From the installation in August of self-contained solar lights in the main parking lot of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) to its campaign to increase public awareness to the benefits of using energy efficient consumer electronics and more efficient lighting, SCE is changing the way people think about energy conservation.

Reinforcing this momentum, this September the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) approved a three-year, $1.3 billion budget for energy efficiency programs at SCE and the states other investor owned utilities. The overall budget, which spans 2010 to 2012, is the largest commitment to energy efficiency by any state. SCE’s portion, 1.2 billion, will allow us to significantly enhance our already industry leading energy efficiency programs. And SCE is not only asking consumers to be more energy efficient – the company is finding creative ways to implement energy efficient technologies itself.

Solar Lighting at SONGS
At SONGS, SCE installed 60 LED (light emitting diode) lights in the main parking lot of the facility. The new lighting replaced traditional high pressure, sodium vapor lights that drew from the electrical grid, said Galen Dean, project manager for the Customer Experience Management Team’s Third-Party Products and Services group. SCE collaborated with Canada’s Carmanah Technologies to design and implement the solar lighting plan.

“We figured if their lighting worked well in Canada, where they have limited sunshine, it would work well in Southern California, where we have an abundance of sunlight,” Dean said.

With a five-day energy backup supply, the lighting can stand nearly a week without sunlight, Dean said, noting that in Southern California, there is little chance of that occurring. Each pole is equipped with a battery at its base that is charged each day by sunlight and which powers the lamps at night.

Crews worked 12 hours a day, seven days a week to complete the project ahead of a Sept. 1 deadline. They were under unusual constraints because the project had to be completed in time for an influx of 2,000 additional employees charged with shutting down and replacing two of the facility’s steam powered generators. Installation of the lights followed a successful pilot program earlier this year in which six solar powered lights were installed at SONGS Mesa security gate.

Catalina Island Efficient Lighting Expo
Catalina Island residents turned en masse Columbus Day weekend to buy more than 10,000 compact florescent light bulbs and exchange nearly 2,000 aged lamps in exchange for more energy efficient ones.

The event was conceived by the Catalina Sustainability Action Group – an organization that includes SCE, the Catalina Island Conservancy, the city of Avalon and the Catalina Island Chamber of Commerce, among others – and coordinated by local public affairs (LPA) Region Manager Ben Harvey, with the help of the SCE Catalina Island Operation team and Danny Thomason, a safety and environmental specialist from TDBU. The expo offered Catalina customers a full lamp exchange – even for nonworking lamps – of up to 10 lamps per household, plus a low cost four for $1 CFL sale.

The goal, said Harvey, was to “get everyone on the island to switch out their old, inefficient lighting with new energy efficient lighting.”

CFL’s use about a quarter of the energy that incandescent bulbs do and can last up to 10 years. Energy on Catalina does not come from the electrical grid but from fossil fueled powered generators, Harvey explained, so the energy savings and environmental impact can be significant.

As part of the expo, Business Customer Division (BCD) representative Mi-Ling McFall visited island businesses and replaced 92 old, lighted exit signs with new energy efficient LED versions. While she was there, McFall also took orders for energy efficient retrofits at many businesses, and BCD representative Barry Sutton assisted with the lamp exchange efforts at a number of municipal buildings.

Customer turnout for the expo was so great that the SCE team ran out of lamps and bulbs on day one of the planned three-day event. Disaster loomed. But to the rescue came the Catalina Flying Boats, an island-based air freight company featuring World War II era DC3 cargo planes, which saved the day by agreeing to make re-stocking runs to the mainland for only the cost of fuel.

Though the SCE teams planned to exchange 1,000 lamps and sell 3,000 CFL’s, they wound up exchanging more than 1,800 lamps and selling more than 10,000 CFL’s.

In all, the lamp exchange will result in savings of 8.59 kW and nearly 109,000 kWh. Switching out 92 exit signs is expected to save nearly 37,000 kWh, and the scheduled retrofits will total more than 100,000 in kWh savings. All of these savings are expected to result from this one, highly successful event. Overall, the expo “generated a huge amount of goodwill and interest in Edison,” Harvey said.

The event, held at Avalon City Hall, was such a success that the Catalina Sustainability Action Group is planning a holiday light exchange before Christmas, Harvey said.

Fall Campaign Helps Save Energy with Consumer Electronics

Vampires lurk not only in Transylvania and in the minds of frightened children, but also in electronic devices when they are switched off. Common energy vampires include power adapters that lack power off switches and other electronic devices such as televisions, DVR’s, personal computers and monitors that generate power in stand-by mode.

The Fall Consumer electronics campaign kicked off this month to educate the public about the energy and money they can save by keeping tabs on “Energy Vampires” and by using ENERGY STAR©-qualified electronic devices. To get the energy stamp, ENERGY STAR consumer electronics must meet strtict energy efficiency guidelines set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

“SCE is campaigning to increase public awareness of energy vampires and the energy savings that can be generated by using only ENERGY STAR consumer electronics,” said Gene Rodriguez, director, Energy Efficiency.

The campaign includes direct marketing to customers through radio and television advertising and features an on-air energy quiz that provides listeners the opportunity to learn and then test their knowledge about energy savings with consumer electronics. Fore example, most customers are aware of how to save money with bug ticket items like refrigerators and home heating and cooling systems, but they be unaware of the money and energy to be saved with consumer electronics. The savings can be substantial, even for just one type of electronic device.

“If all computers sold in the United States met the ENERGY STAR requirements, the savings in energy costs would grow to more than $2 billion each year and result in a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to removing three million vehicles from the road, said Rodriguez.
An Energy-Efficient Future.

Its an exciting time for SCE and our customers.

“We are taking bold steps and creating new ways to be smarter about how we generate, deliver and use electricity,” said Rodriguez. “Strong regulatory support, our awareness campaigns and a broad portfolio of programs and services will provide the tools for our customers to be more efficient energy consumers and change the way we operate as a company. We can all be smarter consumers of electricity and pave the way for a cleaner future for everyone.

Energy Vampires
To identify products that draw stand-by power, look for these features:
• An external power supply
• Remote Control
• Continuous display (including an LED)
• Battery charging capabilities

Examples of consumer electronic devices that can consume standby power:
• TV’s and set top boxes
• Computers, digital monitors and printers
• VCR’s, DVD players and some audio systems
• Some home video gane consoles