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CapitalPress.com
October 6, 2017
Farmers plug into energy-saving incentives
By BRENNA WIEGAND
For the Capital Press
Being reimbursed for ener-
gy-saving measures is easier
than most farmers and green-
house owners think.
In 2016, the Energy Trust
of Oregon provided incen-
tives of $1.25 million for
415 irrigation projects and
$150,000 in incentives for 18
greenhouse projects.
“On top of these incentives
there are energy and water
savings,” Susan Jowaiszas of
Energy Trust said, “and those
go on and on year after year.”
Six different greenhouse
measures are available for
customers of Northwest Natu-
ral Gas, Cascade Natural Gas
or Avista.
“A great one is replacing
non-infrared greenhouse cov-
ering with infrared-transmit-
ting polycarbonate covering,”
Energy Trust of Oregon
A center pivot system with goosenecks, drops and low-flow
sprinkler heads. Such water- and energy-saving improvements
can save up to 50 percent on energy costs and are eligible for
incentives from the Energy Trust of Oregon.
Energy Trust Ag and Industri-
al Outreach Manager Ulrike
Mengelberg said. “We pay 2
cents per square foot — just
about the difference in cost
between a non-IR poly versus
an IR poly covering, and the
energy savings on that is im-
mense.”
The new unit heater re-
bate has also been popular,
as is the greenhouse control-
ler. Alerting features on the
new controllers take some of
A pot-in-pot drip irrigation system at Alpha Nursery in Salem, Ore.
Drip irrigation system conversions can save up to 40 percent on
energy costs and are eligible for Energy Trust of Oregon incentives.
the anxiety out of greenhouse
management. For instance,
the operator can receive a text
message when the tempera-
ture is off.
“It’s just one of those
measures that makes a lot of
sense; it controls your heating
and your cooling and your
venting,” Mengelberg said.
For those converting to un-
der-bench heat, whether in the
floor or directly underneath
the plants, Energy Trust offers
$1.05 per foot on new tubing.
On the farm, Energy Trust
offers rebates and custom in-
centives for irrigation system
improvements to customers of
Portland General Electric and
Pacific Power. Calculated in-
centives require pre-approval.
The efficiency a new system
brings is reimbursed at 25
cents per kilowatt-hour saved.
Examples include replacing a
wheel line with a center piv-
ot or replacing a big gun with
drip irrigation.
Another big upgrade for ir-
rigation is replacing an over-
sized irrigation pump.
“Maybe they have the
100-horsepower pump that
Grandpa put in and now the
grandkids have better irriga-
tion systems and only need a
50 horsepower,” Mengelberg
said. “We can help them pay
for their new pump.”
Energy Trust’s incentive
covers up to 40 percent of
the cost of a new variable
frequency drive. This allows
farmers to use their pump
more efficiently. Growers can
also use their smart phones to
remote start the new units.
Incentives are offered for
just about anything that saves
water because that means sav-
ing electricity, too.
“It’s easy — they just fill
out the rebate form,” Mengel-
berg said. “There are about
14 different irrigation com-
ponents they can get a rebate
on.”
“We had one farmer who
sent in a year’s worth of in-
voices on Dec. 27; it came in
as a 55-page fax,” Mengel-
berg said. “We couldn’t use
a third of them because they
were too old — rebate forms
are due within 6 months of
purchase and before the end
of the calendar year — but
we ended up sending him a
$20,000 incentive check for
things like nozzles and gas-
kets and sprinkler heads. It
can really add up.”
For more information, go
to www.energytrust.org/ag.
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