In an unprecedented clean energy move, residents in over 55 communities in Illinois now have the option to go green, and save some green while they’re at it! Thanks to the hard work of Sierra Club volunteers across the state, a record number of Illinois towns will lower bills and support green energy rather than traditional brown power through a process called municipal aggregation.
Aggregation is a process where a town, authorized by a voter referendum, pools the residents’ demand for electricity and uses this volume to negotiate a better energy package. Oak Park was the first town in Illinois, and possibly the nation, to go 100% green last fall and now dozens of towns are following their lead. Towns like Palatine, Urbana, Peoria, Lake Forest, Lombard, and Evanston opted to provide the best value for residents by securing 100% green energy through Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) at significant savings from current electricity bills. RECs assure that clean energy, from sources like wind and solar, are put onto the grid although they may not directly power your lights.
Some towns initially baulked at offering 100% green energy, but the work of Sierra Club volunteers to educate community members and city staff on the tremendous economic and health benefits was ultimately successful. In many cases, green energy was less than 2% more expensive then brown power and will help cities make good on their commitments to reach climate pollution reduction goals.
Congratulations to all the volunteers who have worked to bring the benefits of green energy to their community! To learn more about greening the aggregation process visit: https://bit.ly/GreenCCA