PORTLAND, Ore. — Melvin Mark Companies tripled its purchase of Pacific Power’s Blue Sky renewable energy, increasing the amount of green power for four Portland properties: Columbia Square, the Fifth Avenue Building, the Fifth & Taylor Parking Garage and the Auditorium Parking Garage.  Melvin Mark also enrolled the Union Bank of California Tower in Blue Sky for the first time.

“With Pacific Power’s Blue Sky program, we help grow the amount of green power used for light, heat and businesses,” said Jon Carder, president of Melvin Mark Brokerage Company. “Making conscious, sustainable business decisions is critical to maintaining our quality of life.”

Melvin Mark is increasing its clean energy commitment using Pacific Power’s Blue Sky QS program, which allows large business customers to buy renewable energy from Pacific Power for less, providing they purchase at least 101 blocks of Blue Sky per month for a year. Blue Sky is sold in 100-kwh block increments.

Melvin Mark hiked its purchase level from 400 blocks to 934 blocks per month for the four downtown buildings; and bought an additional 350 blocks per month for the Union Bank of California Tower.

“Organizations are finding that buying renewable power is a great way to integrate environmental sustainability into their business practices,” said Bill Edmonds, Pacific Power’s director of environmental policy. Edmonds explained that while Pacific Power already buys renewable power for its customers, Blue Sky is a way to bring even more into the system and to promote more renewable power development.

Pacific Power uses Blue Sky dollars to acquire renewable energy from local wind farms, such as the Stateline Wind Energy Farm along the Oregon/Washington border.  Just one, 100-kwh block of Blue Sky has the same environmental benefit of either not driving 2,500 miles or planting a half acre of trees. Enrollment is optional and customers can increase their participation or withdraw at any time.

Renewable energy – such as wind, solar, geothermal and biomass – has a much lower impact on the environment than traditional methods of electricity generation. It produces lower levels of air pollutants, wastewater, smog and acid rain, and it can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Melvin Mark Companies is a member of the U.S. Green Building Council, a coalition of leaders from across the building industry working to promote buildings that are environmentally responsible, profitable and healthy places to live and work.
Pacific Power offers its residential and small business customers three Blue Sky renewable power options:

• Blue Sky Block— This option gives customers the flexibility to purchase fixed increments (blocks) of new wind power for an additional $1.95 per block. Customers can purchase as much or as little as they’d like. 
• Blue Sky Usage— Under this option, customers buy and support 100% renewable resources  equivalent to their actual metered usage, which can fluctuate month-to-month. Their purchase supports a blend of new wind, biomass and solar and costs only $0.0078 (less than a penny) more per kwh than Basic Service rates.  For the typical Oregon residential household that means an additional $7.80 each month.
• Blue Sky Habitat— As with Blue Sky Usage, customers buy renewable energy equivalent to their actual usage and support 100%  new renewable resources — a blend of new wind, biomass and solar — for only $0.0078 (less than a penny) more per kwh than Basic Service rates. In addition, customers make a $2.50 monthly contribution to The Nature Conservancy of Oregon, which is working to restore local salmon habitat. 
• Large businesses also have two renewable options: Pacific Power’s standard Blue Sky Block offering and Blue Sky QS (quantity savings). Blue Sky QS allows large business customers to buy renewable energy from Pacific Power for less, providing they purchase at least 101 blocks of Blue Sky per month for a year.

Enrollment is optional and customers can increase their participation or withdraw at any time. For more information or to sign up for Blue Sky, call 1-800-769-3717 or e-mail bluesky@pacificorp.com . Customers can sign up on line at www.pacificpower.net/bluesky

More about Pacific Power and Blue Sky

Pacific Power serves about 527,000 Oregon customers with reliable, safe, low-cost electricity. The U.S. Dept. of Energy ranked Pacific Power’s Blue Sky program second in the nation for customers enrolled in a renewable power program; and third in the amount of renewable power sold. More than 20,220 Oregon Pacific Power customers choose Blue Sky renewable energy and 38,800 customers buy Blue Sky in the Western U.S.