When I was growing up, I spent a lot of time on my grandparents’ farm. I vividly remember my grandmother doing laundry and running everything that came out of the washer through a hand crank wringer before putting it in the dryer. It helped her save money and energy because the clothes took less time to dry. She also rinsed out Ziploc bags and used them multiple times. She was quite the early conservationist.

It’s easy to talk about energy efficiency as a relatively new idea, but that’s not true. Conscientious consumers have been using energy wisely since we first started electrifying farms in 1938.

Recognizing that, Cherryland has had an energy use services department since the 1970s. We have a long history of helping our members control their costs and use energy wisely.

Still, in 2008, the state of Michigan implemented a mandatory energy waste reduction program requiring all utilities to incentivize energy efficiency and report on their annual savings. A lot of cooperative resources have been put into meeting the requirements of that program. Since its inception we have spent over $3.2 million to meet the mandate. That investment helped our members with over 51,000 energy efficiency projects.

Our task has been even more challenging because more than 95% of the accounts we serve are homes. Incentivizing savings of over 4 million kilowatt-hours per year, one house at a time, isn’t easy. After 13 years, we have pretty much replaced every old refrigerator on our system.

While the mandate is going away, our service to our members is not.

We’ve been helping our members save energy and money for 50 years and don’t intend to stop anytime soon. But now that we have some relief from the strict parameters of the mandate, we can invest all of our resources into energy incentive programs that are responsive to the unique needs of our membership.

Here’s what you can expect.

First, we are going to expand our efforts to help our members decrease their carbon footprint by switching from fossil fuels to electricity. Did you know that an electric vehicle charged by Cherryland creates more than 50% less CO2 than a gas-powered vehicle? And that same math is true for your lawnmower, home heating system, stovetop, and so much more.

Second, we are going to allocate more resources to help our most vulnerable members assess and upgrade the envelope of their homes. For many of our members, especially those on a fixed income, upgrading things like insulation and windows can make a big difference in their energy bills and their home’s overall comfort, health, and safety. We will be starting with a pilot program to do a limited number of free energy audits for income qualified members.

Finally, we will continue to listen to you, our members, about what types of rebates and services you need to meet your energy goals.

For more information on our 2022 rebate program, click here.