Related News
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Spring Cleaning? How about Spring Emergency Preparedness!
Spring is officially here and that means the plants are blooming, the sun is (sometimes) shining, and the grass is green! We've had our fair share of severe weather already, but spring weather is notoriously unpredictable. While you're in the midst of spring cleaning and garden care, consider completing these emergency preparedness tasks.
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EWEB General Manager Delivers 2024 State of the Utility
General Manager Frank Lawson delivered his address at the March 5 public Board of Commissioners meeting
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Nine days without power: My ice storm story as an EWEB customer and employee
While beautiful and peaceful, buying a home on the edge of the forest and surrounded by trees has its tradeoffs. Moving “upriver,” I knew there would be more threats to prepare for, including Mother Nature’s seasonal surprises.
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EWEB achieves power restoration milestone over the weekend
Crews have so far restored power for 92% of customers who originally lost power at the height of the ice storm.
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Reenergized McKenzie River Valley transmission lines allow EWEB crews to restore power upriver
On Friday, a majority of EWEB crews tackled power restoration efforts upriver, after federally managed transmission lines were reenergized Thursday.
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EWEB estimates one week to complete power system restoration
On Wednesday, EWEB crews restored power for about 10,000 customers by repairing large equipment first.
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Second round of ice and ensuing thaw prompt mass power outages
On Wednesday, all EWEB crews, who have been working nonstop since Saturday, traversed EWEB’s service territory assessing the damage and restoring transmission lines and main power feeders.
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Power restored at EWEB’s water treatment plant
Crews restored electric power at EWEB's Hayden Bridge Water Filtration Plant Monday evening, allowing operators to switch off the generators and rely again on the grid. Meanwhile, EWEB crews brace for additional outages amidst second round of ice and during the coming thaw.
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EWEB crews making downed lines safe and restoring power across Eugene and the foothills
As EWEB works to restore electric service to customers affected by the ice storm, the customer-owned utility is following established policies and its “hierarchy of repair” to prioritize repairs that restore electric service to the greatest number of customers.
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Leaburg Decommissioning Action Plan
Plan details next steps through regulatory processes to begin dismantling Leaburg Dam by 2032.
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What’s ahead in 2024: General manager’s message to EWEB customer-owners
At the start of the new year, we back at accomplishments from 2023 and look ahead at what's to come in 2024.
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Currin Substation: End of year update
EWEB Engineer Philip Peterson explains what's been happening in the final stretch to complete the substation rebuild.
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EWEB 2023 year in review
In 2023, EWEB invested in our community with grants, rebates and an array of other programs and measures aimed at fulfilling our core values of safety, reliability, affordability, environmental responsibility and community/culture.
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EWEB Recognized with Excellence in Communications Awards from American Public Power Association
We are proud to have been recognized with two Excellence in Public Power Communications Awards for 2023 from the American Public Power Association (APPA).
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Let's talk turkey. If a disaster strikes, is your family ready?
Many of us avoid discussing politics over the dinner table in the spirit of family peace and harmony. But here's a topic that can bring everyone together: emergency preparedness.
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Solar Energy Vision Thrives at Pearl Buck Center After Greenpower Grant Award
June 09, 2021
In 2018, the Eugene-based nonprofit made a plan to mount solar modules on a roof overhang of their preschool facility in West Eugene. The facility supports children whose parents have cognitive challenges. The organization received a $50,000 grant from EWEB's Greenpower program, and after a $10,000 discount from Advanced Energy Systems, the Pearl Buck Center was able to cover the remaining cost to install a 24-kilovolt solar array. Using solar energy has resulted in a 9% reduction in energy costs, and three years later the savings have exceeded the organization's $15,000 investment.
Greenpower Grants are funded through a voluntary subscription for EWEB customers who want to invest in local renewable energy projects. If you are an EWEB customer, you can assign up to 100% of your electricity use by paying a small premium on your electric bill. EWEB uses these Greenpower funds to support research, education, and projects that advance renewable energy, including our rooftop solar rebates.
At Pearl Buck, the preschool students got to participate in the solar panel installation, complete with a ribbon-cutting celebration when the project was complete. Children continue to learn about solar energy, and the energy data from the panels is on proud display at the entrance of the main office.
Students at the Pearl Buck Center preschool run through the ribbon at the celebration for their solar panel installation.
The clean energy vision at Pearl Buck Center doesn't end there. The success of the solar energy system has helped propel more ideas from Executive Director Margaret Theisen. She hopes to install enough panels in their parking lot area to generate a surplus of clean energy; hopefully enough energy to power the homes of the people they serve.
"We support families who are disproportionately affected by climate change due to their income level or because they live in neighborhoods without the resources to invest in the environment. So, we see generating solar energy as another way to support their health and their ability to thrive in our community," said Theisen.
Pearl Buck Center Executive Director Margaret Theisen has high hopes for clean energy after receiving a Greenpower Grant in 2018.
Another reason Theisen feels passionate about lowering the organization's carbon footprint is the interconnective relationship we all have to the global issue of climate change. "We all breathe the same air around the world," she continued. "Suspending climate change is better for the health of all our citizens. On top of all the good it does, clean energy also ultimately means the organization is spending less money on overhead, leaving more funding for services."
The Greenpower Grant program is open to tax-exempt 501(c)(3) and (4) nonprofit organizations, schools, and academic institutions, or government and other public agencies. Applications for the grant could include the installation of renewable energy systems, battery storage systems, research or studies centering on renewable energy, educational curriculum or workshop development, or carbon emission offsets. Other awardees include Friends of Trees, Eugene Science Center, and Buena Vista Elementary School. Applications for the 2021 Grant closed recently and we are excited to announce the winner(s) soon!
There's still time for you to become a Greenpower subscriber and vote on your favorite project!
For more information about Pearl Buck Center, visit pearlbuckcenter.com/