CHAMBERS IN ACTION
Local chambers across the country are taking the lead in creating and convening clean energy conversations, best practices, events and advocating on local policy.
Chamber CEO Peggy Emerson Speaks Out about Amazon Wind Farm
Ask Peggy Emerson, Executive Director of the Paulding Chamber of Commerce, what she thinks of the new Amazon wind farm going up in her county, and she’ll tell you:
“Paulding Chamber of Commerce is thrilled to celebrate all of the renewable energy projects that we have going on. These are great ways for us to develop the economic benefits locally, and not only in our county, but the counties around us as well.”
Ask Peggy Emerson, Executive Director of the Paulding Chamber of Commerce, what she thinks of the new Amazon wind farm going up in her county, and she’ll tell you:
“Paulding Chamber of Commerce is thrilled to celebrate all of the renewable energy projects that we have going on. These are great ways for us to develop the economic benefits locally, and not only in our county, but the counties around us as well.”
That’s how she put it in a video recently released by Amazon about the project that is now going up in Paulding County and expected to begin operations in May 2017.
Her enthusiasm about wind energy comes for a good reason: The Amazon Wind Farm is estimated to reflect an investment of $175 to $200 million a year in this small northwest Ohio community.
Said Paulding County Commissioner Roy Klopfenstein: “On a county level, we’ve been able to give our employees raises, the school systems have been able to add instructors, and after construction, I know of no township road that isn’t in better condition after they’ve left.”
Neighboring Van Wert County has experienced similar successes with Iberdrola’s Blue Creek Wind Farm, which began commercial operation in 2012 and delivers $2 million a year in new revenue for schools and a steady stream of income for farmers.
Van Wert Area Chamber CEO Susan Munroe has called wind a “cash crop” that reliably pays year after year.
Amazon is also planning wind farms in North Carolina and Indiana. Watch the video about the Paulding County project here: https://youtu.be/hoi4YTNBz1k.
Ohio Chambers Talk Wind Energy During Capitol Visit
From a Columbus suburb (home to a new wind-powered Amazon data center) to the small village of Paulding (where a new wind farm will begin generating electricity in 2017) local chamber leaders trekked to Ohio’s capitol this month to tell Gov. Kasich and lawmakers how their communities have benefited from wind energy.
From a Columbus suburb (home to a new wind-powered Amazon data center) to the small village of Paulding (where a new wind farm will begin generating electricity in 2017) local chamber leaders trekked to Ohio’s capitol this month to tell Gov. Kasich and lawmakers how their communities have benefited from wind energy.
“For businesses, school districts, and taxpayers in rural communities like ours, wind power is an absolute blessing,” said Peggy Emerson, Executive Director of the Paulding Chamber of Commerce.
“Wind energy has been one of the biggest investments in Ohio and has the potential to contribute much more to Ohio’s future economic prosperity,” said Susan Munroe, President and CEO of the Van Wert Area Chamber of Commerce. “We want to work with legislators to encourage further investment and job growth created with wind energy development.”
To date, wind energy has resulted in investments of more than $775 million in Ohio. This new “cash crop” delivers significant tax benefits to schools and other institutions, income to landowners and local supply chain businesses while supporting county services in communities able to host these wind farms.
This was the second visit by local chamber leaders to the state’s capitol in the past year. In a related trend, a growing number of businesses have encouraged lawmakers to establish reasonable “setback” provisions, which determine how far a wind turbine must be situated from the nearest property line.
In 2014, the Ohio legislature tripled the required distance for turbines — resulting in a near moratorium on wind farm development and investment. Meanwhile, corporations such as Amazon have announced increased demand for wind energy to power data centers in the state. And the Toledo-based Owens Corning in 2015 signed the largest wind power purchase agreement by an industrial company in the world—but had to source wind energy from Texas.
Amazon Wireless Services, Panasonic, Apex Clean Energy, First Solar, and other businesses also sent a letter to Gov. Kasich this month encouraging more reasonable rules.
The local chamber leaders took a more personal approach, sharing their stories in meetings with the Governor’s Office; Speaker Cliff Rosenberger’s Office, a half-dozen representatives, including Rep. Shaffer, Chair of the House Public Utilities Commission; and Senators Cliff Hite and Jay Hottinger.
Pictured above from left to right: Susan Munroe, President & CEO, Van Wert Area Chamber of Commerce; Former Ohio Rep. Jim Hoops; Eric Germann, President, Lincolnview Schools; Peggy Emerson, Executive Director, Paulding Chamber of Commerce; Brian Dicken, VP of Advocacy & Public Policy, Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce.
