While Truckee has never been known as being nongreen, with its’ green mountains and abundant trees, a new green is taking place to help reduce carbon emissions in the air. Many towns and cities are addressing ways to make the reduction of greenhouse gasses a reality. California is leading the way, perhaps the world, with Truckee and Lake Tahoe being no exception.
The Truckee PUD is looking at geothermal as a solution to reduce emissions by adopting a program to receive a portion of their electricity from the Geysers in Sonoma County. This renewable energy source will replace some of the electricity now being supplied by coal fired electric generating plants.
Western GeoPower Agency plans to develop a new geothermal power plant by 2010, with an expected capacity of 25 to 35 megawatts. Truckee’s PUD percentage is expected to be 1.5%. The alternative energy source would supplement the districts goal of using 20% renewable energy by 2010.
The PUD supplies between 20 and 25 megawatts of power to approximately 12,100 customers monthly. As Truckee continues to grow, this number is expected to increase creating an even greater demand for electricity from the PUD. The district has also entered into a 10 year agreement to transport about 4 megawatts of geothermal power from the Rye Ranch in Northern Nevada.
