May 15, 2002—The Center for Resource Solutions (CRS) recently announced that six providers of Tradable Renewable Certificates have earned Green-e certification. Customers purchasing Green Tags from these six providers have an independent assurance that their purchase supports generation from high-quality newly developed renewable energy plants.
Currently, green power is only available to roughly one third of U.S. electricity consumers through competitive power markets and utility green pricing programs. Green Tags make it possible for all Americans to support renewable energy, regardless of whether their state is deregulating its energy markets. Five different Green-e certified TRC providers are helping to bring new renewable energy plants online in the Northeast, Mid Atlantic, Great Plains, Texas, Pacific Northwest, and California.
TRCs, also known as “Green Tags,” are created when renewable energy is substituted for traditional power. TRCs represent added benefits and costs of renewable generation and are purchased in addition to the electricity that most consumers now use. Green Tags provide a way to buy and sell the environmental attributes of renewable generation separately from the electricity generated. Green Tags help overcome the obstacle of delivering the benefits of renewable energy to customers who are typically far from generating plants. The purchaser of a Green Tag is the sole “owner” of the environmental attributes of a specific megawatt hour (MWh) of energy added to the grid. Independent verification ensures that no two Green Tags represent the same MWh of energy.
Green-e is a voluntary certification program for renewable energy products sold in competitive retail electricity markets, regulated markets, and nationwide through Tradable Renewable Certificates. To earn Green-e certification, a TRC product must originate entirely from new renewable facilities that generate energy from the sun, the wind, the heat of the Earth, low-impact hydropower, biogas, or biofuels. Certified providers undergo an annual verification process audit to document that the company purchased enough quantity and type of renewable certificates to meet customer demand and marketing claims. Each certified provider also agrees to abide by the Green-e Code of Conduct, and to submit marketing materials to CRS to meet Green-e disclosure and truth-in-advertising requirements.
Green-e certified TRC providers now include:
- Sun Power Electric—Available in New England
- Community Energy—Available nationwide
- Sterling Planet—Available nationwide
- Bonneville Environmental Foundation—Available nationwide
- Aquila—Available nationwide
- Renewable Choice Energy—Available nationwide.
For further information, please contact Center for Resource Solutions.
