 |
Home | Search | Browse | About IPO | Staff | Links |
|
Home | Search | Browse | About IPO | Staff | Links |
|
Illinois Electric utility deregulation begins At least it begins October 1 for some large commercial and industrial customers of investor-owned utilities in Illinois. Electric cooperatives and municipal utilities, because they are locally owned, have local control and can decide whether or not to enter into the deregulated market based on what is best for their community. Some believe deregulation will have benefits for all customers, others claim it will not help small residential customers. Non-residential customers with electric demand of four megawatts or greater, or who own 10 or more sites that use a total of 9.5 megawatts will begin the phased in schedule this month. On December 31, 2000, all remaining businesses and other non-residential customers will be phased in. Not until May 1, 2002, will residential customers of investor-owned utilities be phased in. EnergySmart Schools Schools today are trying to figure out how to meet ever-increasing demands with limited funds. The EnergySmart Schools program helps schools address that dilemma through better use of energy. EnergySmart Schools is a joint effort of government and private organizations, led by the U.S. Department of Energy. The goals are: to reduce energy costs; use clean energy technology; improve the learning environment with better lighting, temperature control and air quality and increase student, teacher and community awareness of energy and related issues.
With over 110,000 K-12 schools, $6 billion is spent on energy in schools each year. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, these schools can reduce their annual energy consumption 25 percent, leading to savings of $1.5 billion each year. That money could be used to hire 30,000 new teachers or purchase 40 million new text books — not once, but each and every year. A 1995 report by the General Accounting Office estimated that more than 70 percent of schools were built before 1960 and many need major repairs. Nearly 28,000 schools have less-than-adequate heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems and 21,000 have faulty roofs. Unfortunately, many school projects in construction or on the drawing boards fail to adequately address energy issues. For information about EnergySmart resources go www.eren.doe.gov/energysmartschools/help.html. Or call your local electric cooperative for energy saving advice. OCTOBER 1999 • ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING 7 Aquaculture workshop October 9 Interested in starting an aquaculture business? Would you like to diversify your farming operation? Do you like to be involved in something new at the ground floor level? Is surface water an idle resource on your acreage? Learn the ins-and-outs of aquaculture at a workshop sponsored by the Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIUC) Office of Economic and Regional Development (OERD), SIUC Fisheries and Illinois Aquaculture Center, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant Program, Illinois Council on Food and Agricultural Research (C-FAR), and the North Central Regional Aquaculture Center. The one-day workshop will provide information about the many factors to consider before starting an aquaculture enterprise as a full-time business, for supplemental income, or as a hobby. The workshop will include presentations on species, systems, water quality, nutrition, diseases, marketing, and information sources. The workshop will be held Saturday, October 9, 1999, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., at the Dunn-Richmond Economic Development Center in Carbondale, Illinois. Registration is $25 and includes a continental breakfast, lunch, and three-ring binder with aquaculture bulletins and fact sheets. Pre-register by October 1, 1999, to reserve a space. Registration is limited to 100 persons. Unfortunately, a few interested individuals were turned away at the last moment last year. So, please reserve a space early. For further information on the workshop, contact Dan Selock (dselock@siu.edu) or Dr. Sue Kohler (skohler@siu.edu), OERD, Mailcode 6891, SIUC, Carbondale, Illinois, 62901-6891. Or phone (618) 536-4451. Chinese group tours Illinois farms
A group of Chinese government and agri-business leaders from Jilin province in extreme northern China spent a week in central Illinois visiting Illinois Department of Agriculture leaders and the Illinois State Fair, and learning about state government and the Illinois electric cooperative program. The group visited the Association of Illinois Electric Cooperatives (AIEC) in Springfield to learn more about the electric cooperatives and the role they play in American agriculture. Following a briefing session at the AIEC, the group traveled south to the rural Rochester family farm of Jimmy Ayers, president of Rural Electric Convenience Cooperative and secretary of the AIEC board of directors The group learned about modern central Illinois grain farming and marketing during their meeting with Ayers. Following the Ayers' farm tour and lunch, the group traveled by bus to the rural Chandlerville farm of Morris Bell, a director of Menard Electric and the AIEC. The group toured a Havana grain facility and an FS fertilizer plant, as well as the Bell farm fields, where the Chinese got a demonstration of irrigation technology.
Co-ops helping you solve the puzzle When folks have a problem, they often find the best solution by working together. That's what cooperatives are all about. A cooperative business belongs to the people who use it, people who have organized to provide themselves with the goods and services they need. All across America, 120
October is Co-op Month. For more information about cooperatives, visit www.cooperative.org.
8 ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING OCTOBER 1999 |
|
|
