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We support green power and so can you

Central Hudson supports your right to choose the products that best meet your needs and interests. There are two ways in which you can support renewable energy as a utility customer:

1. You may purchase your entire supply of energy from an Energy Service Company (or ESCO) that owns the rights to electricity that was generated by renewable fuels such as wind, solar, small hydro, biomass, etc.,
or
2. You may purchase Renewable Energy Certificates, commonly known as RECs, TRCs (or Tradeable Renewable Certificates) or “green tags.’

Visit the Green Power page on our website to evaluate the current offers being made by green power providers.

IN THIS ISSUE

We support green power
President's Q&A
Simplify in 2011
Keep cold out, heat in
Recycling success stories
$373,000 for United Way
Municipalities save big
Salvation Army award

$350-$700:
Natural gas boilers

For natural gas customers on a new, energy efficient boiler. Good for water and steam boilers.

Up to $600:
Duct & air sealing

Leaky windows, doors and ducts can reduce energy efficiency by as much as 20 percent. Central Hudson offers rebates of up to $600 for using a BPI-certified SavingsCentral Trade Ally to professionally seal your natural gas or electrically-heated home.

$140-$420: Natural gas furnaces

If you are a natural gas customer, let us give you a rebate of between $140 and $420 on a new, energy-efficient hot air furnace. The higher the efficiency rating, the higher the rebate.

$400: Electric heat pump water heaters

Is your water heater unreliable or costly to operate? Central Hudson has a $400 rebate for energy efficient heat pump water heaters.

$210: Indirect hot water heaters

If you are installing a new, energy efficient natural gas boiler, you can include an indirect water heater to heat your water instead of using a separate water heater.

$70: Boiler reset controls

A boiler reset control automatically adjusts the hot water set point in your boiler based on the outside temperature. It saves energy by reducing the heating demand of the boiler in hot weather.

$18-$25: Programmable thermostats

If you install a programmable thermostat with a new, energy efficient cooling or heating system, we will give you a rebate of between $18 and $25. A correctly programmed thermostat can save you up to $150 per year in energy costs.

How to get your rebate

1. Find a list of qualified SavingsCentral Trade Allies at SavingsCentral.com

2. Choose the energy efficient equipment best for your home and budget.

3. Obtain a rebate application from your Trade Ally or download a copy at SavingsCentral.

Save time with
convenient payment options

This time of year, many of us are juggling bills that may be higher than usual after all the gift purchasing that went on during the December holidays.

It’s not too late to make a New Year's resolution now, to help simplify the process for yourself going forward. We have several good ideas to make paying your Central Hudson bills easier to handle: 

• Budget Billing takes the unpredictability of seasonal, higher-than-usual bills in the winter heating season and summer air conditioning season and replaces them with a uniform, monthly amount.
• Our Direct Pay plan can be combined with Budget Billing to add the ease and benefits of automatic payment from your designated bank account.
• eBills are the completely paperless, environmentally preferable way to receive and pay your Central Hudson bills. 

All the details on these and all our payment options can be found here.

And if you find yourself in a situation where you need a little more help paying your bill, please be aware that we have a number of ways in which we are happy to assist eligible customers in difficult circumstances. Read about them on our Payment and Special Assistance page.

Practical ways to keep cold out, heat in

The winter heating season can result in some of the highest energy bills of the year. We have many good ideas to help you cut your heating costs, and make your home more comfortable in this frigid season, and all year long.

A number of substantial SavingsCentral energy efficiency rebates are now available if you are about to upgrade your home’s natural gas heating system. Find those offers here.

And if you are not currently planning a purchase that might qualify for a rebate, there are much simpler ways to make your home more energy efficient, and to help you save money, too. Click here and review these easy ideas about weatherization, insulation, and simple conservation measures to help take the bite out of those winter heating bills.

As we reported in the fall edition of PowerTalk, our summer-long air conditioner recycling program was a resounding success, with customers exchanging almost 1,500 older units while upgrading to new, energy efficient models.

But that was just the start of the savings. At year’s end, more than 2,985 refrigerators and freezers had also been recycled, conserving approximately 3,076,872 kWh of electricity; and earning more than $149,000 in incentives for our customers. To date, approximately 2,210 metric tons of CO2 emissions, equivalent to 248,560 gallons of gasoline, have been saved as a result. The energy saved is equivalent to the annual electricity use of 268 homes, or a reduction in annual greenhouse gas emissions equal to taking 423 passenger vehicles off the road.

You can still get in on the savings yourself. Central Hudson offers additional energy efficiency programs for residential customers, including rebates for purchasing high-efficiency natural gas furnaces and boilers, heat pump water heaters, central air conditioners, and ductless split air conditioners. Most are outlined along the right side of this screen. For businesses, Central Hudson offers a free energy audit and rebate of 70 percent off the installed cost of new, energy efficient lighting. For government-owned buildings, energy efficient lighting upgrades are free. For more information, click here. 

To participate in the Appliance Recycling Program, please visit www.RecycleMyAppliance.com or call (866) 706-3995.

