Second Nature™ News: Spring 2008

In the Spring 2008 issue:

Be a Second Nature Advocate!

As a Second Nature participant, you're making a measurable, positive difference in the environment every day. In fact, during 2007, the Second Nature program supported more than 49 million kilowatthours of clean, renewable energy. Thank you!

Have you thought about telling friends and family about your participation and inviting them to join? It's an easy way to greatly multiply your impact! People are interested; they're increasingly concerned about the environment, and most will be happy to learn about such a simple and effective way to make a difference. Every single household counts.

Here's some information to help you explain how the Second Nature program works. Following are a few questions we think you might be asked:

Who can participate?

Any Alliant Energy electric customer (residential or business) in Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin can join the voluntary pricing program.

How does it work?

You pay a bit more for your energy each month, with your contribution covering the added expense of purchasing the renewable energy used in the program. As Alliant Energy brings more renewable sources into the energy pool, it displaces electricity that would otherwise come from fossil fuels.

Alliant Energy reads your electric meter to measure the kilowatt-hours (kWh) you use each month and then uses your Second Nature participation level to figure out how much renewable energy is required. After tallying all of the participants' numbers, we purchase enough renewable energy to meet the total green requirement.

That means every Second Nature customer directly increases demand for renewable energy and reduces demand from fossil fuels.

What's required of a participant?

No special equipment or supplies are needed, and you don't need to change anything you do - just sign up. Let Alliant Energy know you'd like to participate and at what level. The choices are: 25 percent participation, 50 percent participation, or 100 percent of your monthly electrical usage. To enroll, visit alliantenergy.com/secondnature or call 1-800-ALLIANT (255-4268).

How much does it cost?

Although clean, renewable energy is more expensive to produce than energy generated by fossil fuels, it is more affordable than most people think. If you used 600 kilowatt-hours per month at the 25 percent level, for example, your added cost for the month would be $3; at the 50 percent level it would be $6; and at the 100 percent level it would be $12. Anyone interested can calculate his or her approximate monthly Second Nature contribution at alliantenergy.com/secondnature .

Is it really worth it?

Yes! Each new participant enables Alliant Energy to buy more earth-friendly renewable energy. When an average household signs up at the 100 percent level, the annual carbon dioxide (CO2) emission reduction is equivalent to not driving one car approximately 20,000 miles, or planting more than 1.5 acres of pine trees! If a business signs up for $16 a month - the same annual CO2 emission reduction is achieved.

Who participates in the program?

Right now there are over 14,000 residential and 1,800 business customers participating in Second Nature.

Where does the renewable energy sources that Second Nature purchases come from?

In 2007, over 86 percent of the renewable energy purchased by Second Nature was generated by wind farms in Iowa and Minnesota. Approximately 0.2 percent came from a solar power project in Iowa, while over 11 percent was generated by burning methane gas from a landfill in Wisconsin and 2 percent from a dairy farm anaerobic digester.

Best of all, the Second Nature program is Green-e certified by the non-profit Center for Resource Solutions, which provides an objective standard for customers to compare renewable energy options and ensures that consumers get what they pay for.

Next time a friend or family member talks about our dependence on fossil fuels and foreign oil or the health of the environment, ask if she or he knows about Second Nature!

Jump in with both feet yourself!

We encourage you to increase your participation level, too! By increasing your participation - and spreading the word - you'll know that you're doing the environment and future generations a great service.

A typical Second Nature customer moving from the 25 percent level to the 50 percent level will pay an average of only $4 more per month. If your budget allows, consider increasing your level of participation.

To change your participation level, e-mail secondnature@alliantenergy.com or call 1-800-ALLIANT (255-4268).

Green Information Sources

Whether you're looking to weatherize your old house, build a new home using green products, or learn about eco-friendly lifestyles, there are myriad resources for you. In this new column we'll offer some suggestions for books, Web sites, and events that might be of interest. You're welcome to share your favorites - send your recommendations to secondnature@alliantenergy.com so we can include them in future issues.

Web sites

  • Building Green.com is an independent publishing company that provides news and information about building green and offers publications about green design, including Environmental Building News, the GreenSpec directory of green products, and the Building Green Suite of online tools. Visit them at buildinggreen.com .
  • The U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy site will interest those who like to keep on top of government alternative energy programs. It includes news as well as general information about energy resources and popular energy topics, such as tankless water heaters and solar energy technologies. Visit eere.energy.gov .
  • The World Environmental Organization educates the public about a wide variety of environmental topics. It includes a terrific recycling database (explaining how to reuse everything from your garden hose to refrigerators), and it lists the “Top 1,000 Web Sites” related to the environment, broken down into topic categories such as renewable energy, sustainable growth, climate change, and telecommuting. Visit their site at world.org .