Clean Energy: A Hot Topic at Annual Ohio Chamber Conference
Chamber leaders demonstrated interest in state policies that support clean energy development. When asked in an informal survey if they agreed with Gov. Kasich’s recent comment that it is “unacceptable” for Ohio to maintain a freeze on renewable energy and energy efficiency standards, 90 percent of chamber leaders said yes.
“Igniting Chambers for the Future” was the theme of the meeting of Chamber of Commerce Executives of Ohio last month—and clean energy was one hot topic.
Sen. Portman’s Office kicked off the lunchtime speakers by talking about the economic benefits of energy efficiency and the Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act.
“This bill helps give employers more tools to save money,” Sen. Portman’s General Counsel Stephen White told chamber leaders. “It incentivizes private sector ideas while making the U.S. government adopt energy-saving measures.”
Chamber leaders also demonstrated interest in state policies that support clean energy development. When asked in an informal survey if they agreed with Gov. Kasich’s recent comment that it is “unacceptable” for Ohio to maintain a freeze on renewable energy and energy efficiency standards, 90 percent of chamber leaders said yes.
Table-to-table speed-meeting sessions followed in which Van Wert Chamber CEO Susan Munroe shared the many ways that wind energy has benefited her community.
“Wind development brings $7 million in new tax revenue—100 percent of which stays in Van Wert,” Munroe said. “Wind development brings $2 million a year to our schools, and $4 million cash crop to local farmers.”
On day two, leaders gathered for a special Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy session to learn more about the economic opportunities of clean energy.
“Energy efficiency has an immediate return on investment,” said Nicole Stika, Senior Director Energy Services for the Council of Smaller Enterprises (COSE). “As soon as you flip the switch, you see savings.” COSE, part of the Greater Cleveland Partnership, offers programs to help chambers and members save on energy upgrades and costs.
More Chamber Leaders Support Wind Energy
Citing what some have called the “staggering” economic benefits of wind energy, a growing number of local chamber of commerce leaders across the nation have publicly support wind projects in their communities over the past year.
Citing what some have called the “staggering” economic benefits of wind energy, a growing number of local chamber of commerce leaders across the nation have publicly support wind projects in their communities over the past year.
For example:
In South Carolina: Marc Jordan president and CEO of the North Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Bureau last week reported that an offshore wind development project in his community could result in $17 million in annual economic development and hundreds of new jobs.
“We can also begin to factor in utility costs that are projected to continue to rise over the next few years and into the future,” he wrote. “And as these monthly power bills increase and technology closes the gap on wind as a lower cost option, this form of renewable energy just makes sense.” (More.)
In Ohio: More than a dozen chamber presidents, economic development officials, and others signed a public statement in November supporting wind energy. They cited Iberdrola’s $600 million Blue Creek Wind Farm project that pays $2 million annually in local taxes and nearly as much in landowner lease payments. (Later this month, Apex Clean Energy is also expected to celebrate the ribbon-cutting on their development office for a $800-900 million Long Prairie Wind farm project in Van Wert.)
“We have seen wind energy deliver extraordinary economic benefits to several Ohio communities. We know more communities could benefit from wind energy,” they wrote. (More.)
And in Michigan, local chamber VP Chad Gainor from the windy “Thumb” region of the state urged policymakers to increase support of renewable energy business—and encouraged more chamber leaders to speak up for clean energy. In a letter to the editor published by The Huron Daily Tribuneand testimony to the state legislature, he wrote:
“Investing in efficient, renewable energy,” he wrote, “will build upon our manufacturing strength and skill, allow us to retool our factories, attract growing companies and jobs to Michigan, encourage innovation, and put Michigan workers back on the job.” (More.)
With the U.S. Department of Labor having recently forecast wind turbine technicians to be the fastest growing occupation in the country—and growing demand for renewables from major corporations—look for support from local chamber leaders to continue in the year ahead.
Top 10 Featured Chambers in 2015
Want to know which chambers of commerce led the way in driving the economic development benefits of clean energy in 2015?
They spanned the nation—from Massachusetts, North Carolina, and Florida to Ohio, Kansas, Michigan and Utah and many other states—in their support of important projects, policies, and programs. Here are some of our favorites.
Want to know which chambers of commerce led the way in driving the economic development benefits of clean energy in 2015?
They spanned the nation—from Massachusetts, North Carolina, and Florida to Ohio, Kansas, Michigan and Utah and many other states—in their support of important projects, policies, and programs.
