Thursday, May 20, 2010

$1.1M grant to help streetlights in rural Utah towns go green

Some rural Utah towns are using state dollars to 'go green' as they make the switch to high-tech night lighting.

The Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems Smart Energy initiative Wednesday received a Utah State Energy Program Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant of $1.1 million.

The grant will enable 14 UAMPS member municipalities to retrofit a portion of their existing streetlights with new, energy-efficient LED lamps and fixtures.

Based in Salt Lake City, UAMPS is a nonprofit agency that provides wholesale electricity to 52 community-owned power systems throughout the West, including in Utah, Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon and Wyoming.

The participating members include the cities of Eagle Mountain, Enterprise, Ephraim, Fillmore, Holden Town, Hurricane, Monroe, Morgan, Oak City, Parowan, Payson, Santa Clara and Springville, as well as Heber Light & Power.

The grants are awarded through a competitive application process. UAMPS was the first organization selected to receive this award through the program. The Deseret News