Snohomish County PUD
Encyclopedia
Snohomish County Public Utility District is a public utility providing power to 320,000 customers in Snohomish County and on Camano Island
, Washington. It provides water service to over 20,000 customers in the northeast section of the Snohomish County.
The utility is the second largest public utility in the Pacific Northwest and the 12th largest in the United States. It is the largest of 28 PUDs in the state of Washington. The PUD is the largest utility customer of the Bonneville Power Administration
, a major wholesale marketer of energy in the Western United States.
The utility is one of the leaders in tidal
and geothermal
energy research in the Pacific Northwest, both of which are clean, reliable and plentiful in the region. In 2010, the utility received $10 million in Federal funding towards its pilot tidal project. Other energy comes from renewable hydroelectric
sources, co-generation projects fueled by biogas
and biomass
and wind energy
projects. The utility started offering incentives, loans and other resources for small-scale solar installations in spring 2009.
Snohomish County PUD has developed and led regional conservation programs for more than 25 years. The cumulative savings equal more than 100 average-megawatts, enough to serve about 70,000 homes. The utility has weatherized more than 60,000 homes, recycled 23,000 older, energy-wasting refrigerators and freezers, and sold more than 3.8 million compact fluorescent lights
at discounted prices through a retail network. In 2009, the utility set its record for conservation by saving 70 million kilowatts of electricity.
In 2005, the PUD uncovered audio tapes revealing that Enron
energy traders were intentionally manipulating the market during the Western U.S. energy crisis
by encouraging suppliers to shut down plants to perform unnecessary maintenance.
7% - Wind Energy Purchases
5% - PUD-owned Hydroelectric Projects
4% - Cogeneration, Landfill Gas and Biomass
Bonneville Power Administration provides the bulk of the PUD’s energy. BPA markets wholesale electricity from 31 federal hydroelectric projects in the Columbia River Basin, one non-federal nuclear plant and several other small non-federal plants. BPA, headquartered in Portland, Oregon, is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of Energy.
The PUD purchases wind energy from the Wheat Field Wind Project, and the Hay Canyon Wind Project, both located in north central Oregon, along the Columbia River Gorge. The utility will receive about 60 average-megawatts from these facilities, starting in spring 2009.
The Henry M. Jackson Hydroelectric Project, which began operating in 1984, is located in the Sultan River Basin. The hydroelectric generating facility produces about 48 average-megawatts, or about 4 percent of the PUD’s power needs. In addition to generating enough power for 35,800 homes using a clean renewable resource, the project also provides recreation, enhances fish and wildlife habitats, provides an element of flood control and assures an abundance of clean drinking water. The utility is developing several additional small, low-impact hydroelectric facilities for energy generation in its service area.
The PUD also receives power from the Everett Cogeneration Project built at Kimberly-Clark Corporation’s plant on the Everett waterfront. This project converts wood-waste into steam for Kimberly-Clark’s paper-making business and generates enough electricity for about 21,000 homes. The PUD receives energy from another biomass project at the Hampton Lumber Mill in Darrington, Washington.
In addition, the PUD purchases energy from the Klickitat PUD Landfill Gas Project in Eastern Washington. It supplies the PUD with about 5 megawatts of electricity – enough to power about 3,500 homes. The project captures methane from decomposing garbage to generate electricity.
The PUD has sold a portion of the environmental attributes to fund the utility's renewable energy and R&D projects.
Camano Island
Camano Island is a large island in the Possession Sound portion of Puget Sound, located in Island County, Washington, between Whidbey Island and the mainland. The body of water separating Whidbey Island and Camano Island is called Saratoga Passage. Camano Island is separated from mainland...
, Washington. It provides water service to over 20,000 customers in the northeast section of the Snohomish County.
The utility is the second largest public utility in the Pacific Northwest and the 12th largest in the United States. It is the largest of 28 PUDs in the state of Washington. The PUD is the largest utility customer of the Bonneville Power Administration
Bonneville Power Administration
The Bonneville Power Administration is an American federal agency based in the Pacific Northwest. BPA was created by an act of Congress in 1937 to market electric power from the Bonneville Dam located on the Columbia River and to construct facilities necessary to transmit that power...
, a major wholesale marketer of energy in the Western United States.