In fact, we had a hard time choosing our “Top 10” this year. But here are some of our favorites:
Cleveland Chamber Launches Innovative Leasing Program
COSE is taking another great leap forward in helping local businesses maximize the economic development opportunities of energy efficiency. In collaboration with the Institute for Market Transformation and Cleveland 2030, COSE has introduced a novel leasing program that increases smart commercial lease solutions for building owners and tenants to invest in—and benefit from—energy efficiency in the City of Cleveland.
As the small business arm of the Cleveland Partnership—one of the largest metropolitan chambers of commerce in the nation—the Council of Small Enterprises (COSE) has long recognized the value of helping its member businesses save money through energy efficiency.
Since 1999, COSE has helped companies reduce their energy consumption, negotiate lower energy rates, and improve their bottom lines. In 2014 alone, it helped member businesses save $4 million through utility rebates and reduce overall energy use by 54 million kilowatt hours.
Now COSE is taking another great leap forward in helping local businesses maximize the economic development opportunities of energy efficiency. In collaboration with the Institute for Market Transformation and Cleveland 2030, COSE has introduced a novel leasing program that increases smart commercial lease solutions for building owners and tenants to invest in—and benefit from—energy efficiency in the City of Cleveland.
“Our ultimate goal is to transform our downtown and offer both landlords and tenants a positive return on energy efficient investment,” said Nicole Stika, COSE’s Senior Director of Energy Services. “This is a critically important conversation, and it needs to start somewhere. The chamber is the ideal place to do that.”
COSE introduced this new high performance lease program in November at a roundtable discussion that focused on how to use leasing terms to encourage behaviors that reduce energy use in buildings and save money for owners and tenants.
It is a breakthrough solution for the lack of mutually beneficial incentives for building owners and tenants to reduce energy use. If a tenant pays for energy use, the landlord has little incentive to invest in efficient equipment. At the same time, since the tenant does not own the lighting, heating, cooling and ventilation systems, they have no incentive (or ability) to invest in efficiency upgrades. The result is that neither party takes the initiative to perform energy-saving improvements. In commercial rental properties, this “split incentive” problem and lack of tenant engagement strategies frequently limits the adoption of energy efficiency solutions.
In what could be a model for the nation, energy aligned leases overcome this obstacle by establishing incentives, fostering information sharing, and encouraging landlords and tenants to collaborate on the efficient use of energy and other resources.
Cincinnati Chamber Ferrets Out Opportunities to Save Energy
The Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber of Commerce chose the city’s famed zoo and botanical garden as host of its recent 2014 Energy Summit, recognizing and highlighting the zoo’s decisions in the last several years to make energy efficiency and innovation a central part of its facilities and structures planning.
Michael Pahutski, the chairman of the chamber’s Energy and Environment Committee, praised the zoo’s work in energy innovation and said that it was in many ways a model for how businesses large and small can save money on energy.
Cincinnati Chamber Hosts Energy Summit to Help Member Companies Save Money on Energy Bills
The Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber of Commerce chose the city’s famed zoo and botanical garden as host of its recent 2014 Energy Summit, recognizing and highlighting the zoo’s decisions in the last several years to make energy efficiency and innovation a central part of its facilities and structures planning.
Michael Pahutski, the chairman of the chamber’s Energy and Environment Committee, praised the zoo’s work in energy innovation and said that it was in many ways a model for how businesses large and small can save money on energy.
“The zoo has done a terrific job of ferreting out – pun intended – opportunities to save energy,” Pahutski said. “From lighting to HVAC to thermal storage, the zoo has rolled over energy savings to new energy projects, leveraging utility energy efficiency incentives to make the most of their EE budget.”
Other speakers at the summit included Jim Henning, the State President of Duke Energy Ohio-Kentucky, and Andy Holzhauser, Chief Executive Officer of the Greater Cincinnati Energy Alliance, a regional not-for-profit that seeks to reduce the barriers to investment in energy efficiency.
Pahutski said the summit was designed to help chamber members save money on their energy bills. “We have such a complex energy environment in Ohio that just understanding the options available to customers can be daunting,” he said. “We hope the Energy Summit helped Chamber members navigate this environment to find the best solutions for their businesses.”
This week, the City of Cincinnati is the site of the annual conference of the American Chamber of Commerce Executives, a gathering of thousands of chamber executives from around the country. Pahutski, who is also a regional director for large account management at Duke Energy, commended the role that local chambers can play, particularly when it comes to energy.
“Energy involves a complex, evolving marketplace and chambers can help their member companies best take advantage of available technologies, commercial offerings and funding sources to optimally manage their energy spend,” he said.