Time to support—not attack—your Co-op | Letters

Published 3:38 pm Wednesday, May 27, 2015

There is speculation about this Thursday’s OPALCO board meeting.

Ideology and personalities, long focused on in our small community, are irrelevant when margins of choice narrow.

The bottom line is that OPALCO has to do whatever it has to do to stay in loan compliance. Co-op or not, this should not be distorted into a political or personality issue; this direction is unproductive.

This is the time to support, not attack, your co-op.

In the meantime, if people really want to encourage usage-based rates and at the same time lower the county’s carbon footprint and improve their own and the county’s balance of payments, they should be driving electric vehicles. Electric vehicles would increase consistent electric power sales so that the rate component of billings can increase and make room for fixed charge reductions.

I understand that there will be Leaf exhibits (and test drives) at the energy fairs. Getting the county off fossil fuels and onto cheaper, electric motive power to the extent practicable would be a real step with genuine and positive impact on the individual, the environment, and OPALCO.

Bill Appel/Waldron Island

— Editor’s note: the OPALCO board of directors will reportedly discuss a potential rate increase to help offset a $600,000 revenue shortfall (2015) at its meeting of May 28, at the Co-op’s Eastsound headquarters.