Rural Missouri - September 2011 - (Page 4)

C O M M E N T S AECI adds more wind power “Devoted to the rural way of life” September 2011 Volume 63 / Number 9 Jim McCarty, editor jmccarty@ruralmissouri.coop Jason Jenkins, managing editor jjenkins@ruralmissouri.coop Heather Berry, associate editor hberry@ruralmissouri.coop Kyle Spradley, field editor kspradley@ruralmissouri.coop Megan Schibi, editorial assistant mschibi@ruralmissouri.coop Mary Davis, production manager mdavis@ruralmissouri.coop Caitlyn Emmett, summer intern cemmett@ruralmissouri.coop Angie Jones-Gerber Dusty Weter Co-op page designers M 150 megawatt deal signed with Wind Capital Group other projects are located near King City, Conception and Rock Port in northwest Missouri. “We are very pleased to be able to provide electricity to Associated Electric and its consumers,” says Ciaran O’Brien, Wind Capital Group chief executive officer. “We’ve had the opportunity to work with them on earlier projects, and we know that they will be a great partner moving forward on Osage County Wind.” Nancy Southworth, Associated’s manager of corporate communications, added, “They continue to bring us projects that make economic sense for co-op consumers who expect reliable, affordable electricity.” Construction is projected to begin early this fall and the project could come on-line as early as June 2012. When complete, the five projects — including Missouri projects Lost Creek, Bluegrass Ridge, Conception and Cow Branch — could produce as much as 450 megawatts. Associated generates electricity from a diverse portfolio that includes coal, natural gas, fuel oil, hydropower and wind energy plants. ore wind power is coming for members of electric cooperatives in Missouri, Iowa and Oklahoma thanks to a recent agreement signed between Associated Electric Cooperative (AECI) and the Wind Capital Group. Associated has agreed to purchase 150 megawatts of electricity from the St. Louis-based wind energy developer’s new Osage County Wind Energy Facility. Wind Capital’s latest project is located west of Pawhuska, Okla. It has a non-contiguous footprint of 120 acres. During the life of the project, Osage County Wind is expected to provide more than $30 million in property tax revenues to the county, long-term lease payments to landowners and $1.5 million in regional business activity during its construction. In addition, Wind Capital says the project will create 250 on-site construction jobs and 12 to 15 permanent positions during its operation. This marks the fifth agreement between Wind Capital Group and Associated, which supplies wholesale power to electric cooperatives in Missouri, Iowa and Oklahoma. The Eye on efficiency Power use monitors can help estimate your energy use currently using, how much you’re paying per hour for that hen buying groceries, it’s easy to stay within power, and the highest amount you’ve spent on energy budget — simply add up the price tags for during the past 24 hours. By turning appliances on and off, each item in your cart. it’s easy to see the impact each device makes on your elecNow imagine the same principle for your tric bill. monthly electric bill. By using a power monitor, you can “Since it tells me every hour how much power I’m using, better estimate the “price tag”— the amount of energy conI can estimate what my power bill will be for the month,” sumed by your refrigerator, washer and dryer, light bulbs, explains Bill Sansom, chairman of the Tennessee Valley air conditioner, laptop and more. Authority, an agency created by Congress to develop hydroElectric use monitors, such as P3 International’s Kill A electric resources throughout the Tennessee River Valley. Watt monitor series or Blue Line Innovation’s Power MoniSansom uses a Blue Line Innovations’ monitor at home. tor, record how much electricity an individual appliance or “Monitors force you to consider, ‘What am I running that I group of appliances consumes. Although every product is don’t have to run?’” different, monitors generally show the amount of energy Power monitors are handy for determining whether it’s being used in kilowatt-hours and how that calculates into time to replace an aging, inefficient appliance with a new dollars and cents. one. For example, you can plug a refrigerator into a Kill A Generally, monitors include the national average kiloWatt P4400, and the screen shows how much energy it’s watt-hour rate — currently 11.5 cents. However, you can drawing. You could save $100 per year or more on your program the unit with your co-op’s residential rate to keep utility bills by upgrading from a 1980s refrigerator to a new results accurate. Energy Star-qualified refrigerator. There are different monitor styles. The Kill A Watt series Monitors can be purchased at home improvement stores, features three main models. The original, P4400, gets placed online and, in some areas, borrowed from local libraries. between a power outlet and an individual appliance. EnerHowever, installing one of these devices is only one small gy use is tracked for that one appliance only. The P4200 part of any effort to save energy. features multiple plugs (up to eight) for outlets throughout You also should consider replacing incandescent light a home, all connecting wirelessly to a central unit that bulbs with compact fluorescent lamps or setting the therdisplays combined energy use and costs. The PS-10 unit mostat back when no one is at home. You can find more doubles as a surge protection power strip. An electric use ways to save at www.TogetherWeSave.com. display on one side of the 10-outlet power strip shows how much energy every item plugged into it consumes. If you don’t want to buy individual outlet devices, Blue Line Innovations’ Power Monitor boasts a sensor that connects directly to your home’s meter. A wireless monitor stays in the house, providing a birds-eye view of your photo courtesy of P3 International energy use. The monitor shows The Kill A Watt PS-10 is both an energy monitor and a surge protector. The display shows energy how much energy you’re consumption for each item plugged into the strip. USPS 473-000 ISSN 0164-8578 Copyright 2011, Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives. Call for reprint rights. Rural Missouri is published monthly by the Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives. Barry Hart, executive vice president. Individual subscription rate: $9 per year or $21 for three years, taxes and postage included. Group rate for members of participating RECs $3.99, taxes and postage included. Delivery as specified by subscriber. If not specified, delivery will be by periodical class mail at subscriber’s expense. Periodical Class postage paid at Jefferson City, MO, and additional mailing offices. W www.ruralmissouri.coop www.facebook.com/ruralmissouri Postmasters: Send address changes to Rural Missouri, P.O. Box 1645, Jefferson City, MO 65102. Subscribers: Report change of address to your local cooperative. Do not send change of address to Rural Missouri. Advertising standards: Advertising published in Rural Missouri is accepted on the premise that the merchandise and services offered are accurately described and sold to customers at the advertised price. Rural Missouri and Missouri’s electric cooperatives do not endorse any products or services advertised herein. Advertising that does not conform to these standards or that is deceptive or misleading is never knowingly accepted by this publication. Advertising information: mdavis@ruralmissouri.coop 573-659-3400 National Advertising Representative: National Country Market; 611 S. Congress St., Suite 504; Austin, TX 78704 573-659-3400 Member, Missouri Association of Publications and Missouri Press Association P.O. Box 1645 Jefferson City, MO 65102 573-659-3423 info@ruralmissouri.coop Rural Missouri Find us on 4 WWW.RURALMISSOURI.COOP http://www.ruralmissouri.coop http://www.facebook.com/ruralmissouri http://www.TogetherWeSave.com http://WWW.RURALMISSOURI.COOP

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Rural Missouri - September 2011

Rural Missouri - September 2011
Table of Contents
Comments
Columns
The story behind the stories
Hemp bales and history
Bear necessities
Outdoors
Out of the Way Eats
Open up and say ‘neigh!’
Back to the one-room school
Hearth and Home
News Briefs
The Missouri artist
Marketplace
Around Missouri
Neighbors
Just4Kids

Rural Missouri - September 2011