IKEA Portland puts renewable energy in its cart

International retailer purchase equals 22 percent of energy use

Massive IKEA stores are often likened to little cities unto themselves. If so, then the Portland IKEA store at Cascade Station would be the leading city in Oregon for supporting renewable energy.

IKEA is purchasing the equivalent of 22 percent of its electricity through Pacific Power’s award-wining Blue Sky renewable energy program. The store uses as much electricity in a year as approximately 400 average homes. Nationally, only a handful of communities purchase more than 20 percent of their energy from renewable sources.

“The Blue Sky program is a great fit for what we already are doing at IKEA,” said Ken Bodeen, store manager. “The company goal is to support renewable energy to the greatest extent possible. In the Portland area, the Blue Sky program makes that a simple commitment to make and pays immediate dividends.”

IKEA’s commitment to purchase 954 Blue Sky blocks per month will have definite positive environmental benefits. Over the course of one year, this commitment has the same environmental benefit as planting 224,858 trees or not driving 2.5 million miles.

“IKEA has an international reputation for efficiency and innovation,” said Pat Reiten, Pacific Power president. “That is in prominent display with this commitment to renewable energy.”

Other examples of IKEA’s leadership in environmental sustainability include:

The Portland building is in the process of earning Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Green Building Rating System certification with features such as low water consumption toilets, motion/photo sensor lighting in all administrative areas and a state of the art energy management system to efficiently monitor and control consumption down to the minute and degree.
Located right on the MAX line at Cascade Station, IKEA encourages co-workers and customers to use mass transit with incentives, such as $10 off local home delivery.
To cut down on the problem of plastic bag waste, IKEA offers its sturdy, reusable Big Blue Bag for just 59 cents and charges 5 cents for each disposable plastic bag and then donates the money to the American Forest Fund to help plant trees.
IKEA has an aggressive recycling program for all metal, cardboard, plastic and wood. The store provides recycling receptacles for customers and co-workers throughout the building and is the only major retailer that welcomes visitors to bring in compact fluorescent light bulbs and batteries for safe recycling regardless of where they were purchased.
IKEA designers are always searching for new ways to reduce, reuse, recycle and save resources when creating new products. They often find inspiration in things that might otherwise go to waste; such as weaving leftover banana leaves into comfortable stackable chairs.
Through innovative packaging solutions, configured to be as small as possible, IKEA is able to maximize every shipment and reduce emissions.

The Blue Sky program provides Pacific Power customers with an easy way to support renewable energy development in our region. When you enroll in Blue Sky, Pacific Power purchases certified renewable energy credits from regional renewable energy facilities. This guarantees that electricity from these renewable resources is delivered to the regional power pool. Electricity produced by renewable energy facilities helps offset electricity generated from other, nonrenewable sources, creating measurable environmental benefits.

Customers have a range of options when it comes to buying Blue Sky renewable energy: Blue Sky Block, Usage or Habitat. Customers can buy as many blocks as they wish. Blue Sky Usage allows customers to offset emissions from 100 percent of their electricity use with renewable resources for less than a penny more per kilowatt-hour. With Blue Sky Habitat, customers buy renewable energy at the same rate as Blue Sky Usage, plus donate to The Nature Conservancy of Oregon to preserve native fish habitat. Large customers can buy Blue Sky blocks in bulk at a discount through Blue Sky QS. Participation in any of these plans is optional, and customers can increase their participation or withdraw at any time.

Customers who want to sign up for a renewable power option may call Pacific Power at 800-769-3717 or click here .