the entire Mercer Island community’s consumption. Thanks to low starting rates, the City’s total electricity bill dropped with the switch to Green Direct power, and rates are locked to a fixed schedule that increases 2% per year (which, on average over the last 15 years, is less than past increases in conventional power rates).
- Learn more about the PSE Green Direct windpower program
- Learn more about all of PSE’s decarbonizing programs
- Residential consumers can also buy their own Green Power Offsets from PSE here
In recognition of its purchase of green power (now at 100%), and its many solar generation projects (homes, businesses, schools, churches, and at the Community Center), the City was enrolled into the EPA's Green Power Partnership in 2012, and continues to report annually.
