In the Community

American Lung Association

Chugach Electric Association employees recently presented a check for $3,170  to the American Lung Association in Alaska. Local chapter Executive Director, Marge Stoneking, accepted the check from Chugach CEO Lee Thibert and a group of Chugach employees. Each year, Chugach employees pick a local charity to support. The Lung Association’s mission is to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease through education, advocacy, and research.

Community Solar

Chugach has been busy in the community talking to various groups about its upcoming community solar project, named Electron Village. Program manager Sean Skaling talked about the benefits of the project to the recent Alaska Forum on the Environment conference and the Clean Power Happy Hour sponsored at the 49th State Brewery.

Chugach received and is evaluating five proposals to design and build the 500 kilowatt solar facility. Costs and benefits analyses are also being conducted to determine the cost per share, as well as the expected energy output.  Each member who pays to receive a share of the 500-share community solar project will receive 1/500th of the output of the project each month for the project’s 25-year life.  Each share is expected to produce about 1,200 kWh per year on average.  This estimate will be updated when the design is completed. Chugach hopes to start selling shares in March 2018.

Chugach donates hundreds of turkeys to charity

10 local non-profits received holiday delivery

Continuing a long tradition, Chugach Electric Association donated 450 turkeys to 10 local charities as part of its annual community outreach over the holiday season. The turkeys were delivered to the organizations Dec. 12 – 14.

Chugach has donated turkeys to local non-profits as a way to help fill the need for holiday meals and food baskets throughout the local area for the past 16 years. The turkeys are purchased from Carrs/Safeway and distributed to the charities.

“We believe one of our duties as an Alaska business serving Alaskans is to also serve our community as a whole,” said Chugach CEO Lee Thibert. “Member-owned cooperatives work for the sustainable development of their communities, and we are pleased to be able to continue helping out through the holidays again this year.”

The organizations receiving the turkeys included:

  • Bean’s Café
  • Brother Francis Shelter
  • Mabel T. Caverly Center
  • Anchorage Rescue Mission
  • St. Francis House
  • Covenant House
  • AWAIC
  • Food Bank of Alaska
  • Salvation Army
  • Lutheran Social Services

Student conserve energy and win prizes

More than 3,600 students from 131 classrooms in 27 middle and elementary schools around the state participated in the 2017 Power Pledge Challenge, an initiative aimed at helping youth better understand energy use. This year’s campaign covered the largest geographic area of the initiative to date with students competing for regional and statewide prizes. An eighth grade science class from Palmer Junior Middle School is this year’s statewide winner.

Utilities and organizations from Anchorage, Mat-Su Valley, Kenai Peninsula and Juneau hosted the challenge as part of Energy Awareness Month, recognized every year in October. In the Challenge, students completed a hands-on activity from the AK EnergySmart curriculum, learned how to calculate their energy usage and discovered ways to reduce their energy usage at home. Students then conducted an online home energy audit with their families and identified specific actions they would take to use energy more efficiently. Johanna Tennant’s sixth period science class at Palmer Junior Middle School is the 2017 statewide winner.

The class will be awarded a pizza party, energy related classroom materials worth $1,200 and a tour of the Eklutna Generation Station. Four regional winners each earned a pizza party and/or a tour of a local power plant. “This is a good experience for our eighth grade physical science students,” said Tennant, “It gets them thinking about their personal energy consumption and start connecting that to what their families are spending on electricity. It is also a great eye opener to energy cost differences across the state. Thanks to all involved for coming in, teaching students with an engaging lesson, and giving them the opportunity to win a cool field trip!”

The winning classes are:

  • Anchorage Regional Winner: Mitra Shanhazarian’s 6th period class
  • Mears Middle School
  • Juneau Regional Winner: Kevin Hamrick’s 1st period class
  • Floyd Dryden Middle School
  • Kenai Peninsula Regional Winner: Joanna Greene’s 1st period class
  • McNeil Canyon Elementary School
  • Matanuska-Susitna Borough and Eagle River Regional Winner: Brad Kirr’s 3rd period class
  • Gruening Middle School
  • Statewide Winner: Johanna Tennant’s 6th period class
  • Palmer Junior Middle School

The Power Pledge Challenge began in 2012, offering energy presentations to 700 students in the Anchorage area. The now statewide initiative is held through support of Alaska Energy Authority, Alaska Energy Light & Power, Alaska Housing Finance Corporation, Chugach Electric Association, ENSTAR Natural Gas Co., Homer Electric Association, Matanuska Electric Association, Municipal Light and Power, and Renewable Energy Alaska Project.

Photo courtesy of Tim Leach