Books

  • The Home Energy Diet: How to Save Money by Making your House Energy-Smart , by Paul Scheckel (New Society Publishers, 2005). Part of the Mother Earth News Wiser Living series, this book covers the ways in which your home uses and loses energy, including windows, walls and insulation, hot water, electricity, and heating and air conditioning - and helps readers make informed decisions about improvements. Many of the strategies will also help improve indoor air quality. Personal anecdotes and funny energy misadventures make for fun reading, too.
  • 50 Simple Steps to Save the Earth from Global Warming , by Green Patriot Working Group (Freedom Press, 2008). This accessible little book outlines practical and effective things we can do to move toward a sustainable environment. In it you'll learn how to determine your carbon footprint, plant a rooftop garden, compost your food waste, take an eco-vacation, check your tire pressure, and 46 other things - including buying green energy (but you've got that one covered)!
  • Everything Kids' Environment Book: Learn How You Can Help the Environment - by Getting Involved at School, at Home, or at Play , by Sheri Amsel (Adams Media, 2007). The author takes a fun approach to learning about environmental issues, explaining why the rainforest is important and how animals become extinct. The projects include experiments, like making acid rain to see how it affects plants as well as practical can-do suggestions, such as finding new uses for recycled grocery bags and making a compost pile.

Local news:

  • Better Buildings. On March 5, Alliant Energy honored 13 Iowa schools and businesses at its first annual Energy-Efficient Construction Awards ceremony. The organizations receiving awards utilized Alliant Energy's Commercial New Construction program to achieve energy savings that ranged from 15 percent to 64 percent, surpassing Iowa's building code requirements. The program provides free energy design assistance for new commercial building construction projects, as well as cash incentives.
  • Whispering Willow Wind Farm. Interstate Power and Light Company (IPL), an Alliant Energy company, acquired a 300 megawatt wind farm located in north central Iowa, near Hampton, from Iowa Winds, LLC. The wind farm is adjacent to a 200 megawatt wind farm IPL acquired from Wind Capital Group, LLC in November 2007. The Whispering Willow Wind Farm, which consists of the two recent site acquisitions, has the potential to produce up to 500 megawatts of emissions-free energy when completely developed.
  • Wisconsin Wows. In partnerships with its business and farm customers last year, Wisconsin Power and Light Company (WPL), an Alliant Energy company, completed 192 energy conservation projects. The projects saved enough energy to power more than 7,000 homes, heat another 4,500 residences and remove the equivalent annual greenhouse gas emissions of nearly 12,000 passenger vehicles.
  • Greening of a courthouse. The new Dickson County Courthouse in Iowa includes many energy efficient projects: high-efficiency lighting, LED exit signs, energy-efficient chillers, special occupancy sensors, energy-saving windows, adjustable speed drives for both a cooling tower and for chilled waters, and a high-tech heating, ventilation and air conditioning system. The equipment is saving energy, helping the environment, and keeping the operating cost down for taxpayers.

In the Spotlight

Business Customer: Green Autos

Green Autos is a family-owned business that offers alternative-fueled vehicles. The business opened its doors on August 1, 2007 in Janesville, Wis.

Tim Thompson is the owner of Green Autos, and his son, Chris Thompson, is the general manager. Having been a residential participant in Second Nature since its inception, Tim felt that “Green Autos, by the very nature of what we do, should participate.”

The cars sold at Green Autos are ZENN cars - no-noise, fully electric vehicles that look much like conventional cars. A three-door hatchback, fully enclosed with a steel reinforced body for safety advantage, the ZENN is equipped with front-wheel drive. It's capable of achieving 25 mph - a pace that will keep up with traffic on local streets - and will cover about 35 miles per battery charge. (The battery is 80 percent rechargeable in four hours.) Pricing of this NEV (neighborhood electric vehicle) starts at around $12,500.

NEVs have zero emissions and get 8-12 times the mpg of traditional vehicles. Twenty-three cities in Alliant Energy's Wisconsin service territory have passed ordinances allowing NEVs to be driven on city streets; seven others have ordinances under consideration.