Central Hudson campaign raises $373,000 to support local United Way agencies

Left: Central Hudson employees, from left, Jeremy Horton, Dan Harkenrider and Greg Fankhauser serve ice cream and cake at the Ulster-Greene ARC holiday party at the agency's Catskill workshop on Dec. 21, 2010. Right: ARC clients and staff celebrate.

Central Hudson’s 2010 United Way workplace campaign raised $373,000 in employee contributions and matching shareholder funds to support agencies and programs throughout our eight-county service area. An element of friendly competition introduced into the campaign for the first time helped add to that total:  Employees at all of Central Hudson’s division offices and operating headquarters were challenged to achieve the highest level of donor participation, and the winners were promised to be treated to a cake-and-ice cream dessert, served by company executives.

The employees of the Catskill District won the competition, but – in the true spirit of giving – decided they would rather donate their delicious winnings to a local non-profit, Ulster-Greene ARC and the developmentally disabled clients who work at the agency’s Catskill site.

On Tuesday, Dec. 21, a day on which the ARC clients and staff were already planning to enjoy their own holiday party, a crew from Central Hudson’s Catskill division served up dessert and soft drinks to dozens of clients and the hard-working professionals of this local agency.

Central Hudson already has a long-term relationship with Ulster-Greene ARC, as their clients have performed material recycling services for the utility at one of its Ulster County locations since 1988. During that time, more than 12 million pounds of paper, cable, wire and other building materials have been recycled, conserving natural resources with the added benefit of providing local residents with developmental disabilities the opportunity to provide a valuable service.

Central Hudson saves municipalities
big bucks with energy efficient lights

Above: A photo taken in the midst of a lighting upgrade at the City's Common Council Chambers reveals the improved quality of lighting from the room's old lights, left half of photo, to the newly installed energy efficient lights on the right.
Below: Installers working under the Central Hudson program upgrade lighting at the City's Common Council Chambers.

Greenhouse gas emissions and government spending are two issues weighing heavily on many people’s minds these days and Central Hudson is taking action to reduce both with its Energy Efficient Commercial Lighting program.

Under the program, inefficient lighting fixtures at government-owned properties, businesses and non-profit agencies are retrofitted at drastically reduced costs. For many local governments, there is no cost at all. That’s what’s happening in the City of Poughkeepsie where renovations are under way that will save city taxpayers $144,000 per year in electricity costs and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 1.6 million pounds — all at no cost to the City.

“The City is continually looking for new ways to promote energy efficiency and I am thankful to Central Hudson for their efforts in this project,” said Mayor John C. Tkazyik. “It will truly make a difference to the City’s budget.”

And the City of Poughkeepsie is not alone, more than 180 local businesses and municipalities have already participated in the lighting program with more than 200 additional installations to be completed by March.

Under the program, Central Hudson pays for 70% of the efficient lighting upgrade for qualified businesses, non-profit agencies and public buildings. Public buildings can get the remaining balance paid for with Energy Policy Act tax deductions.

Visit the Energy Efficient Commercial Lighting page for details and to request a free energy audit to see if the commercial, non-profit or public building you manage qualifies.

Salvation Army honors Central Hudson
as Good Neighbor Fund turns 25

Central Hudson’s Good Neighbor Fund has been helping families with financial hardships to pay their utility bills since 1985. More than 13,500 Hudson Valley households have benefited from $1.8 million in assistance since the inception of the program, which is funded by Central Hudson customers and shareholders — and administered by the local corps of the Salvation Army in Kingston, Newburgh, Poughkeepsie and Beacon, to ensure that all donations serve local people in the community.

Denise D. VanBuren, Central Hudson Corporate Secretary & Vice President, accepts the award on behalf of the Company from Robert Dietz, The Salvation Army's Mid-Hudson Advisory Board Chairperson.

The fund was developed in order to help families who find themselves in true financial difficulty, perhaps as the result of an unexpected job loss, medical emergency or other hardship.

When the Good Neighbor Fund celebrated its 25th Anniversary in November, 2010, The Salvation Army recognized Central Hudson and its customers and shareholders for their generosity.

In accepting the award on behalf of the company at a dinner ceremony in Poughkeepsie, Central Hudson Vice President and Corporate Secretary Denise D. VanBuren shared a special surprise announcement: “We certainly recognize that we are living in extraordinary economic times, when our neighbors are struggling perhaps more than they have in the past.  As a company and as good neighbors ourselves, we want to do something additional to help with your work.” VanBuren went on to announce the sponsorship of an online Red Kettle drive on the Central Hudson website, to last through the 2010 holiday season. “We are optimistic that—in addition to continuing to encourage our customers to contribute to the Good Neighbor Fund—they will also help fund the important work of the Salvation Army by contributing to our online kettle.  We’re excited to ring a virtual bell!”

You can help make a difference for a needy neighbor too. While that online Red Kettle campaign has concluded, you will find instructions on every Central Hudson bill explaining how simple it is to contribute to The Good Neighbor Fund.

To read more about the Salvation Army's recognition, click here.

Produced by the Corporate Communications Division
Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corp.
284 South Avenue
Poughkeepsie, NY, 12601
www.CentralHudson.com