The utility is one of the leaders in tidal
Tidal power
Tidal power, also called tidal energy, is a form of hydropower that converts the energy of tides into useful forms of power - mainly electricity....
and geothermal
Geothermal power
Geothermal energy is thermal energy generated and stored in the Earth. Thermal energy is the energy that determines the temperature of matter. Earth's geothermal energy originates from the original formation of the planet and from radioactive decay of minerals...
energy research in the Pacific Northwest, both of which are clean, reliable and plentiful in the region. In 2010, the utility received $10 million in Federal funding towards its pilot tidal project. Other energy comes from renewable hydroelectric
Hydroelectricity
Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...
sources, co-generation projects fueled by biogas
Biogas
Biogas typically refers to a gas produced by the biological breakdown of organic matter in the absence of oxygen. Organic waste such as dead plant and animal material, animal dung, and kitchen waste can be converted into a gaseous fuel called biogas...
and biomass
Biomass
Biomass, as a renewable energy source, is biological material from living, or recently living organisms. As an energy source, biomass can either be used directly, or converted into other energy products such as biofuel....
and wind energy
Wind power
Wind power is the conversion of wind energy into a useful form of energy, such as using wind turbines to make electricity, windmills for mechanical power, windpumps for water pumping or drainage, or sails to propel ships....
projects. The utility started offering incentives, loans and other resources for small-scale solar installations in spring 2009.
Snohomish County PUD has developed and led regional conservation programs for more than 25 years. The cumulative savings equal more than 100 average-megawatts, enough to serve about 70,000 homes. The utility has weatherized more than 60,000 homes, recycled 23,000 older, energy-wasting refrigerators and freezers, and sold more than 3.8 million compact fluorescent lights
Compact fluorescent lamp
A compact fluorescent lamp , also called compact fluorescent light, energy-saving light, and compact fluorescent tube, is a fluorescent lamp designed to replace an incandescent lamp; some types fit into light fixtures formerly used for incandescent lamps...
at discounted prices through a retail network. In 2009, the utility set its record for conservation by saving 70 million kilowatts of electricity.
History
The Snohomish County Public Utility District is a municipal corporation of the State of Washington, formed by a majority vote of the people on November 3, 1936. It started as a water utility on January 17, 1946. The PUD began operating as an electric utility on September 1, 1949.In 2005, the PUD uncovered audio tapes revealing that Enron
Enron
Enron Corporation was an American energy, commodities, and services company based in Houston, Texas. Before its bankruptcy on December 2, 2001, Enron employed approximately 22,000 staff and was one of the world's leading electricity, natural gas, communications, and pulp and paper companies, with...
energy traders were intentionally manipulating the market during the Western U.S. energy crisis
California electricity crisis
The California electricity crisis, also known as the Western U.S. Energy Crisis of 2000 and 2001 was a situation in which California had a shortage of electricity caused by market manipulations and illegal shutdowns of pipelines by Texas energy consortiums...
by encouraging suppliers to shut down plants to perform unnecessary maintenance.
PUD electricity supply
85% - Bonneville Power Administration7% - Wind Energy Purchases
5% - PUD-owned Hydroelectric Projects
4% - Cogeneration, Landfill Gas and Biomass
Bonneville Power Administration provides the bulk of the PUD’s energy. BPA markets wholesale electricity from 31 federal hydroelectric projects in the Columbia River Basin, one non-federal nuclear plant and several other small non-federal plants. BPA, headquartered in Portland, Oregon, is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of Energy.
The PUD purchases wind energy from the Wheat Field Wind Project, and the Hay Canyon Wind Project, both located in north central Oregon, along the Columbia River Gorge. The utility will receive about 60 average-megawatts from these facilities, starting in spring 2009.
The Henry M. Jackson Hydroelectric Project, which began operating in 1984, is located in the Sultan River Basin. The hydroelectric generating facility produces about 48 average-megawatts, or about 4 percent of the PUD’s power needs. In addition to generating enough power for 35,800 homes using a clean renewable resource, the project also provides recreation, enhances fish and wildlife habitats, provides an element of flood control and assures an abundance of clean drinking water. The utility is developing several additional small, low-impact hydroelectric facilities for energy generation in its service area.
The PUD also receives power from the Everett Cogeneration Project built at Kimberly-Clark Corporation’s plant on the Everett waterfront. This project converts wood-waste into steam for Kimberly-Clark’s paper-making business and generates enough electricity for about 21,000 homes. The PUD receives energy from another biomass project at the Hampton Lumber Mill in Darrington, Washington.
In addition, the PUD purchases energy from the Klickitat PUD Landfill Gas Project in Eastern Washington. It supplies the PUD with about 5 megawatts of electricity – enough to power about 3,500 homes. The project captures methane from decomposing garbage to generate electricity.
The PUD has sold a portion of the environmental attributes to fund the utility's renewable energy and R&D projects.