“NEVs, while not for everyone, should be included as a viable alternative means of transportation,” Tim says. “They have zero emissions and get from 8 to 12 times the miles per gallon per dollar when compared against gas cars.” To find out more about the vehicles at Green Autos, visit www.greenautos.com . You'll find photos, full descriptions, and a video of the vehicle being driven. You can also access a list of which cities have passed ordinances permitting NEVS (or are considering ordinances to permit them).

The company extends its environmental awareness throughout its operations. They recycle, with their waste management company providing a recycling container. Sharing heat with another tenant, they work together to establish set backs to use with an installed programmable thermostat. Tim worked with the property management company to identify and correct sources of air filtration - and as a result, they installed a new rear door and new weather stripping, plugged and insulated vent ducts which were no longer used, and disabled an exhaust vent that ran all night, pulling cold air into the space. (The building which houses Green Autos dates back to 1938 and has had many different uses.)

Tim's enthused about environmental education, too. Last summer the company participated in three county fairs, and they spend a great deal of time traveling with one of their new NEV cars to city council meetings, organizations, associations and individuals to educate them on the merits of using alternative forms of transportation. And as the company leased space, he sought approval from landlords and property management firms to participate in the Second Nature program, thereby increasing their awareness of renewable energy options.

From the products they offer to the conscientious operation of their business, to spreading the word about Second Nature, the Thompsons are setting a terrific example of incorporating renewable energy into a business.

Residential Customer: Steve Biedermann

This month we shine our spotlight on residential customer Steve Biedermann of Madison, Wis. Steve's been participating in Second Nature since April 2005. “I decided to join Alliant Energy's Second Nature program because I am very interested in the new technologies being developed to produce power. I view the small additional ‘contribution' on my energy bill as an investment in the future,” he explains.

Steve - who served 20 years in the United States Navy - is particularly concerned hat the fuels we're presently using are finite and that we need to find alternative sources before we deplete those sources. Solar, wind, wave, and thermal all should be investigated for cost-effective power production, he says.

Riding his Harley Davidson and geocaching are Steve's hobbies. Geocaching is an adventure game in which global positioning system (GPS) users share the locations of caches all over the world; using the location coordinates, GPS users typically find the caches, take something from them, leave something behind, and write in the logbook at the site.)

Steve Biedermann, a Second nature participant for the last three years, enjoys walking to Hyde's Mill, a scenic spot near his home in Madison, Wis. He is especially interested in the development of alternative, cost-effective power sources, and looks forward to the day when renewable energy will provide a significant portion of the energy our nation uses.

Kids' Project:

Make a Wind Chime

You can celebrate the wind - and become more aware of when and how strongly it blows - by making and hanging a wind chime. Here are some basic directions, but use your imagination. This is a fun way to use recycled items!

Supplies:

  • Something to hang your items from: a small tree branch, a coat hanger, a dowel, or a metal or wooden ring (available at craft stores).
  • Something for tying: colored string, twine, fishing line, yarn
  • Items to hang on your wind chime: old forks or other kitchen utensils, keys, clean soda cans (leave the tabs tops on), CDs, seashells. Keep in mind that some items will make a great racket while others will make very gentle sounds.

Directions:

  • Prepare your items for hanging. You might want to paint your soda cans, for example.
  • Use your string to tie each item onto your holder. Think about balance if the items are different sizes or weights - putting a heavier item in the center will help keep the wind chime from tipping to one side, for example.
  • Use your string to hang your wind chime where it can catch the wind and you can hear it.

    • You'll notice that your wind chime makes more or less noise, depending upon how windy it is. On a day when it's noisy, more wind can be used to produce energy. Some days you may have to listen carefully - unfortunately, the wind doesn't blow every day!

E-mail or Snail Mail?

Currently, about 700 of our readers receive the Second Nature newsletter electronically. In the recent survey, a number of readers commented that they would like to receive the Second Nature newsletter electronically. If you do, you need to send an e-mail with your request to secondnature@alliantenergy.com . Be sure to include “Second Nature E-Newsletter” in the subject line and remember to add your Alliant Energy account name and service address.

Because some of our readers do not have computers or wish to share the printed version of the newsletter with others, we will continue to produce the Second Nature newsletter in both a print and electronic version.

Recognizing Second Nature Business Participants!

Thanks to the Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin businesses that have joined the Second Nature program. View the list of businesses to see which in your area are supporting renewable energy.

Product Content Label

View the Product Content Label for the Alliant Energy Second Nature Program.